IRS Releases Streamlined Offshore Voluntary Disclosure Form
The IRS has posted to its Web site a three-page “optional format” short form for taxpayers to use when applying for the Voluntary Disclosure Program. The form asks taxpayers to estimate the annual highest aggregate value for their offshore accounts or assets for the years 2003–2008. It also requires them to list estimated total unreported income from offshore accounts for each of those years.
For accounts or assets for which the taxpayer has control or is a beneficial owner, the form requires taxpayers to list any and all financial institutions and the country where the institution is located. Taxpayers must also explain the purpose for establishing the offshore account and list each person or entity affiliated with the account.
Affected taxpayers have until Sept. 23 to apply to participate in the Voluntary Disclosure Program. Under the program, taxpayers making voluntary disclosures of offshore noncompliance can avoid the foreign bank and financial account balance nondisclosure penalty provisions and other provisions pertaining to various information returns. The IRS has published local phone numbers in 50 states and 9 foreign countries that taxpayers can use to contact the IRS about voluntary disclosure.
U.S. demands UBS “comply in full” in tax evasion case
By Tom Brown, Reuters.com
The U.S. Justice Department said on Tuesday it was pressing ahead with its five-month-old lawsuit against UBS AG to force the Swiss bank to identify thousands of U.S. clients with secret UBS accounts.
Despite recent media speculation about a possible settlement of the case, the Justice Department said in a brief filed with a Florida court that it was seeking to enforce tax compliance with the full weight of U.S. law.
“The United States has a strong national interest in making sure that all U.S. taxpayers comply with the tax laws, including disclosing their offshore accounts, and paying all the taxes they owe,” the department said in the brief.
The U.S. government sued UBS in February in the U.S. Southern District Court of Florida, seeking the names of 52,000 Americans suspected of using the bank to hide nearly $15 billion in assets and evade U.S. taxes.
“The United States has proven its case for enforcement. The Court should order UBS to comply in full,” the Justice Department said in its filing.
In response, a spokesman for UBS said enforcement of the U.S. summons would require the bank to violate Swiss law and was inconsistent with U.S.-Swiss treaty frameworks.
A court hearing on the U.S. government case against UBS has been scheduled for July 13.
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United States of America v. UBS AG (Declaration of Daniel Reeves)
Filed under: IRS, Qualified Intermediary, UBS, int tax compliance, offshore trusts, tax evasion, tax haven, unreported income
The following 305 page IRS affidavit is the Declaration of Daniel Reeves, a duly commissioned Internal Revenue Agent and Offshore Compliance Technical Advisor employed in the Small Business/Self Employed Division of the Internal Revenue Service. He is assigned to the Internal Revenue Service’s Offshore Compliance Initiative. The Offshore Compliance Initiative develops projects, methodologies, and techniques for identifying US taxpayers who are involved in abusive offshore transactions and financial arrangements for tax avoidance purposes.
GAO: Big U.S. Companies Love Tax Havens
Filed under: int tax compliance, tax haven, unreported income
by John Cummings, BusinessFinanceMag.com
In a 60-page report released Friday, the U.S. Government Accountability Office offers some eye-opening details on U.S. companies’ use of tax havens and “financial privacy jurisdictions,” which the agency defines as “jurisdictions that have strict banking secrecy laws that persons can use to shield their wealth from taxation in their home country.” As many as 83 of the 100 largest publicly traded U.S. corporations by revenue have subsidiaries in one or more such haven or jurisdiction, according to the report.
Indeed, four of the firms in that group of 83 own more than 100 subsidiaries in tax havens or financial privacy jurisdictions. And one organization — Citigroup — has no fewer than 427, including 91 in Luxembourg, 90 in the Cayman Islands, and 35 in the British Virgin Islands.
The report’s investigation of the 100 largest publicly traded U.S. Federal contractors tells a similar story; 63 firms in this group reported having subsidiaries in tax havens or financial privacy jurisdictions. The Procter & Gamble Co., which had nearly $313 million in federal contracts in fiscal 2007, reports having 83 subsidiaries in these locations, including 24 in Switzerland and 11 in Singapore.
What exactly constitutes a tax haven? The GAO’s research failed to turn up any agreed-upon definition, and the agency made no attempt to establish one of its own. However, the report describes a group of relevant characteristics, including “no or nominal taxes; lack of effective exchange of tax information with foreign tax authorities; lack of transparency in the operation of legislative, legal or administrative provisions; no requirement for a substantive local presence; and self-promotion as an offshore financial center.” Rather than develop its own list of tax havens, the GAO amalgamated three such lists, from the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), the National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER), and a 2006 U.S. District Court order.
