Swiss Bank Prosecuted Using Growing IRS Database of Offshore Information
This prosecution is an example of how the U.S. government is using its expanding database of information collected from whistleblowers, foreign governments, advisors, banks and over 30,000 U.S. taxpayers who have already come clean. Swiss bank Wegelin is charged with helping U.S. Taxpayers hide over $1 billion from the IRS. Any deal Wegelin makes to avoid prosecution will likely include giving up [...]
Read More →U.S. Tax and Legal Consequences for Foreign Investors and Potential Residents (Seminar Outline)
Foreign investors and potential residents must understand that U.S. tax residency can occur, whether or not they have permanent residence for immigration purposes.
Read More →Wills vs. Trust vs. Joint Ownership: Which One is Right for You?
Click here to download a PDF version of this post. Proper planning for the inevitability of death and the possibility of incapacity involves simultaneous analysis of multiple, complex legal and tax issues. We can design a plan that details how your assets are to be managed and to whom and under what conditions they are distributed after you and/or your [...]
Read More →Offshore Tax Amnesty Reopened Today
The Internal Revenue Service just announced the reopening of a special voluntary disclosure initiative designed to bring offshore money back into the U.S. tax system and help people with undisclosed income from hidden offshore accounts get current with their taxes. The IRS decision to reopen this special disclosure initiative follows continuing interest from taxpayers with foreign accounts. Over 33,000 tax payers came forward during [...]
Read More →Planning for the Worst While Hoping for the Best: Legal Issues to Consider Before and After Making a Strategic Default
Terms such as “strategic default” and “foreclosure defense” have become household names along with “loan modification” and “short sale” which until recently were the exclusive parlance of real estate professionals. The reason is simple, one million seven hundred thousand (1,700,000) American households are in foreclosure and millions more are considering it. Moreover, the rate of default among “prime” borrowers is [...]
Read More →Green Card Holders May Not Yet Be Domiciled in the U.S. for Estate and Gift Tax Purposes
If you are considering moving to the United States, you need to consider your tax status for both U.S. income tax purposes and U.S. estate and gift tax purposes.[1] Even if you have already obtained lawful permanent residence status (your “Green Card”), you may not yet be subject to U.S. estate and gift tax as a U.S. “domiciliary”. Depending on [...]
Read More →So You Have Unreported Foreign Bank Accounts and Income, Now What?
With limited exceptions, every American citizen, permanent resident and even residents for tax purposes with direct or indirect ownership or control over a foreign financial account must report those accounts on Treasury Department form TD F 90-22.1, more commonly known as the FBAR [Foreign Bank and Financial Accounts Report]. The form is due June 30 for accounts held in the [...]
Read More →Life Insurance Proceeds can be Taxed up to 55% if not Structured Properly
Life Insurance is an excellent, asset-protected tool for estate planning. For example, if your estate will contain substantial “hard” assets, such as business interests or real estate, the cash proceeds of a life insurance policy can allow your heirs to pay your estate taxes without having to liquidate any assets. And your beneficiaries can receive the proceeds of your life [...]
Read More →Your Second to Last Will: The Benefits of Using Living Trusts
As the saying goes, one should hope for the best but plan for the worst. Some of our clients come to us asking for a “simple will”, because they want to leave “everything to their spouse and then to their children equally” and they hope for the best. Our job is to plan for other possibilities and that means recognizing [...]
Read More →“I Just Need a Simple Will…”
Friends, this just is not ever the case. We love simple and elegant solutions to complex problems as much as anyone, but the cold, hard truth is that no mere Last Will & Testament can provide for all the legal and financial challenges our loved ones will face upon our death or incapacity. All the time, we are asked to [...]
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