Bid To Assist US Persons Comply With FATCA
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 the tax requirements of the Internal Revenue Services (IRS), said Hisham Sorour — Managing Partner at Baker Tilly Kuwait.
Sorour added that “In the light of the agreement between the United States of America, represented by the Internal Revenue Services (IRS) and the State of Kuwait, represented by the Ministry of Finance (MoF), regarding compliance with the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA). FATCA aims at collecting taxes from US citizens and those who have the right of residency in the United States and American corporates operating abroad. Baker Tilly Kuwait has designed a special consulting service to assist individuals to comply with FATCA requirements.”
Therefore, US citizens and Green Card holders residing in the State of Kuwait should provide their tax returns form that corresponds to the reports submitted by the Financial Institutions which are subject to FATCA. Failing to provide a clear declaration or providing incomplete or incorrect information will lead to a tax withhold of 30 percent on any payments transferred to and from the United States.
Sorour also explained that the Internal Revenue Services (IRS) has designed specific systems and forms for tax returns of individuals, so that these reports and forms are submitted during the period from January to April of each year, and for 2015 in particular, they have extended the period of filing documents until June 2015. Thus, US persons should start preparing their reports and submitting them to the IRS before the deadline in order to avoid tax withholding on their bank accounts in Kuwait, in addition to the legal liability of tax evasion.
Sorour concluded that Baker Tilly Kuwait provides integrated solutions for individuals, which ensures complete confidentiality in handling their data and information, in addition to the accuracy and reliability of data in a way that ensures that they meet the FATCA requirements at the lowest possible tax value.