Of course, the fact that a business chooses to establish a subsidiary in a listed location doesn’t necessarily mean that it’s seeking to reduce its tax burden; as the report points out, “subsidiaries may be established in a listed jurisdiction for a variety of nontax business reasons.” But the GAO also notes the U.S. Treasury’s concern that some companies aggressively set transfer prices to shift income to offshore locations in a bid to avoid tax.
Click here for a summary or here for the full GAO report.
New U.S. tax deal seen too costly for small banks
Filed under: IRS, Qualified Intermediary, UBS, int tax compliance
By Lisa Jucca, Reuters
New U.S. tax withholding requirements may force private banks to relinquish their qualified intermediary status or stop doing business with Americans altogether, Swiss bankers said on Thursday.
U.S. tax authorities are in the process of writing a new Qualified Intermediary (QI) agreement and first drafts show the proposed rules may be tougher and more expensive than those in the previous agreement, Swiss bankers say.
“The drafts that have been published lead us to believe that many banks around the world, and not only in Switzerland, will have great reservations,” read a speech by Gregorie Bordier, partner at Swiss private bank Bordier & Cie.
Under the current QI agreement, around 5,000 institutions tax U.S. citizens at source without having to disclose the identity of their clients to the U.S. Internal Revenue Service (IRS), a useful tool for institutions operating in offshore centers such as Switzerland.
Foreign banks must sign up to the QI deal if they want to invest directly in the U.S. market. Bank secrecy stronghold Liechtenstein decided last year to share tax data with the United States for fear of seeing its banks losing QI status.
But a revision of the text, possibly in 2009, may lead to more intrusiveness.
“We cannot rule out that certain small banks may simply give up their QI status,” Bordier’s speech said.
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International Tax Compliance - Definition of U.S. Person
The threshold question is whether the taxpayer is a “U.S. Person.” A “U.S. Person” is generally defined as a
International Tax Compliance - Foreign Corporation/Foreign Partnership
Foreign Corporation (Form 5471)/Foreign Partnership (Form 8865)
Control Rules
Any U.S. Person who controls a foreign corporation or foreign partnership during the tax year must file a Form 5471 (for a corporation) or Form 8865 (for a partnership). (IRC §6038.) These forms must be filed with the U.S. Person’s timely filed federal tax return (including extensions).
For foreign corporations, control means ownership (direct or indirect) of more than 50 percent of the outstanding stock or voting power for at least 30 consecutive days during the year. Treas. Reg. §1.6038-2. For foreign partnerships, control means direct or indirect ownership of a more than 50 percent interest in partnership profits, capital, or deductions or losses. It also includes certain groups of U.S. Persons, who collectively own more than a 50 percent and individually own more than a 10 percent interest in the foreign partnership.
Attribution and constructive ownership rules apply (a taxpayer with no direct ownership in the foreign corporation or partnership could potentially have a reporting obligation).
The check-the-box regulations provide default corporate status for certain foreign limited liability entities. A U.S. Person’s involvement with a foreign entity that does not resemble a corporation under local law may trigger a foreign corporation reporting obligation.
Penalties
A violation of the Control Rule-, (i.e., failure to timely file a Form 5471 or Form 8865) has a double-penalty impact. First, the U.S. Person’s foreign tax amount used to compute the foreign tax credit is reduced by 10 percent. Second, the U.S. Person is subject to a flat $10,000 penalty.
Additional penalties apply if the violation continues for 90 days after IRS notice: (i) the foreign tax reduction increases by five percent for each three-month period, and (ii) there are additional $10,000 penalties for each 30-day period, up to $60,000 ($10,000 initial penalty and $50,000 maximum additional penalties). When both penalties apply, however, the foreign-tax penalty is reduced by the amount of the fixed-dollar penalty imposed.
The IRS must follow deficiency procedures and issue a notice of deficiency to the taxpayer with respect to the foreign tax credit reduction. The IRS may summarily assess the other penalties and collect them upon notice and demand.
These penalties may be avoided when the taxpayer proves that the failure was due to reasonable cause and not willful neglect.
Special Rules For Officers And Directors
Special rules apply for directors and officers of foreign corporations. A U.S. Person who becomes an officer or director of a foreign corporation, and owns at least 10 percent of the corporation’s stock (by value or vote), must also file a Form 5471. (IRC §6046.) Constructive stock ownership rules apply, although this rule generally requires that the U.S. Person directly own some amount of stock. The Form 5471 must be filed with the U.S. Person’s timely filed federal tax return, including extensions. In the absence of reasonable cause, the penalty for failure to timely file is $ 10,000, with additional penalties up to $50,000 for failure to cure the violation after IRS notice.
