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Monthly Archives: March 2018

Mossack Fonseca Closing at End of March – OVDP Ends Sept 28th!

Mossack Fonseca, the firm at the center of the ‘Panama Papers’ affair, has announced it is to close operations at the end of March 2018.

Millions of confidential client documents were stolen from the trust and company service provider in April 2016 and released to the press, triggering a media campaign that led to reputational deterioration and raids on its offices by Panamanian authorities.

At least 150 investigations were opened in 79 countries to examine possible tax evasion and money laundering, according to the US-based Center for Public Integrity.

Founded in 1977 by the German lawyer Jürgen Mossack, it was the world’s fourth-biggest provider of offshore services at the time the scandal erupted. Mossack was joined by the Panamanian lawyer Ramón Fonseca and a third director, the Swiss lawyer Christoph Zollinger, was later added.

Until the publication of the Panama Papers, it had been mostly obscure despite sitting at the heart of the global offshore industry and acting for about 300,000 companies. More than half were registered in British tax havens, as well as, in the UK.

Last month, Panamanian prosecutors raided the offices of Mossack Fonseca, seeking possible links to Odebrecht, Latin America’s largest engineering company. The Brazilian construction firm has admitted to bribing officials in Panama and other countries to obtain contracts in the region between 2010 and 2014.

Ramón Fonseca denied last month that his firm had a connection to Odebrecht, while accusing the Panamanian president, Juan Carlos Varela, of directly receiving money from Odebrecht. Varela has denied that he took any money from Odebrecht.
A few staff will continue to be employed to comply with requests from authorities and others.

Do You Have Undeclared Income 
From A Foreign Company
Formed By Mossack Fonseca ?
 

 
 
 Want to Know if the OVDP Program is Right for You?

(Program Ends September 28th)

 
Contact the Tax Lawyers at 

Marini& Associates, P.A.    

 

 

for a FREE Tax Consultation at:
Toll Free at 888-8TaxAid (888) 882-9243
 
 
 
 
 

 

 


Sources:

The Guardian

 
 
 
  

Read more at: Tax Times blog

IRS Issues FAQ's Regarding How to Report Section 965 Transition Tax on 2017 Tax Returns

On March 13, 2018, the IRS added Questions and Answers about Reporting Related to Section 965 on 2017 Tax Returns on its website. This document provides answers to questions regarding return filing and tax payment obligations arising under section 14103 of “An Act to provide for reconciliation pursuant to titles II and V of the concurrent resolution on the budget for fiscal year 2018,” P.L 115-97 (“the Act”), which was enacted on December 22, 2017.

The new provision enacted by section 14103 of the Act, set forth at section 965 of the Internal Revenue Code (the “Code”), applies with respect to the last taxable year of certain specified foreign corporations (as defined under

In general, section 965 of the Code requires United States shareholders, as defined under section 951(b) of the Code, to pay a transition tax on the untaxed foreign earnings of certain specified foreign corporations as if those earnings had been repatriated to the United States.

section 965(e) of the Code) beginning before January 1, 2018, and the amount included in income under section 965 of the Code is includible in the United States shareholder’s year in which or with which such a specified foreign corporation’s year ends.  Taxpayers may have to pay tax resulting from section 965 of the Code when filing their 2017 tax returns.  For example, section 965 of the Code may give rise to a 2017 tax liability for a calendar year United States shareholder holding an interest in a calendar year specified foreign corporation.

Very generally, section 965 of the Code allows taxpayers to reduce the amount of such inclusion based on deficits in earnings and profits with respect to other specified foreign corporations. The effective tax rates applicable to such income inclusions are adjusted by way of a participation deduction set out in section 965(c) of the Code.

A reduced foreign tax credit applies to the inclusion under section 965(g) of the Code. Taxpayers, pursuant to section 965(h) of the Code, may elect to pay the transition tax in installments over an eight-year period. Generally, a specified foreign corporation means either a controlled foreign corporation, as defined under section 957 of the Code (“CFC”), or a foreign corporation (other than a passive foreign investment company, as defined under section 1297 of the Code, that is not also a CFC) that has a United States shareholder that is a domestic corporation.

The instructions in these FAQs are for filing 2017 tax returns with an amount under section 965 of the Code.

