Foreign bank accounts with less than 10000$ and no interest - do I still need Schedule B

[IK100]

I have foreign bank accounts that are nearly empty by now (significantly less than 10000$ for 2021 and many years prior). There is no interest expected from those either. But at the same time, I have interest from US bank accounts.

If not for foreign bank accounts - I wouldn't be filing Schedule B and could include total interest in other forms.

But I'm trying to understand if Schedule B https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/i1040sb.pdf instructions treat having an account as "signature authority" and therefore despite not needing to file any other forms related to foreign accounts, I still need to file Schedule B as part of my tax return:

"You had a financial interest in, or signature authority over, a financial account in
a foreign country or you received a distribution from, or were a grantor of, or transferor to, a foreign trust."

Several articles online suggested that I need to file Schedule B even if I merely have foreign bank accounts. And in this case, I would have to report US bank interest in detail as Schedule B Part I anyway, right? Please share what is your experience with filing in these cases.

[ThomasM125 · Accepted solution]

The instructions to schedule B state you must file it if "You had a financial interest in, or signature authority over, a financial account in a foreign country ..." So, a literal interpretation would indicate that you do need to file the form.