US And Switzerland Tax Treaty

The U.S. Treasury Department on Friday announced that a long-in-the-works tax treaty with Switzerland has at last been signed and has entered into force, alongside a tax deal with Luxembourg.

The tax treaty had originally been approved by the Swiss Parliament in June, 2010, but had been held up on the U.S. side over concerns that it potentially violated the privacy of individuals whose information, under the agreement, will now be freely exchanged.

The deal means that Washington will now be in a position to request information from the Swiss authorities on American accounts going back ten years.

In a statement on Friday, the Treasury Department said the two protocols would bring the existing tax treaties that the U.S. already has with Luxembourg and Switzerland “into closer conformity with current U.S. tax treaty policy, to allow for greater tax information exchange that will enhance efforts to bolster tax compliance and combat tax evasion.”

The protocols with Luxembourg and Switzerland – in addition to protocols with Japan and Spain that were also signed recently – are the first updates to to the U.S.’s income tax treaty regime in nearly 10 years.

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On June 7, 2017, over 70 Ministers and other high-level representatives participated in the signing ceremony of the Multilateral Convention to Implement Tax Treaty Related Measures to Prevent Base Erosion and Profit Shifting (“Multilateral Instrument” or “MLI”).

Signatories include jurisdictions from all continents and all levels of development. A number of jurisdictions have also expressed their intention to sign the MLI as soon as possible and other jurisdictions are also actively working towards signature.

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Dewees 1: The Canada-U.S. tax treaty does NOT protect Canadians from U.S. tax liability but does mean that Canada will NOT assist the U.S. in collection!

There are certainly benefits to being a Canadian citizens. Perhaps Canadian citizenship is the most important line of defense against the confiscation that is OVDP. Read More

In a referendum in June 2016, the UK voted to leave the European Union (EU). The result was a surprise to many, as experts had been lining up to say that the UK would be worse off economically if it left. Just over a year on, it’s still a divisive issue in the UK. However the government formally triggered the start of the two year leaving process in March 2017, so it’s definitely going to happen. While heated debate on the pros and cons of staying and leaving still rages among the Brits, many U.S. expats are wondering what the implications for them are. Read More

The importance of income tax treaties should not be underestimated when considering the U.S. tax implications of living abroad. U.S. and foreign tax laws often fall short of ensuring that U.S. expats are on equal tax footing with their non-expat counterparts. In such case, a relevant tax treaty may be available to pick up the slack. Read More

John Richardson

Previously, we have look at the tax treaty tiebreaker and how it relates to taxation of Subpart F and PFIC income as well as eligibility for streamlined offshore procedures. This is another in a series of posts on the tax treaty tiebreaker (which is a standard provision in most U.S. tax treaties).

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John Richardson

Before a “Green Card” holder uses the “Treaty Tiebreaker” provision of a U.S. Tax Treaty, he/she must consider what is the effect of using the “Treaty Tiebreaker” on:

A. His/her immigration status under Title 8 (will he/she risk losing the Green Card?)

B. His/her status under Title 26 (will he expatriate himself under Internal Revenue Code S. 7701(b)) and subject himself to the S. 877A “Exit Tax” provisions?

Now, on to the post

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The Internal Revenue Service today reminded non-U.S. citizens who may have taxable income, such as international students and scholars who may be working or receiving scholarship funds, that they may have special requirements to file a U.S. tax return.

The IRS also reminded withholding agents — such as payroll professionals or universities — that accurately filed Forms 1042-S help speed any refunds due to their non-U.S. citizen taxpayers. Errors on forms or returns could result in some refunds being delayed.

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Larry Stolberg

Regulation 102 of the Income Tax Act (ITA) requires payroll withholding on income derived by virtue of employment. This applies to, say, a U.S. employer sending its employee to Canada to work on an assignment. Withholding would include income tax and contributions to the Canada Pension Plan (CPP) and Employment Insurance (EI).

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John Richardson

The United States has many tax treaties with many nations. As a general principle the “savings clause” prevents Americans abroad from having the benefit of treaty provisions. That said, there are situations where a U.S. citizen abroad can benefit from the specific provisions of a specific treaty.

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Introduction – what this post is about …

I attended the hearing in Vancouver, B.C. on August 4, 5 2015. At that time I wrote a group of posts (here and here) discussing my perception of the hearing. Those posts included expressions of my opinion that Justice Martineau was highly engaged, was working hard on understanding the issues, and was affording all parties a fair hearing. Although, disappointed with his decision (handed down on September 16, 2015), and not agreeing with his conclusions, I reaffirm my sentiments in the previous posts.

This post is more about the “system” than it is about Justice Martineau specifically. In a judicial system, it is possible for “reasonable people” to have “reasonable Read More

This post is Part 1 of my thoughts on Justice Martineau’s decision.

I  left my root canal appointment this afternoon to a message announcing that Justice Martineau had rendered his decision. We did not win round 1. Notice that I did NOT say that the Government won round 1.

Here is the decision:

T-1736-14 decision sept-16-2015

Before, I comment specifically on the decision, I want to be clear on the following points: Read More