Recent Case “Willful” FBAR Penalty: Even Death is No Escape!

In a recent FBAR case involving an unreported foreign account maintained at none other than UBS in Switzerland, the court was called upon to decide whether the FBAR civil “willful” penalty assessed against the taxpayer survived his death. The case is United States v. Schoenfeld (Middle District, Fla. 3:16-cv-1248-J-34PDB), dated 9/25/18, and the court order … Continue reading Recent Case “Willful” FBAR Penalty: Even Death is No Escape! →

US Owners of Foreign Corporations – Beware the Downsides

My earlier blog post introduced readers to the concepts of so-called CFCs and PFICs and some of the downsides of owning a "foreign" corporation. It analogized to quicksand simply because it is very easy to be swallowed up in harsh tax results and onerous reporting obligations if planning is not undertaken beforehand. I will remind … Continue reading US Owners of Foreign Corporations – Beware the Downsides →

FORM 8938: Infinite Statute of Limitations & Everything Else You Need to Know

My prior blog post gave details about how the Form 8938, an important “Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act” (FATCA) enforcement weapon, is currently failing. IRS enforcement efforts are soon on the upswing. This is because the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration issued a report over the summer pointing out the IRS' failures with regard … Continue reading FORM 8938: Infinite Statute of Limitations & Everything Else You Need to Know →

Form 8938: How This IRS FATCA Weapon is Failing

On July 5, 2018, the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration ("TIGTA") issued a final audit report covering the enforcement efforts of the US Internal Revenue Service (IRS) of the “Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act” (the infamous "FATCA"). Readers may recall that FATCA was enacted in 2010, but it has been a very rocky road … Continue reading Form 8938: How This IRS FATCA Weapon is Failing →

Quicksand! US Owners of Foreign Corporations

It is usually very quick and easy to set up a foreign corporation - say, one in Belize or in the Cayman Islands. What is not so easy is working one's way through the quagmire of required Internal Revenue Service (IRS) reporting and US tax obligations simply because you are a US person owning shares … Continue reading Quicksand! US Owners of Foreign Corporations →

USA: One Country, Two Citizenships

One Country, Two Citizenships: John Richardson Interviews Virginia La Torre Jeker. Most people don’t know that the US has two kinds of citizenship – “Immigration” citizenship and “Tax” citizenship. Tax citizenship, the monkey on your back, is hard to shake off! Watch the interview, here. All the US tax information you need, every week … Continue reading USA: One Country, Two Citizenships →

Married to A Non-US Spouse? Use of “Resident” Election, Filing FBAR and Form 8938

My blog post containing tax-saving tips for the filing of a US income tax return when one is married to a non-resident alien spouse is here. It will be helpful to read that post before embarking on this one as it sets out the basics and provides the income tax rates and brackets for the 2018 … Continue reading Married to A Non-US Spouse? Use of “Resident” Election, Filing FBAR and Form 8938 →

Married to A Non-US Spouse? Tax Saving Tips For the US Income Tax Return

A US citizen or US tax resident (for example, a green card holder) who is married to a non-American when the couple lives abroad should consider certain US tax filing issues and strategies. US Tax Treatment of the Non-US Spouse When the non-US citizen spouse has obtained a green card or is otherwise treated as a … Continue reading Married to A Non-US Spouse? Tax Saving Tips For the US Income Tax Return →

Too Little, Too Late: Fixing the Fraudulent Tax Return

Sometimes an individual will come to me with a pesky problem – they have filed a tax return, but it fraudulently omitted income. Typically, a lot of income. Typically, from foreign sources. Always, in hopes the omission will go unnoticed by the IRS. The thinking is along the lines that since the omission involves foreign … Continue reading Too Little, Too Late: Fixing the Fraudulent Tax Return →

Transfer of Property or Cash to a Foreign Corporation? FILING OF FORM 926

US persons (e.g., US citizens, US green card holders) must make an information report to the IRS when making certain transfers to foreign (non-US) corporations. Specifically, when a US person transfers (or is treated under the tax rules as having transferred) property to a foreign corporation in certain “non-recognition” transactions (e.g., a contribution of capital … Continue reading Transfer of Property or Cash to a Foreign Corporation? FILING OF FORM 926 →