- Foreign Banks Forced to Report US Account Owners’ Tax Information to IRS
- The Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA) is a United States law that requires United States persons, including individuals who live outside of the US, to report their financial accounts held outside of the United States to the Treasury Department. This is done by completing and attaching IRS Form 8938, Statement of Foreign Financial Assets, to the individual’s income tax return, and is generally required if the value of the foreign accounts exceeds $50,000 (this threshold is higher for US persons residing abroad). In addition, FATCA requires foreign financial institutions to report about their US clients to the IRS. Congress enacted FATCA in order to make it more difficult for US taxpayers to conceal assets held in offshore accounts and shell corporations and thus, recoup federal tax revenues on unreported foreign-source income. The penalties for not reporting the accounts are draconian.
- Tax Facts about Summertime Child Care Expenses
- Many parents who work or are looking for work must arrange for care of their children during school vacations. If you are one of those, and your children requiring care are under 13 years of age, you may qualify for a tax credit that can reduce your federal income taxes.
- Passwords - Why a List Is Important
- We now live in a digital world where we conduct many, if not all, of your financial affairs over the Internet. And we guard against others getting into our Internet accounts with usernames and passwords. We can even use passwords to keep others from accessing our cell phones, tablets and computers.
- IRS Tax Publications Are Not Binding Precedent
- If you are a taxpayer who thinks the answers you receive when calling the IRS help line are always accurate and binding upon the IRS in a subsequent challenge, think again. The IRS will be the first to tell you that the information provided by its help line is not binding on the agency. In other words, even if you follow the advice provided by the IRS, you will not be protected from subsequently being challenged by the IRS and hit with additional taxes, penalties, and interest. The IRS does not stand behind the advice provided by their employees.
- Find Lost Money
- Unclaimed property refers to accounts in financial institutions and companies that have had no activity generated or contact with the owner for a period of one year or longer (depending upon state law). Common forms of unclaimed property include savings or checking accounts, stocks, uncashed dividends or payroll checks, refunds, traveler’s checks, trust distributions, unredeemed money orders or gift certificates (in some states), insurance payments or refunds and life insurance policies, annuities, certificates of deposit, customer overpayments, utility security deposits, mineral royalty payments, and contents of safe deposit boxes.
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