Advertisement A false image depicts undocumented immigrants as criminals because they entered the United States illegally and received many government benefits. Wars in Korea, Vietnam, Afghanistan and Iraq created labor shortages. Some industrial complexes and corporate agriculture used growing numbers of undocumented laborers to whom they paid less than minimum… – Continue reading
Former UBS AG executive Hansruedi Schumacher pleaded guilty to conspiracy to defraud the U.S. as part of the government’s prosecution of financial industry officials who help Americans dodge taxes. Schumacher, 56, entered his plea Thursday in federal court in West Palm Beach, Florida. Schumacher, who also worked at Neue Zuercher… – Continue reading
One million American citizens in Canada face double tax troubles. Max Reed explores these challenges in a spring series If you’re a U.S. citizen living in Canada, you might be frantic about the IRS tax crackdown and hefty fines if you haven’t been tax compliant. How fast can the IRS… – Continue reading
I. Introduction In an effort to crack down on individuals obtaining U.S. citizenship illegally, the U.S. Department of Justice recently raided several “maternity tourism” operations in Southern California.1 These companies cater to wealthy foreigners seeking to give the gift of U.S. citizenship to their children. Since at least 1868, the… – Continue reading
As Tax Day approaches, homeland Americans scurry to file their annual tax filing obligations. But for an estimated 7.6 million Americans working and living overseas, they have an obligation to not only pay taxes in their respective countries where they live; they need to pay the piper in homeland America… – Continue reading
The tax man is coming for Guy Wildenstein, and may file charges against a wealth management company in the Bahamas in connection to the case against the billionaire art dealer. As reported by the Globe and Mail, the French agency that investigates tax evasion has recommended that a judge charge… – Continue reading
NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg and EU Counter-terrorism Coordinator Gilles de Kerchove visit Parliament this week to discuss security challenges and the EU’s response to terrorist threats. In addition MEPs vote on legislation to increase transparency when setting key interest rates, while the new special committee on tax rulings will… – Continue reading
Royal Bank of Canada’s wealth-management subsidiary in the Bahamas is caught up in tax fraud and money-laundering allegations involving billionaire international art dealer Guy Wildenstein. French prosecutor Franck Charon confirmed on Monday that France’s tax-evasion watchdog – Parquet national financer – has recommended to an investigating judge that RBC Trust… – Continue reading
After 2008, BSI has more than 3,000 US accounts on its books The Lugano-based BSI bank has been fined $211 million (CHF203 million) by the United States for aiding and abetting tax cheats. It is the first Swiss-based bank to complete the non-prosecution programme set up in 2013 to clear… – Continue reading
When Boris Johnson ran for mayor he told the BBC he wanted “a crackdown on tax dodgers and tax avoiders of all kinds”. The comment was a deliberate reference to his then-opponent Ken Livingstone’s use of a “personal service company” (PSC) to allegedly limit his tax bill. Use of PSCs… – Continue reading
Claims to be in favour of stamping out immoral tax practices were shown to be little more than lip service On Wednesday, Conservative and UKIP MEPs voted against proposals in the European Parliament which were aimed at making the tax system fairer, including cracking down on tax evasion and aggressive… – Continue reading
Armenian National Committee of America Government Affairs Director Kate Nahapetian testified yesterday before a key Congressional panel in support of increased U.S. assistance to Nagorno Karabakh, Armenia, at-risk Middle Eastern Armenian communities, and the Javakhk region of Georgia. In her opening remarks, Nahapetian thanked House Appropriations Subcommittee on Foreign Operations… – Continue reading
Introduction Every non-US entity has FATCA status Passive NFFEs report substantial US owners Trustee of trust or its sponsoring entity will report US persons Other reporting FFIs in structure will carry out FATCA due diligence Reporting when US account holders are identified Enforcement Comment Introduction The policy statement in the… – Continue reading
There are over 100 countries around the world that are now “FATCA-compliant.” Mexico is one of the earlier Latin American countries to comply. This means that Mexican banks will be sending to the IRS specific information regarding accounts held by U.S. persons. In this article, we discuss how FATCA is… – Continue reading
Appleby’s Gavin Ferguson examines how Guernsey has evolved to provide clients from all over the globe with innovative advice. The mandates that cross the desk of a Guernsey private client lawyer have changed considerably in the past decade, as the jurisdiction and its fiduciary offering have evolved and adapted, whilst… – Continue reading
While the U.S. has traditionally been seen as a low-tax jurisdiction for individuals, with its many exemptions and generous deductions, its rules can bite hard for U.S. expatriates. In the past, “long distance Americans” generally responded by ignoring their U.S. tax obligations, and expat filing rates were notoriously low. Now,… – Continue reading
