An effort to control tax havens for those hiding their assets overseas has resulted in broad brush impacts on hard-working expatriate Americans living and working out of country. The previously delayed Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA) is now in full swing effective July 1, 2014. In an attempt to close a… – Continue reading
VP Bank said it had now concluded that it no longer needed to take part in the programme. “Thorough internal investigations and external expert opinions showed that the conditions for continued participation did not exist,” the Liechtenstein-based bank said in a statement accompanying its half-year results. “VP Bank therefore withdrew… – Continue reading
The Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA) was enacted into law as part of the Hiring Incentives to Restore Employment (HIRE) Act of 2010. Its purpose was designed to prevent U.S. taxpayers from “hiding” under the cover of a foreign based entity or trust in evading U.S. income tax and… – Continue reading
More than 95,000 financial institutions are listed on the latest Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA) list published by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). With the publication of the third list on August 1, 2014, the number of financial institutions listed has mushroomed from 77,000 to 95,238 in just four weeks. The… – Continue reading
The Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA) was enacted into law as part of the Hiring Incentives to Restore Employment (HIRE) Act of 2010. Its purpose was designed to prevent U.S. taxpayers from “hiding” under the cover of a foreign based entity or trust in evading U.S. income tax and… – Continue reading
With all the talk about inversions and America’s Burger King Going Canadian, it’s easy to ignore even more prevalent tax savings by numerous American companies. Take Microsoft, which admits in its 2014 SEC filing that it avoids $30 billion in U.S. taxes. The trick? Keep about triple that amount, $93… – Continue reading
Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA) has been in force for a month and still more countries are joining the tax network. So far, 101 countries and financial jurisdictions have either signed or agreed to join FATCA. FATCA is aimed at identifying US taxpayers with offshore bank accounts and investments. Overseas… – Continue reading
This article, by Chris Horlacher, was originally published by The Dollar Vigilante. Many Canadians, referred to as snowbirds, spend three to six months each year in the United States. If they think to consult a tax adviser at all, they’re usually told that as long as they spend less than… – Continue reading
On June 25, 2014, the IRS finally issued the instructions to the new version of Form W-8BEN-E, an 8-page withholding certificate to be completed by foreign entities. Previously, foreign individuals and most foreign entities would provide a one-page Form W-8BEN to withholding agents to certify the foreign entity’s entity classification… – Continue reading
The Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA) is an important development in U.S. efforts to improve tax compliance involving foreign financial assets and offshore accounts.Depending on the amount of the aggregate value of their assets, US individuals are required to file Form 8938 – Statement of Specified Foreign Financial Assets… – Continue reading
The Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA) was enacted in 2010 by the US to target non-compliance by US taxpayers using foreign accounts. FATCA essentially requires foreign financial institutions to report information about financial accounts held by US taxpayers, or by foreign entities in which such taxpayers hold a substantial… – Continue reading
Serbia’s Information Commissioner has warned that banks must have the full consent of customers before information is passed to US tax authorities under the terms of FATCA, and that it would be illegal for customers to be declined services if they refuse to give consent. The comments were made by… – Continue reading
Never heard of FATCA? You will. FATCA—the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act—is America’s global tax law. It was quietly enacted in 2010, and after a four-year ramp up, it’s finally in effect. What is most amazing is not its impact on Americans—although that is considerable—but its impact on the world…. – Continue reading
U.S.-China Agreement Requires Financial Institutions to Increase Transparency and Enhance Reporting Wolters Kluwer Financial Services recommends that financial institutions in China should take steps toward enhancing their data and reporting capabilities on financial accounts held by U.S. taxpayers in China as part of the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act. This recommendation… – Continue reading
Two women have challenged the constitutionality of a Canada-U.S. agreement to share the tax information of U.S. citizens resident in Canada, with the IRS. But an expert in U.S. tax law says that these individuals, most of whom consider themselves Canadians, could be worse off if the lawsuit succeeds. “If… – Continue reading
Minister of Finance Bob Richards confirmed this week that under the Bermuda-UK FATCA Intergovernmental Agreement [IGA] model 2, Bermuda and the UK have agreed the inclusion of a Limited Capacity Exempt Beneficial Owner Category in Annex II of the IGA. The effect of this amendment will mean that there will… – Continue reading
HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) has announced changes to the terms of the Liechtenstein Disclosure Facility (LDF), restricting the most favourable treatment to new tax irregularities with a “significant” offshore connection. Tax Disputes and Investigations Tax Private wealth tax Reg Day, a tax expert at Pinsent Masons, the law firm… – Continue reading