Rules For Property Transfers
Subject to certain exceptions, transfers of property by U.S. Persons to foreign corporations must be reported to the IRS. IRC §6038B. The U.S. Person must file a Form 926 with its timely filed income tax return for the year in which the transfer occurred. Transfers of cash to a foreign corporation are also reportable, provided that (i) immediately after the transfer the U.S. Person owns 10 percent (by vote or value) of the corporation, or (ii) the amount of cash transferred by the U.S. Person during the preceding 12 months collectively exceeds $ 100,000.
A reportable transfer by a partnership to a foreign corporation must be reported by each individual partner. The partnership cannot file a single Form 926 and satisfy this obligation on all the partners’ behalf.
Transfers by U.S. Persons to foreign partnerships are subject to reporting. A reportable transfer occurs when (1) immediately after the transfer, the person holds, directly or constructively, a 10 percent or greater interest in the partnership, or (ii) the value of the property transferred, when added to the value of the property previously transferred by the person (or related person) to the foreign partnership over the last 12 months, exceeds $100,000. IRC §6038B. The U.S. Person must report the transfer on a Form 8865, which is filed with the person’s timely filed federal tax return (including extensions).
If a domestic partnership contributes property to a foreign partnership, the partners of the domestic partnership are each treated as transferring their proportionate share of the contributed property. Each partner has an obligation to file a Form 8865. Unlike the Form 926 discussed above, however, the domestic partnership itself may file the Form 8865 and satisfy the reporting requirements of its partners.
The penalty for failure to file a Form 5471 or Form 8865 is equal to 10 percent of the fair market value of the property at the time of the exchange/ transfer. The penalty will not apply if the failure to comply is due to reasonable cause and not willful neglect. The penalty is also limited to $100,000 unless the failure to comply was due to intentional disregard.
Rules For Ownership Transfers
Reporting rules apply to the transfer of ownership in a foreign corporation or foreign partnership.
With respect to a foreign corporation, a U.S. Person must file a Form 5471 if any of the following occurred during the tax year: (1) the person acquired stock and thereafter possessed a 10 percent ownership interest (by vote or value) in the foreign corporation, (2) the person acquired a 10 percent or more stock ownership interest, or (3) the person disposes of sufficient stock to reduce the person’s interest below 10 percent ownership. IRC §6046.
These rules do not require that the transfer occur in a single transaction. Rather, a reporting obligation arises if this threshold is met as a result of one or more transactions during the tax year.
Similar rules apply to foreign partnerships. A U.S. Person must file a Form 8865 if during the tax year (1) the person acquires or disposes of an interest in the foreign partnership, and before or after the transfer the person holds (directly or indirectly) a 10 percent interest in the partnership, or (2) the person’s proportional interest in the partnership changes by 10 percent or more. (IRC §6046A.)
Both Form 5471 and Form 8865 must be filed with the U.S. Person’s timely filed tax return (including extensions).
A fixed $ 10,000 penalty is imposed on any failure to disclose a reportable transfer. If the failure continues for more than 90 days after IRS notice, an additional penalty of$ 10,000 will apply for each 30-day period (or fraction thereof) during which the failure continues, up to $50,000. IRC §6679.
International Tax Compliance - Foreign Disregarded Entity (U.S. Owner) Form 8858
Does The Taxpayer Own An Interest In A Foreign Disregarded Entity?
Special reporting rules also apply to U.S. Persons who are owners of a foreign disregarded entity.
Any U.S. Person that is treated as the owner of the assets or liabilities of a foreign disregarded entity is required to file a Form 8858 with its timely filed income tax return, including extensions.
A foreign disregarded entity is simply an entity organized outside the
The disregarded status of the foreign entity is determined under
A U.S. Person that controls a foreign corporation or a foreign partnership, which corporation or partnership owns a foreign disregarded entity, may also have a reporting obligation. A U.S. Person may be required to file a Form 8858, even when (i) the person has no direct ownership in the foreign disregarded entity, and (ii) the constructive or indirect ownership is less than 100 percent.
International Tax Compliance - Foreign Gifts (U.S. Person)
U.S. Persons that receive gifts from foreign individuals or entities must also report such transfers.
International Tax Compliance - Foreign Trust (U.S. Tax Reporting)
1. Form 3520 is filed upon initial Trust formation (within ninety (90) days of formation).
2. Form 3520-A return includes a full and complete accounting of all annual Trust activities, Trust operations, and other relevant information. This information is furnished to
The Settlor, not the Trustee, is responsible to pay the
In regard to Form 3520-A, a
Due Dates:
Penalties:
Form 3520-A:





