The IRS has authority to assert FBAR civil penalties. Before delving into the FBAR abyss, this is a good time to debunk some FBAR myths. First, there is no such thing as an FBAR penalty within the Offshore Voluntary Disclosure Initiative (“OVDI”). The FBAR penalty exists only outside of the OVDI framework. However, there is […]
In 1998, Congress enacted a limited privilege for tax advice that extends the same common law protections of confidentiality that apply to communications between a taxpayer and an attorney to communications between a taxpayer and any “federally authorized tax practitioner”. IRC § 7525(a)(1). Thus, if the communication would be considered privileged if it was between […]
With more than six million U.S. citizens living abroad, the IRS is looking to expand its net to bring in those U.S. Expats who are noncompliant with their tax obligations but are not willfully evading taxes may to come into compliance. On June 3, 2014, the Commissioner of the Internal Revenue Service, John A. Koskinen, […]
Despite the Department of the Treasury’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) publishing final regulations for reporting bank accounts, securities accounts and other financial accounts located in a foreign country many taxpayers remain confused regarding the filing requirements, including the fast-approaching and accelerated filing deadline. Historically, the disclosure of foreign bank accounts was done by filing […]
A taxpayer who has not disclosed foreign bank accounts to the IRS can be charged with substantial miscellaneous Title 26 offshore penalties that ultimately can wipe out a taxpayer’s foreign assets. Disclosure is made by e-filing FinCEN Form 1114 (formerly Form TD F 90-22.1), Report of Foreign Bank and Financial Accounts (“FBAR”). The civil penalty […]
U.S. taxpayers with previously undisclosed interests in foreign financial accounts and assets continue to analyze and seek advice regarding the most appropriate methods of coming into compliance with their U.S. filing and reporting obligations. Many are pursuing participation in the current IRS Offshore Voluntary Disclosure Initiative known as OVDI (the current version began in 2012 […]
A taxpayer who has not disclosed foreign bank accounts to the IRS and to cure this delinquency and avoid criminal repercussions applies to the Offshore Voluntary Disclosure Initiative (“OVDI”), generally must pay a miscellaneous Title 26 offshore penalty, in lieu of traditional penalties that would apply to foreign assets or entities outside of OVDI. The […]
U.S. taxpayers living abroad qualifying for an automatic two-month extension must file their 2013 Federal individual income tax returns by Monday, June 16, 2014. The June 16th deadline applies in the following two situations: (1) U.S. citizens and resident aliens living overseas, or (2) U.S. taxpayers serving in the military outside the U.S. on the […]
Topics Covered: 1. Lessons learned from the criminal tax evasion Conviction of Rashia Wilson a/k/a “Queen Of IRS Tax Fraud”. 2. What should you do where you have undisclosed foreign bank accounts and unreported foreign income? 3. Understanding the IRS Criminal Investigation Process and what signs to be on the lookout for that you may […]
Credit Suisse Agrees to Pay $2.6 Billion to Settle Probe by U.S. Justice Department Credit Suisse Group AG became the first financial institution in more than a decade to plead guilty to a crime on May 19, 2014 when the Swiss bank admitted it conspired to aid tax evasion and agreed to pay $2.6 billion […]
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