Since the global financial crisis struck in 2008, offshore financial centres (OFCs) have come under sustained attack. As the world’s leading economies struggled to balance their books in the face of massive declines in tax revenue, the lowest fruit was seen to be hanging from the offshore tree. Estimates of… – Continue reading
Just as financial institutions started to come to grips with the fact that the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA) went into effect last month in the U.S., the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) unwrapped a new global version. The OECD proposal is called the Global Standard for… – Continue reading
Two women in Ontario are suing the federal government for complying with a new U.S. law that forces banks to turn over financial information of Canadian citizens to the IRS upon request. The women are American-born dual citizens of Canada and the U.S who left the states in childhood and have… – Continue reading
KUALA LUMPUR: All local financial institutions will be required to declare their American customers to the United States Internal Revenue Service (IRS) under a new agreement to catch its tax evaders who hide their money overseas. Malaysia will be entering into an inter-governmental agreement with the US in line with… – Continue reading
A lawsuit has been filed by several Canadian citizens against the Canadian Attorney General in Federal Court in Canada. The legal claim challenges the constitutionality of the agreement the Canadian government struck with the United States. The controversial deal between nations was inked under FATCA—the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act…. – Continue reading
The Internal Revenue Service has updated the Withholding Foreign Partnership and Withholding Foreign Trust agreements as part of the process of implementing the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act, or FATCA. FATCA, which was included as part of the HIRE Act of 2010, requires foreign financial institutions to report on the… – Continue reading
Gibraltar’s financial community must immediately prepare itself for FATCA or it risks getting caught up in the legislation’s strict international net, says an authority from the jurisdiction. Helvetic, a fund adminstrator based in the British overseas territory, says many financial institutions in the area are underestimating the compliance costs of… – Continue reading
A new global standard for governments to crack down on tax evasion has been released by the Organisation of Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD). Almost 70 countries have already signed up to the charter, which will roll out a US style Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA) law globally. FATCA… – Continue reading
The number of Americans renouncing U.S. citizenship stayed near an all-time high in the first half of the year before rules that make it harder to hide assets from tax authorities came into force. Some 1,577 people gave up their nationality at U.S. embassies in the six months through June,… – Continue reading
In March 2010, the US Congress enacted the Hiring Incentives to Restore Employment (HIRE) Act, which included provisions that are known as the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act, or FATCA. This was aimed at preventing tax evasion by US persons through the use of accounts held with foreign financial institutions…. – Continue reading
Germany’s Ministry of Finance announced that a law enabling the implementation of the United States’ Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA) has come into force. The ministry said that the FATCA-USA Implementation Regulation, known in German as FATCA-USA-Umsetzungsverordnung or FATCA-USA-UmsV, entered into force on July 23, 2014. Germany signed the… – Continue reading
In March 2014, the British Virgin Islands Government announced that it had concluded negotiations with the US with respect to a Model 1B Intergovernmental Agreement with the United States (the IGA). The IGA (which was eventually signed on 30 June 2014) provides the framework for the implementation of the US Foreign… – Continue reading
FATCA Background The Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (“FATCA”) was enacted in response to concerns that US taxpayers were avoiding US tax by using offshore financial institutions to hide assets and avoid reporting income. Generally, FATCA imposes due diligence, information reporting and withholding obligations on non-US financial institutions (“FFIs”) and… – Continue reading
Hong Kong’s banks, in the midst of adapting to the new US Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA), are now facing a tax headache on a global scale. In July, the month where FATCA became a reality for the region, the OECD published guidelines on the adoption of a much… – Continue reading
(CS) The Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act, more commonly known as FATCA, will be submitted to a vote at the Luxembourg parliament this autumn, before coming into force next year, Finance Minister Pierre Gramegna has revealed. In answer to a parliamentary question by CSV MP Laurent Mosar, Gramegna said that… – Continue reading
Guyana and the United States have concluded “in substance” an intergovernmental agreement (IGA) for implementation of the US Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA). FATCA was enacted by the US in March 2010 as a mechanism designed to reduce the level of tax evasion which currently exists. It seeks to… – Continue reading