Attorney-at–Law and Compliance Specialist We are living in a time where the tax landscape facing the Bahamian financial services industry is changing and evolving rapidly. On November 3, 2014, the Government executed a Model 1 Intergovernmental Agreement (IGA) with the US government to implement the latter’s Foreign Account Tax Compliance… – Continue reading
Where applicable, foreign landlords with property in Turkey are required to file tax returns to Turkish financial authorities by March 25 The tax treatment of income elements earned by foreigners from any source of income usually tops the international tax agenda and is extensively debated worldwide by experts, academics and… – Continue reading
Owning real property on both sides of the border can create a confusing tax situation. Consider this example. Stefan and Jane are married and live in Vancouver. Jane is a Canadian citizen while Stefan holds both U.S. and Canadian citizenship. In 1994, shortly after getting married, they bought a house… – Continue reading
Seoul and Washington will exchange data on taxpayers’ bank accounts every September to bolster their tax revenue, the National Tax Service (NTS) said Wednesday. “If we regularly exchange data on taxpayers’ bank accounts with the U.S., it will help the tax authorities crack down on attempts at offshore tax evasion,”… – Continue reading
Who Will Be Next? How To Respond To A Tax Investigation The international political community continues to make the most threatening noises about those who they believe do not pay enough tax. Long gone it seems are the days where it was accepted that a person could properly organise his… – Continue reading
A person with dual citizenship is a citizen of two countries at the same time. Dual citizenship (sometimes called dual nationality) happens automatically in some situations, such as when a child is born to parents in the United States to foreign parents. In this case, the child (unless the parents… – Continue reading
Multinational tech giants Google and Facebook could soon be charged goods and services tax on advertising booked by Australian companies if a proposal flagged by federal Communications Minister Malcolm Turnbull is adopted. While multinational corporations continue to come under fire for minimising their tax bills in Australia, Turnbull has floated… – Continue reading
(CNS Business): Even if you’re living in the Cayman Islands, the US tax authorities can come knocking on your door if you are not in compliance with the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA), US taxpayers residing in the Cayman Islands learned at a free seminar on Wednesday at the… – Continue reading
Citizenship has been turned into a commodity by countries including Cyprus, Grenada, Antigua, Malta and St. Kitts in the Caribbean, which is now the most popular place in the world to buy a passport – for as little as $250,000. The draw? Little or no tax. New citizens of St…. – Continue reading
AMERICANS in France are being asked to take urgent action in a bid to change harsh banking rules which an expats’ body says are “wrecking people’s lives”. AARO (Association of Americans Resident Overseas) says intrusive rules in America’s ‘FATCA’ law place such heavy reporting obligations on French banks with American… – Continue reading
US expats are encouraged to share their opinions and experiences in the annual survey, conducted in cooperation with the American Citizens Abroad Global Foundation (ACAGF). Washington, D.C., March 10, 2015 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Greenback Expat Tax Services has announced that their 2015 Annual US Expat Opinion Survey is now online… – Continue reading
FATCA is a law requiring every foreign bank to excessively monitor and report to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) the bank accounts of every American residing overseas – or risk severe punishment. WASHINGTON, D.C. – Sen. Rand Paul reintroduced S.663, a bill to repeal the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act… – Continue reading
KUWAIT CITY, March 7: Baker Tilly Kuwait for Audit, Tax and Consulting is pleased to announce a new consulting service for individuals with respect to the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA) aiming to assist US citizens and Green Card holders residing in the State of Kuwait to comply with… – Continue reading
One million American citizens in Canada face double tax troubles. Max Reed explores these challenges in a spring series. This spring, a new tax law hangs heavy over U.S. citizens who call Canada home. The U.S. Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act, or FATCA, has generated a lot of attention because,… – Continue reading
Senator Rand Paul said that the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act violates privacy rights of US citizens as well as has a bad effect on the American economy. WASHINGTON (Sputnik) – The Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA) violates privacy rights of US citizens as well as has a bad… – Continue reading
Boris Johnson today called for a massive tax rise to stop foreign crooks using the London housing market to launder dirty money. The mayor claimed ‘international despots and criminal rings’ were using phoney companies to buy homes in the capital. More than 35,000 London properties are owned by secretive offshore… – Continue reading
The British Virgin Islands (BVI), as one of the world’s leading finance centres and meeting the changing needs of international businesses and high net worth individuals (HNWIs), has managed to create a stable, well-regulated and neutral jurisdiction that makes a significant contribution to the liquidity of the global economy. The… – Continue reading