Failure to Submit Tax Returns According to These Instructions May Result in Difficulties in Processing Tax Returns, Including Rejection, Processing Delays, or Erroneous Notices Being Issued.
Taxpayers who electronically file Form 1040 are requested to wait to file their return on or after
April 2, 2018. This will provide the IRS time to make certain system changes to allow the returns to be accepted and processed.
 
 We Can Advise on How The TCJA Affects You!
 
 
 
Contact the Tax Lawyers at 
Marini & Associates, P.A.  
 
 
for a FREE Tax Consultation
Toll Free at 888-8TaxAid (888) 882-9243
 
 
 
 

Read more at: Tax Times blog

IRS to End OVDP Sept. 28 – Last Chance for Taxpayers With Undisclosed Foreign Assets!

WASHINGTON – The Internal Revenue Service today announced (IR-2018-52) tha it will begin to ramp down the 2014 Offshore Voluntary Disclosure Program (OVDP) and close the program on Sept. 28, 2018. By alerting taxpayers now, the IRS intends that any U.S. taxpayers with undisclosed foreign financial assets have time to use the OVDP before the program closes.



“Taxpayers Have Had Several Years to Come into Compliance with US Tax Laws under This Program,”
Said Acting IRS Commissioner David Kautter.
“All along, We Have Been Clear That We Would Close the Program at the Appropriate Time, and We Have Reached That Point. Those Who Still Wish to Come Forward Have Time to Do So.”

Since the OVDP’s initial launch in 2009, more than 56,000 taxpayers have used one of the programs to comply voluntarily. All told, those taxpayers paid a total of $11.1 billion in back taxes, interest and penalties. The planned end of the current OVDP also reflects advances in third-party reporting and increased awareness of U.S. taxpayers of their offshore tax and reporting obligations.

The number of taxpayer disclosures under the OVDP peaked in 2011, when about 18,000 people came forward. The number steadily declined through the years, falling to only 600 disclosures in 2017.

The current OVDP began in 2014 and is a modified version of the OVDP launched in 2012, which followed voluntary programs offered in 2011 and 2009. The programs have enabled U.S. taxpayers to voluntarily resolve past non-compliance related to unreported foreign financial assets and failure to file foreign information returns.

Tax Enforcement

The IRS notes that it will continue to use tools besides voluntary disclosure to combat offshore tax avoidance, including taxpayer education, Whistleblower leads, civil examination and criminal prosecution. Since 2009, IRS Criminal Investigation has indicted 1,545 taxpayers on criminal violations related to international activities, of which 671 taxpayers were indicted on international criminal tax violations.

“The IRS remains actively engaged in ferreting out the identities of those with undisclosed foreign accounts with the use of information resources and increased data analytics,” said Don Fort, Chief, IRS Criminal Investigation. “Stopping offshore tax noncompliance remains a top priority of the IRS.”

Streamlined Procedures and Other Options

A separate program, the Streamlined Filing Compliance Procedures, for taxpayers who might not have been aware of their filing obligations, has helped about 65,000 additional taxpayers come into compliance. The Streamlined Filing Compliance Procedures will remain in place and available to eligible taxpayers. As with OVDP, the IRS has said it may end the Streamlined Filing Compliance Procedures at some point.

The implementation of the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA) and the ongoing efforts of the IRS and the Department of Justice to ensure compliance by those with U.S. tax obligations have raised awareness of U.S. tax and information reporting obligations with respect to undisclosed foreign financial assets.  Because the circumstances of taxpayers with foreign financial assets vary widely, the IRS will continue offering the following options for addressing previous failures to comply with U.S. tax and information return obligations with respect to those assets:

  • IRS-Criminal Investigation Voluntary Disclosure Program;
  • Streamlined Filing Compliance Procedures;
  • Delinquent FBAR submission procedures; and
  • Delinquent international information return submission procedures.  
  Have Undeclared Income from an Offshore Account?
 
Want to Know if the OVDP Program is Right for You?

 
 
Contact the Tax Lawyers at 
Marini& Associates, P.A. 
 
 
for a FREE Tax Consultation
Toll Free at 888-8TaxAid (888) 882-9243

 

 

    Read more at: Tax Times blog

    More Charges Against Ex-Trump Campaign Chair Including Offshore Account Violations!

    On October 30, 2017 we posted Ex-Trump Campaign Chair Charged With Conspiracy Against US and Offshore Account Violations!

