The Bureau of Economic Analysis of the U.S. Department of Commerce requires all U.S. persons that own or control more than 10 percent of the voting securities (a “Direct Investment”) of a “foreign” business enterprise to report on its BE-10 Benchmark Survey of U.S. Direct Investment Abroad for the fiscal year 2014. Form BE-10 is due by May 29, 2015, for respondents reporting fewer than 50 Foreign Affiliate forms (as discussed below) and June 30, 2015, for 50 or more forms. Official BE-10 forms and instructions can be found below, on the Bureau of Economic Analysis website.

Purpose and Applicability -

The BE-10, Benchmark Survey of U.S. Direct Investment Abroad (the “BE-10 Survey”), is a mandatory survey conducted once every five years by the Bureau of Economic Analysis (the “BEA”) under the International Investment and Trade in Services Survey Act (the “Act”). The purpose of the BE-10 Survey is to obtain economic data—financial and operating characteristics—of, and information on positions and transactions between, U.S. parent companies and their foreign affiliates. The scope of the form appears to also capture investment funds, both as reporting persons and as foreign affiliates of a reporting person. The BE-10 Survey collects a large amount of information regarding (i) the Direct Investment and (ii) “enterprise-level information” regarding the business enterprise in which the Direct Investments were made. Any U.S. person (including its fully consolidated U.S. domestic enterprise) with direct or indirect ownership or control of at least 10 percent of the voting stock of an incorporated foreign business enterprise, or an equivalent interest in an unincorporated foreign business enterprise, (each a “Reporter”) at any time during such Reporter’s 2014 fiscal year is required to file a BE-10 report comprising Form BE10A and Form(s) BE 10B, BE-10C or BE-10D, as applicable (a “BE-10 Report”). As this is a “benchmark year,” this reporting is required of all relevant persons, regardless of whether the Reporter has been contacted by the BEA to do so; publication in the Federal Register is considered notice to all persons required to report.