I want to help a family member overseas and give him $20,000 (as a gift). My plan is to send him a wire transfer. Are there any reporting or tax implications on my side?

Yes----you are gifting more than $15000 to an individual so you will be required to complete a gift tax form.  It is not taxable unless you surpass the $11million + lifetime gift limit -- and not part of your income tax return.

 

 

GIFTS

Money that you receive as a gift is not taxable income to you, and you do not need to report it on your income tax return.  Money that you gave as a gift to someone else is not deductible for your taxes.

 

Turbo Tax does not support the gift tax form 709, but here is a link:

https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/f709.pdf

 

https://turbotax.intuit.com/tax-tips/estates/the-gift-tax-made-simple/L5tGWVC8N

 

https://www.forbes.com/sites/ashleaebeling/2017/10/19/irs-announces-2018-estate-and-gift-tax-limits-11-2-million-per-couple/#3226e75d4a4b

 

If you are a US person you must file a gift tax return if you give anyone more than $15,000 per year. No taxes owed unless your lifetime total of gifts is more than $11 million, but the form must be filed.

 

There are no other banking or tax requirements. The bank may file a report for currency transactions over $10,000, but you don’t have to worry about this.  If you make several small transactions under $10,000 in order to avoid the requirement for the bank to report transactions over $10,000, this can be considered a separate crime called structuring, even if the underlying purpose of the transaction is perfectly legal and legitimate.