Tag Archive for Tax Blog

Saving For Retirement? Get A Credit Out Of It!

The modern day Guru of all-things-financial, the Investing Pundit of the 21st century, Warren Buffet, has said “No matter how great the talent or efforts, some things just take time. You can’t produce a baby in one month by getting nine women pregnant.” There is truth in this statement for all but especially for those who are in the lower income brackets, or those starting on their career paths, saving a little over time adds up!

So you just got a job or you are one of those who are thinking of starting up your retirement basket, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) has an incentive for you. It’s called the “Saver’s Credit”. It is available to you if you contribute to a 401K or an IRA.

The credit is worth $2000 to taxpayers filing with the “Married Filing Joint” status and worth Read More

Written by | Posted in Individual • Tax Tips

The Tax Non-Compliant American Abroad: What Are Your Choices? Part III

“Quiet” or “Soft” Disclosure

The “quiet” six year approach, while less burdensome, can still be quite expensive. Under this approach, taxpayers basically take the position that they will not go into the offshore voluntary disclosure program and instead, they “quietly” file all the late tax returns paying amounts due and interest; many also file the late FBARs. They hope the IRS will not pull any of their returns for examination. With such a “quiet” disclosure, a taxpayer runs the risk of being audited and faces the potential for criminal prosecution.

Some taxpayers have attempted to follow the IRS guidance from its December 2011 “Fact Sheet” and submitted explanatory letters with their late filings hoping to abate penalties by Read More

Written by | Posted in Expatriate • FATCA • FBAR • Individual • IRS • Tax Fraud/Evasion/Crimes

Employment Taxes And The Self-Employed Global Worker – So “Un”Happy Together – Part III (2)

Recommendations to Assist Self-Employed U.S. Citizens Working Abroad Avoid or Reduce Self-Employment Taxes and Social Security Taxes – continued
b. Forming a Foreign Entity –

As described above, forming a foreign entity is essential to any plan that seeks to avoid domestic and foreign social security taxation. This section describes the obstacles that a self-employed individual from the United States must overcome to form a foreign entity. In doing so, it explains why certain definitions in the Federal Insurance Contribution Act (FICA) and the Federal Unemployment Tax Act (FUTA) make forming a foreign entity for U.S. citizens working abroad virtually impossible. Read More

Written by | Posted in International

7 Habitual Mistakes Companies Make – Chapter 7 (2)

TaxConnections Blog Post
Communication to Eliminate Tax Risk –
Introduction –

THIS IS THE last, but not least important, Tax Risk Management Step 7. The previous six chapters flowing from proactive tax risk management, with the tax team, compiling a Tax Risk Management strategy, getting to a point of embracing transparency and outside assistance, to obtaining more facts, and then ensuring internal audits verify the correctness of tax compliance, brings the TRM™ process finally to the common golden thread that binds all these chapters and their processes together—communication!

Lack of communication between the tax manager and the rest of the business, and only Read More

Written by | Posted in Tax Risk Management

Marketplace Fairness Act And State Revenue Cuts?

If Congress enacts the Marketplace Fairness Act (such as S. 743) to allow states to require some remote (non-present) vendors to collect sales tax from customers in their state, states should see a revenue increase. The revenue is not a new tax because their residents should have been paying use tax on these purchases from remote vendors, but because individuals and businesses are not 100% use tax compliant, the sales tax from remote vendors would likely be greater than use tax collections. At least one state has given consideration to what to do with the revenue.

By The Way – the House Judiciary Committee held a hearing today (March 12) on alternatives to the MFA – I’ll have more on that later. Read More

Written by | Posted in State And Local Tax (SALT)

How To Find A Tax Job – Secrets of A Tax Headhunter – Free eBook Offer Today Only!

Recently, my colleagues have seen glimpses of my eBook How To Find A Tax Job- Secrets of a Tax Headhunter and they remind me people need to know this information! In April 2014, my eBook will be released but today I simply want to tell you why I wrote the book. Tax professionals will gain a competitive advantage armed with this information and that is why I want to share it! My goal in writing the book is to turn the odds in favor of tax professionals searching for a tax job. You will learn how to draw more tax jobs to you! You will learn about the problems that are preventing tax professionals from attracting more tax opportunities. I will provide real solutions to the current  obstacles tax professionals face in finding a tax job.

