In an ever-increasing globalized world, more and more people are finding themselves working outside their home countries. There are estimated to be over 6 million American citizens living outside the U.S. As a financial advisor, no matter where you work in the world, if you are dealing with clients or… – Continue reading
Azerbaijan and the U.S. Internal Revenue Office (IRS) will sign an additional agreement on confidentiality under the intergovernmental agreement on implementing the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA) by Azerbaijani banks by September 30, 2015. The news was announced by Azerbaijani Taxes Ministry last week. “It is known that the… – Continue reading
The IRS had made a worldwide push to get information about offshore accounts over $50,000 of American taxpayers, using the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act, or FATCA. Commentator Rob Wood discusses the new effort in his Forbes article, “IRS Nets Offshore Data Wood underscores the point that U.S. citizens abroad… – Continue reading
With Russia unlikely to be able to conclude a Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA) intergovernmental agreement (IGA) with the United States in the foreseeable future, and subject to the country’s current law on tax information exchange, VTB has become the first Russian bank to disclose that it is reducing… – Continue reading
SA and the US have signed an intergovernmental agreement aimed at improving international tax compliance Yesterday a reciprocal agreement was signed by Finance Minister Nhlanhla Nene and Patrick Gaspard, US Ambassador to SA that will force local financial institutions to report information about US account holders to the SA Revenue… – Continue reading
BEIRUT, June 9 (KUNA) — Governor of the Central Bank of Lebanon (BDL) Riad Salameh said Monday the recently-imposed US sanctions do not target the Lebanese banks, but rather the banks that helped finance the Lebanese group Hezbollah.The BDL has repeatedly cautioned the local banks against violating the banking laws… – Continue reading
Johannesburg – South Africa and the US agreed on Monday to put into effect the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (Fatca), the SA Revenue Service (Sars) and US Embassy said. The agreement was signed in Pretoria by Finance Minister Nhlanhla Nene and United States ambassador to South Africa Patrick Gaspard…. – Continue reading
With the impending FATCA compliance rollout and the U.S. Justice Department deal for Swiss banks, there are lots of letters and phone calls being made to account holders with American indicia. American citizens, residents—even people with a U.S. address or phone number—should be prepared. Possible American status means proving you’re… – Continue reading
The US tax authorities are set to make the amnesty programme aimed at encouraging US citizens to declare any offshore bank accounts less tough. Recently appointed head of the US Internal Revenue Service (IRS), John Koskinen, said at a tax conference in Washington D.C. that re-striking the balance between enforcement… – Continue reading
Thousands of investors worldwide are finding out that controversial new US tax avoidance laws have a much wider reach than just American taxpayers with offshore accounts. This is because an unforeseen consequence of the new Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA) is international customers of US financial institutions must reveal… – Continue reading
All financial institutions in the UAE must comply with the agreement signed with the US Financial institutions in the UAE will start sharing extensive data of account holders with a US nationality from July 1st with the Internal Revenue Services (IRS), or the American tax collecting authority. On May 23rd… – Continue reading
The Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement, Five Eyes intelligence sharing and the American Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act have put New Zealand’s sovereignty and independence at risk and must be immediately reviewed, says the Internet Party. In its draft Independence policy released today, the Internet Party said New Zealand’s sovereignty was being… – Continue reading
VTB, Russian’s second-largest banking group, will cease service to Russia-based U.S. clients to avoid falling foul of FATCA, a U.S. tax avoidance law that comes into force on July 1. Even at this late stage, Russian law and FATCA are incompatible — Russian banks will be able to comply with U.S. law or Russian law, but not both, the head of the… – Continue reading
The regulatory landscape for the Australian funds management industry continues to change. This article provides an overview of five key matters that should be on the radar of fund managers. FATCA The US Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA) allows the US Internal Revenue Service (IRS) to identify and collect… – Continue reading
United States citizens who have accounts or financial assets in Israel soon will have even more incentive than previously to disclose them to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). The Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA), which takes effect July 1 in Israel, is meant to combat tax evasion and fraud… – Continue reading
The FATCA obliges banks to send information about US clients and their transactions to the Internal Revenue Service MOSCOW, Jun 5./ITAR-TASS/. The banks of Russia’s VTB Group will gradually cease servicing its 2,000 US clients to comply with the requirements of the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA), daily Izvestia… – Continue reading
