USDA requires foreign ag investor reports

Foreign investors with an interest in agricultural lands in the United States are required to report their holdings and any transactions to the U.S. Secretary of Agriculture.

"Any foreign person who acquires or transfers any interest, other than a security deposit, in agricultural land in the United States is required by law to report the transaction no later than 90 days after the date of transaction," said Mark Tays, executive director of the Lampasas/Burnet County Farm Service Agency.

Foreign investors must file Agricultural Foreign Investment Disclosure Act (AFIDA) reports with the Farm Service Agency office that maintains reports for the county where the land is located.

Failure to file a report, or filing a late or inaccurate report, can result in fines up to 25 percent of the fair market value of the agricultural land, Tays said.

AFIDA defines "agricultural land" as any property of 10 acres or more used for farming, ranching or timber production.

Disclosure reports also are required when there are changes in land use -- as from non-agricultural to agricultural or from agricultural to non-agricultural.

"Foreign investors also must file a report when there is a change in the status of ownership, such as owner changes from foreign to non-foreign, from non-foreign to foreign or from foreign to foreign," Tays added.

Periodic reports to the president and Congress contain data gained from AFIDA disclosures, which helps explain the effect of such holdings on family farms and rural communities.

For more information about AFIDA and FSA programs, contact the Lampasas/Burnet County FSA office at (512) 715-8026, or visit the USDA Web site at www.usda.gov.