    President Donald Trump's former campaign chairman, Paul Manafort, and an alleged co-conspirator have been indicted on charges of conspiracy against the United States, money laundering and bank records charges tied to close to a decade of secret lobbying on behalf of Russia-associated Ukrainian officials.

    According to Law360, Special Counsel Robert Mueller unsealed a slew of new tax- and bank fraud-related criminal charges on February 22, 2018 against President Donald Trump’s former campaign officials Paul Manafort and Richard Gates, alleging they filed false income tax returns and failed to report foreign bank accounts.

    The charges against Manafort, Trump’s former campaign chairman, and Gates, a business associate, include:

    • 16 counts related to allegedly false income tax returns, 
    • 7 counts of failure to report offshore financial accounts,
    • 5 counts of bank fraud conspiracy and
    • 4 counts of bank fraud.

    Mueller, a former FBI director who has been investigating reports of Russian tampering in the 2016 presidential election since May, laid the first charges against Manafort and Gates in October in the District of Columbia, accusing them of having channeled millions of dollars through overseas bank accounts and using the funds to buy prime real estate and luxury cars in the U.S.

    The latest 37-page indictment, with new accusations of bank fraud and filing false tax returns, was returned by a grand jury in Virginia since that is where the crimes are alleged to have taken place, according to a status report that Mueller filed in federal court.

    The charges lay out a complex scheme involving offshore shell companies to allege money laundering and banking and tax crimes. Manafort laundered more than $18 million in income that was concealed from the U.S. Department of the Treasury, and Gates transferred more than $3 million from the offshore accounts to other accounts that he controlled, according to the October indictment.

    “Manafort used his hidden overseas wealth to enjoy a lavish lifestyle in the United States, without paying taxes on that income,” the indictment says.
     
     
    “In furtherance of the scheme, Gates used millions of dollars from these offshore accounts to pay for his personal expenses, including his mortgage, children’s tuition, and interior decorating and refinancing of his Virginia residence.”

    A total of more than $75 million is alleged to have flowed through offshore accounts, with more than $33 million remaining hidden from the U.S. government.

    Both Gates and Manafort have pled not guilty to the charges laid in October, and Manafort has filed a civil suit of his own alleging that the U.S. Department of Justice broke the law by giving Mueller an overly broad authority to investigate the Russia matter.

    Jason Maloni, president of the crisis public relations firm JadeRoq LLC, issued a statement on behalf of Manafort saying that his client was “innocent of the allegations” in the newly filed indictment.

    “The new allegations against Mr. Manafort, once again, have nothing to do with Russia and 2016 election interference/collusion. Mr. Manafort is confident that he will be acquitted and violations of his constitutional rights will be remedied,” Maloni said.

    The special counsel investigation led by Mueller continues to roil the White House, especially since the December guilty plea of former national security adviser Michael Flynn, who copped to lying to the FBI.

    Last week, a D.C. federal judge expressed impatience with snags in setting a trial date for Manafort and Gates and also the extent to which the criminal case has so far been kept under wraps.

    Eager for prosecutors to lay out their case to the defendants, Judge Jackson noted that Gates and Manafort face significant penalties that could include years in prison. But she expressed skepticism at a special counsel proposal to set a trial date with eight weeks’ notice, which she said may not give the defendants adequate time to prepare for a pretrial conference.

    Judge Jackson also challenged the extent to which documents have been filed under seal in the case and said that there should be more public access.

    The government is represented by Kyle R. Freeny, Andrew Weissmann and Greg D. Andres of the Special Counsel's Office in the U.S. Department of Justice.

    Manafort is represented by Kevin Downing and Thomas Zehnle.

    Gates is represented by Thomas C. Green of Sidley Austin LLP. He has also been represented so far by Shanlon Wu of Wu Grohovsky & Whipple PLLC, Walter Mack of Doar Rieck Kaley & Mack and Annemarie McAvoy of McAvoy Consulting LLC.

    The case filed in Virginia is USA v. Manafort et al., case number 1:18-cr-00083, in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia.

    Have Undeclared Income
    From Your Foreign Account?
     
     

     Want to Know if Which OVDP Program is Right for You?


     

    Contact the Tax Lawyers at 
    Marini& Associates, P.A.  
     

    for a FREE Tax Consultation
    Toll Free at 888-8TaxAid (888) 882-9243 
     

    Read more at: Tax Times blog

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