Tag Archive for US Taxpayers

Early Christmas Gift Announcement: US Overseas Taxpayers Subject to Three New IRS Scrutiny Campaigns & Audits Next Year

Since the enactment of FATCA, US persons (citizens and green card holders) overseas have, via lobbying efforts, requested relief from the additional tax compliance burdens placed upon them that appear to be increasing their costs of living overseas (which is generally more expensive than living in the USA anyway).

Their arguments fall into the following three: (1) generally, they file foreign tax returns and pay local tax preparation services but must also pay an additional $2,000- $3,000 for a US tax preparation service specialized in foreign residence; (2) generally the foreign income exclusion and foreign tax credit wash out the U.S. tax burden but for anomalies in definitions between retirement plans that cause undue burden on foreign residents US persons; and (3) US persons must pay more for financial services because they have become the pariah of the financial world.

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Written by | Posted in IRS • Tax Compliance

Streamlined Procedure And Foreign Bank Account Regs For Non-Resident US Citizens

It all started with the announcement of the FATCA (Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act) going into effect, then the new streamlined compliance procedures were announced in 2012 to go into effect on September 1st, 2012.

They were implemented in recognition that some U.S. taxpayers living abroad had failed to timely file U.S. federal income tax returns or FBARs, Form TD F 90-22.1. These delinquent taxpayers may have recently become aware of their filing obligations and now seek to come into compliance with the law.

The new procedures are for non-residents including but not limited to dual citizens who have not filed U.S. income tax and other related information returns. Read More

Written by | Posted in FATCA • FBAR • OVDP

Options Available for US Taxpayers With Offshore Accounts and/or Entities!

TaxConnections Blog post regarding OVDPThe IRS’ focus on offshore enforcement efforts and related disclosure programs has raised awareness among many U.S. citizens about their tax filing and information reporting obligations.

Situations of taxpayers with offshore compliance issues vary widely given the complexity of this area of tax law. Taxpayers that recently learned of these tax requirements should also be advised of the many options that are available, outside of the normal filing process, to help them get current with their tax obligations.

A number of the common situations and potential solutions are outlined below.

Situation 
Compliance Option 
Taxpayers who have properly reported all taxable income but recently learned that he/she should have been filing FBARs in prior years to report a personal foreign bank account or to report signature authority over bank accounts owned by an employer.

Taxpayers who reported, and paid tax on, all their taxable income for prior years but did not file FBARs, should file the delinquent FBAR reports according to the instructions (send to Department of Treasury, Post Office Box 32621, Detroit, MI 48232-0621) and attach a statement explaining why the reports are filed late.The IRS will not impose a penalty for the failure to file the delinquent FBARs if there are no underreported tax liabilities and you have not previously been contacted regarding an income tax examination or a request for delinquent returns. Read More
Written by | Posted in TaxConnections