The United States government has actively been pursuing NRIs who have undisclosed offshore assets and income. The United States law requires citizens and residents (i.e., green card holders, H1-B visa holders, and other tax residents) to report their worldwide income and complete a Report of Foreign Bank and Financial Accounts… – Continue reading
FATCA Update As the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA) is implemented, more countries have entered into intergovernmental agreements (IGAs) with the U.S. which should ease burdens on offshore funds and investment managers that qualify as foreign financial institutions. FATCA is aimed at ensuring that U.S. taxpayers do not avoid paying… – Continue reading
There has been remarkable progress in the fight against tax evasion and corporate avoidance in the past eighteen months. This month it was announced that 47 countries had agreed to an Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) framework that commits them to “swiftly” pass new domestic laws that will… – Continue reading
Regulatory compliance is an ongoing, escalating cost that is stifling profitability. Today, the “cost of compliance” is now 85% of a financial institution’s average operational budget, leaving a mere 15% available for programs like business development and customer acquisition. Many institutions continue to rely on disconnected, incomplete approaches to regulatory… – Continue reading
The Foreign Accounts Tax Compliance Act is a United States legislation that requires non-U.S foreign financial institutions (‘FFIs’) to identify and disclose their United States financial account holders to the US Internal Revenue Service (IRS) or otherwise be subject to a punitive 30% US withholding tax with respect to any… – Continue reading
Nearly 6 million Americans living abroad are facing a June 16 deadline to file their taxes this year. Regardless of the confusion that U.S. citizens abroad have over what will ultimately be required of them under the Affordable Care Act and other laws, all taxpayers whose income exceeds $10,000 are… – Continue reading
…as FATCA comes into force in JulyGovernment is to broaden the current tax net to include Ghanaians engaged in economic activities or hold investments in the United States, Dr. Larbi Siaw, Tax Policy Adviser at the Ministry of Finance (MOFEP) has saidDr. Larbi said that implementation of the Foreign Account… – Continue reading
Liechtenstein and the US have signed an intergovernmental agreement (IGA) for the implementation of the US Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA), the Liechtenstein Government has announced. The IGA requires the Liechtenstein Tax Administration and the US Internal Revenue Service (IRS) to exchange information automatically on accounts held by US… – Continue reading
I am not a financial advisor or consultant and this column is presented only to help explain to many senior citizens what appears to be a warning currently making the rounds on the Internet. In my research of the notice the online truth digging site of “TruthorFiction.com” has provided their… – Continue reading
Bulgaria and the USA reached an agreement in substance regarding the implementation of the FATCA legislation in Bulgaria. You will find below a brief overview of this specific legislation, its application in Bulgaria and the main responsibilities arising for the Bulgarian business in this regard. What is FATCA? On 18… – Continue reading
Azerbaijan and the U.S. intend to sign a double taxation evasion agreement in the near future, Azerbaijan’s Deputy Minister of Taxes, Sahib Alakbarov told journalists on May 26. The minister said that among other things, this document will allow the Ministry of Taxes to actively fight against the Azerbaijani residents… – Continue reading
Revenue Minister Todd McClay must release the text of the Inter-Governmental Agreement which affects tens of thousands of Kiwis who were born or have worked in the United States, Labour’s Revenue spokesperson David Clark says. National is about to introduce legislation to ratify an agreement between the US and New… – Continue reading
While financial companies in city gear up for compliance with Fatca, those with mainland affiliates are unlikely to meet requirements Hong Kong financial institutions with mainland affiliates are hoping Beijing signs an agreement with Washington soon on a new US tax disclosure law, because of concerns mainland financial institutions will… – Continue reading
CALGARY – A Calgary-based United States tax expert has recommended to the federal government that Canada follow the lead of other countries and include certain Canadian trusts within the definition of organizations subject to reporting under the recent Intergovernmental Agreement between the Canada and the U.S. “This would eliminate the… – Continue reading
The Inland Revenue Department of Cyprus (“IRD”) will proceed with the signing of Model 1 IGA (Inter Governmental Agreement) with the US Treasury, following the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA). The Model 1 IGA requires Foreign Financial Institutions (FFIs) to report all FATCA-related information to their own governmental agencies,… – Continue reading
Banks prepare to open their books to the long arms of Uncle Sam The countdown is on, with just a month to go before the United States’ Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA) goes live on July 1. Aimed at curbing tax evasion by American citizens, an estimated 26,000 foreign… – Continue reading
There’s a bill that will go into effect on July 1. It’s known as H.R. 2847 which contains FATCA (the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act of 2010). H.R. 2847 also known as HIRE (the Hiring Incentives to Restore Employment Act) was a law passed in March 2010 which will go into… – Continue reading
