US Tax Treatment: Stock Options from Your Foreign Employer

With more and more expatriates working outside the United States, many tax questions arise when an employee is given options to buy stock in the foreign company employer. Stock options are increasingly becoming an important element of the international executive’s compensation package. There are wonderful opportunities to be had with stock options, but there are … Continue reading US Tax Treatment: Stock Options from Your Foreign Employer →

Big Win for Taxpayers with Foreign Assets: IRS Lacks Authority to Assess & Collect Penalties for Failure to File Foreign Information Returns

The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) was sucker-punched by the Tax Court on April 3, 2023 in the case of Farhy v. Commissioner, 160 T.C. No. 6 (2023). In that case, the Tax Court held that the IRS does not have the authority to assess and collect penalties asserted under Internal Revenue Code Section 6038(b), in the … Continue reading Big Win for Taxpayers with Foreign Assets: IRS Lacks Authority to Assess & Collect Penalties for Failure to File Foreign Information Returns →

Taxpayer Wins! Foreign Gift Not Reported: DOJ Concedes he had “Reasonable Cause”

We have had a taxpayer win in the foreign information reporting arena! I provide a summary of the case of Mr. Krzysztof Wrzesinski below. For readers who wish more, the taxpayer’s complaint is here. Background of the Wrzesinski Case Mr. Wrzesinski (“Taxpayer” or “T”) was a native of Poland who immigrated to the United States … Continue reading Taxpayer Wins! Foreign Gift Not Reported: DOJ Concedes he had “Reasonable Cause” →

FATCA Statute of Limitations: IRS’ 2018 Assessment Grabs Tax & Penalties Back to 2003

In Fairbank v. Commissioner, T.C. Memo. 2023-19, Dkt. No. 13400-18 (February 23, 2023) the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) issued a notice of deficiency in April 2018 for taxable years 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, and 2011. The taxpayers argued the IRS could not go back to these prior years, challenging the assessments on … Continue reading FATCA Statute of Limitations: IRS’ 2018 Assessment Grabs Tax & Penalties Back to 2003 →

Tax Statutes of Limitation – Run Fast, IRS is Right Behind You

With tax season in full swing, now is a good time to review the various civil statutes of limitations (SOL) rules that apply to US tax matters. Perfect timing to review because we also have a Tax Court case from last month showing how harsh the consequences of the SOL can be if a taxpayer … Continue reading Tax Statutes of Limitation – Run Fast, IRS is Right Behind You →

Free for You: My Cross-Border Tax Presentation for the Financial Planning Association

On March 15, I was delighted to present cross-border tax topics of interest for the Financial Planning Association (FPA). FPA is a well-known membership organization for certified financial planner professionals and those engaged in the financial planning process. It provides its members with practice support, learning, advocacy, and networking. As a tax professional, with 40 … Continue reading Free for You: My Cross-Border Tax Presentation for the Financial Planning Association →

The Perfect Storm – US Tax, Community Property & the Mobile International Couple

Last week I blogged about how the US tax system can create serious tax problems for the international couple when one is a US person and the other is not. In order to keep things simple, it is often advised that the couple hold assets separately to avoid nasty US tax complications. However, in some … Continue reading The Perfect Storm – US Tax, Community Property & the Mobile International Couple →

The US Tax Trap: International Marriage, Community Property and the Mobile Couple

Readers of my blog know from previous posts (for example here and here) that unless the international couple enjoys dealing with complicated US tax matters and filings, holding title to assets jointly with a non-US citizen spouse is risky business! The well-advised keep their assets completely separate to avoid nasty US tax complications. However, this alone … Continue reading The US Tax Trap: International Marriage, Community Property and the Mobile Couple →

Digital Asset Reporting for Mr. FBAR @FinCEN

Digital assets and FBAR reporting are definitely on the horizon but as yet, have not arrived. With the various announcements by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) that focus on the proper tax reporting for digital assets, as well as delaying implementation of third party broker reporting, it makes total sense that the Financial Crimes Enforcement … Continue reading Digital Asset Reporting for Mr. FBAR @FinCEN →

FBAR Penalties – US v. Molyneux and the Big Fat Money Grab

The United States Supreme Court has just set the stage for sky high FBAR penalties. How did this happen? Let's take a look - The case of United States v. Toth, No. 21-1009 (1st Cir. 2022) was on appeal to the US Supreme Court. The focus of the appeal was that the FBAR penalty was … Continue reading FBAR Penalties – US v. Molyneux and the Big Fat Money Grab →