It is estimated that there are at least 100,000 Greeks with American citizenship living in Greece. In addition, thousands of US citizens live and work in Greece, either on a short-term or permanent basis. According to US law, all of these citizens, with very few exceptions, are required to file… – Continue reading
Not long after the U.S. Department of Justice’s Tax Division (“DOJ”) made international headlines in 2009 for its bombshell announcement that it had entered into a deferred prosecution agreement with the United Bank of Switzerland (UBS), lawmakers in Washington, D.C. began reviewing the testimony of hundreds of UBS’s U.S. clients… – Continue reading
PARIS: The heir to the Nina Ricci perfume fortune went on trial for hiding €18.7 million (£13.9 million) from French authorities in what is seen as a test case concerning the HSBC tax avoidance scandal. Arlette Ricci, 74, is among the first of around 50 wealthy French nationals to face… – Continue reading
The issue of whether Israeli banks should take the Swiss approach and refuse to disclose customer identities may be a moot point, in light of a new international anti-tax-evasion treaty that is taking shape. There is a direct line connecting the disclosure of the identities of 6,200 Israelis with Swiss… – Continue reading
An Alberta online bank is believed to be the first Canadian financial institution to deny service to Americans, citing the burden of complying with strict new U.S. tax rules. Canadian Direct Financial, a subsidiary of Edmonton-based Canadian Western Bank, is refusing to open new Internet accounts for U.S. citizens, even… – Continue reading
This is the time of the year for millions of Americans to begin the annual ritual of gathering information about income, taxes, charitable giving, health insurance, expenses and sundry other items, and prepare to send mountains of information to the IRS –and to those who prepare their tax returns. Overseas… – Continue reading
The Economist reports that “”The number of Americans giving up their passports has shot up, from less than 1,000 a year in the late 2000s to a record 3,415 in 2014.” One of the main reasons has to do with aggressive efforts to collect taxes from Americans who earn money… – Continue reading
The spotlight is firmly on tax reduction among large global firms operating in the UK – but is the practice putting smaller domestic companies on the back foot? The HSBC tax scandal, wilfully fuelled by politicians looking to appear tough on what they call immoral tax practices, has put the… – Continue reading
American citizens residing in Malta as well as some Maltese migrants were urged to get their US tax affairs in order during an information session on the US FATCA legislation. Jonathan Phyall, Senior Legal & Compliance Officer at APS Bank explained that an agreement signed between the Malta and US… – Continue reading
NUMBER OF THE WEEK: 3,415. The number of people who renounced their citizenship in 2014 according to IRS data. This is one of the five highest totals on record since the U.S. Congress passed the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act in 2010. In the past five years, more than 10,000… – Continue reading
Ukip donor Stuart Wheeler tells Channel 4 News that he does not think Nigel Farage will be “in a government role” after the general election. Stuart Wheeler told Channel 4 News: “I don’t think he’ll be in a government role. He’s said that he won’t have a coalition.” Would he… – Continue reading
TAX in the 21st Century is exciting and new ideas and theorems are emerging to increasingly reduce the global village into one block where information is shared and taxes are realised even from abroad. Mid last year in June, a new notion was coined in the tax world. This new… – Continue reading
London Mayor Boris Johnson was born in New York City in 1964, and he has held dual British and American citizenship throughout his life. Recently, after months of grousing about having to pay a capital gains tax to the U.S. on the sale of his house in Greater London, Johnson… – Continue reading
Last September, I wrote that America’s business tax system is a nightmare that simultaneously undermines the competitiveness of American companies while also causing lots of irritation in other nations. Both of those bad things happen because politicians in Washington think the IRS should be able to tax income that is… – Continue reading
Australian retail billionaire Gerry Harvey slammed the country’s powerful business lobby groups for pushing the interests of profit-shifting multinational corporations ahead of Australian companies. Harvey said companies that pay their fair share in taxes have no voice in government. The billionaire retailer spoke after it was publicly revealed that Apple… – Continue reading
In the last several years, a “record” number of Americans abroad have been giving up their passports: That’s supposedly due to the demands of the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act, known as FATCA, a US law enacted in 2010 to fight tax evasion by forcing foreign banks to share information… – Continue reading
Tax paperwork seen as main culprit HONG KONG (CNNMoney) —Goodbye, sayonara, ciao, Uncle Sam! The number of Americans choosing to give up their passports hit a record 3,415 last year, up 14% from 2013, and 15 times more than in 2008, when only 231 people renounced their citizenship. Experts say… – Continue reading
