Yearly Archives: 2022

On July 28, 2022 we posted Manchin & Schumer Agree on Build Back "SOMEWHAT" Better Deal With 15% Corp. Minimum Tax & Increased Tax Enforcement, where we discussed that Sen. Joe Manchin & Chuck Schumer agreed on legislation that would impose a 15% corporate minimum tax as part of a larger package to address tax, energy and health care costs.

Now The Proposal To Appropriate $80 Billion Over 10 Years To The IRS Is Back On The Table As Part Of A Reconciliation Bill Recently Announced By Senate Democrats.

The BBB, once a $1.7 trillion legislative package, failed to gain enough support in the Senate to advance beyond the House of Representatives. While some provisions were axed or modified to appease the majority party's more moderate senators, like Sen. Joe Manchin of West Virginia, IRS funding was left intact. The appropriated amounts and their intended purposes are largely untouched in what is now the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 (IRA 2022; H.R. 5376).

As written, the funds would be available to the IRS through September 30, 2031, across four areas of the agency. 

Enforcement-Related Funds, At $45.6 Billion, Make Up More Than Half 

That's up from the nearly $44.9 billion proposed in the BBB. The goal would be to reduce the so-called tax gap by enhancing the IRS' means of capturing revenue from taxes that may otherwise not have been collected.

Further, The Funds Would Cover Litigation
And Criminal Investigation Expenses.

Notably, the enforcement section of the new act states that the funding is also for "digital asset monitoring and compliance activities," language also present in the November 3, 2021, House-amended version of the BBB. 

Notably, the enforcement section of the new act states that the funding is also for "digital asset monitoring and compliance activities," language also present in the November 3, 2021, House-amended version of the BBB. 

This definition subsequently became law when the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA; PL 117-58) was enacted November 15, 2021. Presumably, the monitoring and compliance activities identified in the Act would apply to digital assets as defined by the IIJA, which also established that a digital asset broker is anyone who "regularly provides any service effectuating transfers of digital assets on behalf of another person."

In March, the Biden administration indicated in its fiscal 2023 Green Book of budget priorities that digital assets would be a focal point of future strategies to address noncompliance. 

Various IRS officials speaking at tax conferences this year have reiterated that the agency is devoting more attention to tax avoidance behaviors involving digital assets that contribute to the tax gap.

Marini& Associates, P.A. 

 

 

for a FREE Tax Consultation at: 

www.TaxAid.com or www.OVDPLaw.com 
or Toll Free at 888-8TaxAid (888) 882-9243

Read more at: Tax Times blog

According to Law360, a California district judge ruled that a man owes just over $324,000 in penalties, interest and late fees for failing to report information on his foreign bank accounts to the Internal Revenue Service in U.S. v. Magdi Hanna, case number 8:22-cv-00179, in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California.

Magdi Hanna never appeared in court to address claims that he deliberately failed to report two Credit Suisse accounts on his taxes in 2010, 2011 and 2012, leading the judge to take them as true and enter a default judgment against him Wednesday.

Federal prosecutors previously said Hanna also did not report interest or dividends from the accounts, which held at least $7 million in 2010 and $6 million in 2011 and 2012.

Described by prosecutors as an educated business owner with an advanced degree in chemical engineering, Hanna opened the accounts in the name of two corporations he owned or controlled, according to court filings.

Have an FBAR Penalty Problem?  

 

 Contact the Tax Lawyers at 

Marini& Associates, P.A. 

 

 

for a FREE Tax Consultation at: 

www.TaxAid.com or www.OVDPLaw.com 
or Toll Free at 888-8TaxAid (888) 882-9243

Read more at: Tax Times blog

Increasing numbers of internationally mobile entrepreneurs and knowledge workers are relocating to Panama, drawn by its political stability, high growth economy, and strategic location with excellent connectivity to Central, South and North American markets.