Legislation aimed at finding American tax evaders would give up personal information of Canadians with ties to the U.S. OTTAWA—If one wants another clear-eyed illustration of the power imbalance between Washington and the federal Conservatives, one need look no further than a tax deal signed between the two countries last… – Continue reading
WASHINGTON: It will soon get a lot harder to use overseas accounts to hide income and assets from the US tax collectors. More than 77,000 foreign banks, investment funds and other financial institutions have agreed to share information about US account holders with the Internal Revenue Service as part of… – Continue reading
WASHINGTON – About 77,000 foreign and U.S. banks and financial institutions, including some in Russia, have registered with the United States to comply with a new law meant to fight tax dodging by Americans, the U.S. Treasury Department said on Monday. Deputy Assistant Secretary for International Tax Affairs Robert Stack… – Continue reading
The United States is targeting so-called offshore tax havens by claiming that billions of dollars of taxes are being evaded. The Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act was passed in 2010 as a revenue raiser, with the simple expectation that the United States can force the world’s financial industry to disclose otherwise… – Continue reading
Russian lawmakers and banks are still squabbling about how to join the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA) network after the US closed the door on talks following Moscow’s role in the Ukraine crisis. In recent weeks, Finance Minister Anatoly Aksakov pledged to Russian banks that a new law allowing… – Continue reading
Azerbaijan and the U.S. Internal Revenue Service (IRS) agreed to conclude an intergovernmental agreement on implementation of the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA) by Azerbaijani banks, the Ministry of Taxes of Azerbaijan said on May 21. Starting from July 1, 2014 the banks in all countries should join the… – Continue reading
AsiaOne Business News released an article on the expectation of Singapore to dislodge Switzerland as the world’s wealth management capital (Business AsiaOne, 5/12/14) last week. AsiaBiz Services, Singapore’s leading company formation consultancy, affirmed that the main reasons for the country’s acquisition of its enormous share of global offshore wealth are attributed to… – Continue reading
The Russian government may place “limitations” on the amount of information that Russian banks can render to U.S. tax authorities under FATCA, a U.S. federal law intended to crack down on tax avoidance by U.S. citizens, Deputy Finance Minister Alexei Moiseyev said Thursday. Moiseyev told journalists in St. Petersburg that Russia will not become “tax agents for the Americans, that… – Continue reading
In recent years, the US Congress and the US Department of Treasury have come to believe that many US taxpayers (including US citizens and green card holders in India) have not been complying with the tax law that requires reporting of worldwide income, including income held in non-US financial institutions…. – Continue reading
Is every item buried in Table S-9 of the President’s budget a big can of worms? The only one I understand is big like a roadside attraction. By my count it’s item 237 out of 373: “Provide for reciprocal reporting of information in connection with the implementation of FATCA.” FATCA… – Continue reading
Uncle Sam is poised to poke his pointy nose into the financial affairs of millions of Canadians who have no connection to his country, and – no matter how distasteful you find this – pushing back will only make it worse. This is the gloomy – but credible – conclusion… – Continue reading
Liechtenstein said Friday that it has signed a anti-tax fraud pact with Washington that requires banks in the principality to provide information about accounts held abroad by US taxpayers to US authorities. Under the agreement, Liechtenstein would implement the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA), which came into effect on… – Continue reading
Weeks remain until the July 1 effective date of the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA), which will change the way foreign insurers do business with U.S. brokers. To address those changes, the Council of Insurance Agents & Brokers (CIAB) is developing an online portal to house each foreign insurer’s… – Continue reading
Switzerland isn’t the only tax haven feeling the heat from countries that are trying to scrape more revenue by raking in taxes from citizens with undeclared offshore assets. According to the U.K.-based Ethical Consumer, mini-states, like Andorra and the Cayman Islands, and financial centers, like Hong Kong and Singapore, all offer banking… – Continue reading
MINNEAPOLIS, May 19, 2014 /PRNewswire/ — The IRS recently announced in Notice 2014-33 that it would regard 2014 and 2015 as a period of transitional relief for financial institutions complying with the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA). However, the IRS will continue to enforce the law and only grant penalty… – Continue reading
A decision from the U.S. to recognize those with agreements “in substance” changes the number of countries with IGAs from 22 to 48. Jeffrey S. Freeman, J.D., LL.M If you notice money missing from your bank account you start asking questions and find a way to get that money back…. – Continue reading
More than three quarters of American expats and green card holders who have taken out a supplementary overseas pension contract are able to mitigate the effects of the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act, it is claimed. The FATCA created controversy when it was announced, as it appeared that people would… – Continue reading