My experience in executive tax search motivated me to build www.TaxConnections.com. Read More

Written by | Posted in TaxConnections

The Perfect Storm Or The Perfect Insurance?

In conjunction with the great people at TaxConnections, we’ve published a new eBook on captive insurance titled “Who Should Form a Captive Insurance Company?”. You can buy a copy HERE. Cost: $4.98.

To help potential captive owners determine if they should form a captive, I’ve written the “10 questions,” one of which is:

Has there been a problem with my existing property and casualty insurance plan?

Read More

Written by | Posted in Tax Risk Management

A Collection… The Humorous Side of Tax… (3)

♦ It’s easy to find out who is going to become a tax collector. In the nursery, give all the kids lemons. The one who squeezes it dry is going to work for the IRS.

♦ What is the difference between the IRS and the mafia? Mafia is organized. Courtesy of Kurt Leetzow.

♦ When does a person decide to become a tax accountant? When she realizes she doesn’t have the charisma to succeed as an undertaker.

♦ What does a tax attorney use for birth control? His personality.

♦ “And God said: “Let there be Satan, so people don’t blame everything on me. And let there Read More

Written by | Posted in Tax Humor

Are You Kidding Me? Weil Ex-UBS Chief Pleads Not Guilty to US Tax Charges

We previously posted on December 16, 2013, The Second Ex-UBS Banker is About to Blow The Whistle on His US Clients! where we discussed that the former head of UBS’s wealth management division, Raoul Weil, has agreed to be extradited to the United States to face charges and U.S. Magistrate Judge Patrick Hunt agreed to let Weil stay with friends in New Jersey after putting up the bond, which included $9 million in a personal surety by Weil, $500,000 from the New Jersey family and the other $1 million a corporate surety bond signed with a bail bondsman.

United States authorities issued an international arrest warrant for Weil in early 2009, just months after he was charged with allegedly conspiring to help 17,000 American clients of Swiss bank UBS avoid taxes. Read More

Written by | Posted in Tax Fraud/Evasion/Crimes

The Tax Non-Compliant American Abroad: What Are Your Choices? Part II

Continued from Part I

Voluntary Disclosure Program

Each of the IRS Offshore Voluntary Disclosure programs has required the filing of 8 years’ of back tax returns and FBARs. In addition, volumes of supporting documentation are required. Choosing this option is very time-consuming and generally is very expensive, both in terms of professional fees and penalties. These programs, however, are a welcome relief for taxpayers who face a real likelihood of criminal penalty sanctions. More information on the most recent program, the 2012 OVDP, can be accessed here. Here is a broad overview of the OVDP terms: Read More

Written by | Posted in Expatriate • FATCA • FBAR • Individual • IRS • Tax Fraud/Evasion/Crimes

7 Habitual Mistakes Companies Make – Chapter 7 (1)

TaxConnections Blog Post
Communication to Eliminate Tax Risk –

The SEC in USA’s chief accountant said, “Sunlight is said to be one of the best disinfectants, and the area of income tax accounting could use more sunlight”.

Executive Summary

COMMUNICATION IS VITAL to the entire tax risk management process. Effective communication channels must be opened up and maintained on a regular basis, especially with the operations divisions of a business where there is often the least amount of transparent communication with the tax manager. Internal meetings between the various departments and the tax team must be encouraged on a more regular basis Read More

Written by | Posted in Tax Risk Management

Employment Taxes And The Self-Employed Global Worker – So “Un”Happy Together – Part III (1)

III. Recommendations to Assist Self-Employed U.S. Citizens Working Abroad Avoid or Reduce Self-Employment Taxes and Social Security Taxes –

Because self-employment taxes represent such a significant threat to the survival of U.S. citizens or residents doing business abroad, recommendations are needed to assist these individuals in avoiding self-employment taxation or reducing the amount of self-employment taxation paid. Can a U.S. citizen working abroad escape self-employment taxation? How about social security liability and medicare liability? If so, how? Is there a special exemption for overseas companies? Read More

Written by | Posted in International
« Older Entries   Recent Entries »