When you add its “all-time-summer” climate and high quality of life you can see why it’s also a preferred destination for retirees, with Panama recently named the number one place to retire in International Living Magazine’s 2022 Annual Global Retirement Index.

Panama operates a number of easily understandable and efficiently operated temporary and permanent residency schemes, all of which offer the right to live and study in Panama. Panama operates a territorial tax regime, meaning that income sourced outside of Panama is not taxed in Panama.

The Digital Nomad Visa
Introduced in response to changes in working patterns triggered by the global pandemic, Panama’s digital nomad visa allows remote workers from abroad to reside in Panama for an initial nine months, with the option to extend this for another nine. Panama’s position as an international logistics centre means that it has excellent internet connectivity, with one of the highest average download speeds in Latin America.

Applicants for the digital nomad visa need to:

1.  Have valid health insurance for the duration of their stay in Panama.

2.  Show proof of existence of the foreign company they work for, in the place where it is registered.

3.  Provide a letter issued by the legal representative of the company detailing the applicant’s position and functions, monthly income and remote work modality, with a commitment to assume the expenses of return or repatriation if this becomes necessary. Self-employed applicants must provide a sworn declaration instead of the letter, with additional supporting documentation.

Permanent Residency
Panama offers several options to obtain permanent residency, with the possibility of subsequently becoming a Panamanian citizen. The two easiest ways to obtain permanent residency are to apply through the ‘Friendly Nations’ scheme or as a Qualified Investor.

·     The ‘Friendly Nations’ scheme offers residency to citizens of qualifying nations, of which there are currently 50, if they make a real estate investment of USD200,000.

·     A Qualified Investor can obtain residency through one of three investment routes:

1.  A real estate investment of USD300,000 (until 15 October 2022, after which the amount will increase to USD500,000); or

2.  A stock exchange investment of USD500,000; or

3.  A fixed-term banking deposit of USD750,000.

Qualified Investor applications are processed within 30 days, with it taking between four and six months under the Friendly Nations scheme.

Should I Stay or Should I Go?

Need Advise on Expatriation?

 

Contact the Tax Lawyers at 

Marini & Associates, P.A.   

for a FREE Tax Consultation contact us at:

www.TaxAid.com or www.OVDPLaw.com 
or Toll Free at 888-8TaxAid (888) 882-9243

Read more at: Tax Times blog

The IRS Chief Counsel's Office has issued Program Manager Technical Advice 2022-006, that answers employee questions about collecting on a delinquent taxpayer's assets that are outside the U.S.

The Advice addresses, in a question-and-answer format, when it's appropriate for the IRS to simultaneously pursue certain collection actions against a taxpayer that has been issued a tax bill, but has refused or neglected to pay it, and the IRS has exhausted domestic assets to levy. 

According to the Advice, the IRS generally isn't prohibited from pursuing multiple collection actions simultaneously. However, two specific collection actions that shouldn't be taken simultaneously: 1) issuing the taxpayer a notice of intent to request passport revocation (Letter 6152), and 2) actually referring the taxpayer to the State Department for revocation. The letter must be issued first and the time for responding to the letter must expire before the State Department referral.

Also, once a taxpayer's debt has been referred for litigation, no collection actions should be taken without approval from the Chief Counsel's Office and/or the Justice Department, the Advice noted.

In addition, the Advice explained the appropriate use of databases set up under the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA) when trying to identify offshore assets that can be used for collection. Generally, FATCA databases may be used to identify assets for collection, the Advice noted. 

However, the authorized uses of some FATCA data sets may vary depending on whether the data was received under an international tax information sharing agreement. A few international agreements restrict the use of tax information for tax periods that predate the effective date of the agreement or require the IRS to obtain authorization before publicly disclosing shared information in a collection proceeding.

Have an IRS Tax Problem?

     Contact the Tax Lawyers at

for a FREE Tax HELP Contact us at:
www.TaxAid.com or www.OVDPLaw.com
or Toll Free at 888 8TAXAID (888-882-9243)

Read more at: Tax Times blog