This June the IRS modified its offshore disclosure programs to encourage U.S. citizens to come forward and report their assets and mitigate risk of penalty or prosecution. To help your clients avoid running afoul of FATCA, a bulletin from PwC advises them to: Determine citizenship. In some cases, non-resident Americans are… – Continue reading
With FATCA and its grave burdens and consequences for Americans living in Canada now a reality, the more than 1 million individuals affected now have the benefit of a useful guide self-published by Altro Levy, a multi-jurisdictional law firm with nine offices in Canada and the U.S. The guide is… – Continue reading
If you are from the US then you’ve probably heard of the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (Fatca), but are you aware of how it could affect you? The legislation came into full effect on July 1, 2014 and has many implications, particularly for US expatriates. Fatca is a US… – Continue reading
U.S. tax law intended to nab billionaires who hide money in tax shelters is terrorizing middle-class dual citizens with no income south of the border Like many people in Canada who still have American citizenship, Pat is both scared and angry. The semi-retired suburban Vancouver woman is trying to relinquish… – Continue reading
On June 30, the United States and Israel signed an intergovernmental agreement (IGA) regarding FAT CA. FAT CA became effective in the US and other countries on July 1 and will officially take effect in Israel once the Knesset passes enabling legislation. But the Bank of Israel has already instructed… – Continue reading
In the latest moves towards implementation of the FATCA Intergovernmental agreements (IGAs) signed by the BVI with the US and the UK, the BVI Government has released draft Guidance Notes for public consultation. A copy can be accessed from the Ministry of Finance website. The draft Guidance Notes have been… – Continue reading
FATCA was implemented worldwide at the beginning of this month, but the impact (and costs) are only now just beginning to filter through to the financial services community. Part of the US Hiring Incentives to Restore Employment Act (HIRE), FATCA aims to ensure Americans, wherever they are and whatever investments… – Continue reading
lter Domus Improves Client On-boarding with Adoption of Thomson Reuters FATCA Solution Thomson Reuters FATCA solution helps Alter Domus clients comply with regulatory requirements and provides competitive advantage NEW YORK/LUXEMBOURG, July 21, 2014 – Thomson Reuters, the world’s leading source of intelligent information for businesses and professionals, today announced that… – Continue reading
InterAksyon.com means BUSINESS Majority of the local stock brokerages have remained outside the US-mandated reportorial compliance among foreign financial institutions, a worldwide campaign designed to flush out hidden overseas wealth and minimize tax abuse among Americans and green card holders through offshore accounts. A total of 178 Philippine-based financial firms,… – Continue reading
Two important dates have now passed in relation to Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (“FATCA“) – 30 June 2014 when Financial Institutions were required to capture details of their existing customers for remediation purposes and 1 July 2014 when Financial Institutions were required to have procedures in place which would… – Continue reading
Fallout from the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act Almost 80 percent of Americans living abroad are considering relinquishing their U.S. citizenship to escape the consequences of the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act, according to deVere Group. That represents an increase of 11 points since last year. The Foreign Account Tax… – Continue reading
For those living in America who have pensions saved from their time in the UK, the complexity surrounding the tax viability of transferring into a potentially highly beneficial QROPS can be slightly off-putting. Many will search the HMRC QROPS list and see 14 schemes listed in the USA. Schemes such as Kraft… – Continue reading
The BVI Government has signed a Model 1B (non-reciprocal) Intergovernmental Agreement (IGA) in relation to the US Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA), it was announced on 30 June 2014. The IGA can be accessed here. As expected the final IGA is in substantially the same form as the model agreement. There… – Continue reading
FIRMS STILL HAVE to report transactions with US citizens to the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) despite registering with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), a government official said. BIR Commissioner Kim S. Jacinto-Henares said that while many local firms had committed to supply data to the IRS to comply with… – Continue reading
BEIJING: China and the United States of America have recently signed the Federal Account Tax Compliant Act (FATCA), which requires the Internal Revenues Service (IRS) to disclose to China, the bank account information of Chinese-born pro-democracy activists, who fled their homeland to live in America. According to Forbes, “One of the most insidious… – Continue reading
The start of tax information reporting between the US and foreign governments and financial institutions under Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA) from July 1, 2014 triggered a rush of nations joining the network at the eleventh hour. The major surprise for FATCA watchers was China agreeing ‘in substance’ to… – Continue reading
Foreign entities use this to document their status On June 25, 2014, the Internal Revenue Service released long-awaited instructions to Form W-8BEN-E, used by foreign entities to document their status under both chapter 3 and chapter 4 (the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA)) of the Internal Revenue Code. The… – Continue reading
