The Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA) requires foreign financial institutions and US persons who hold certain foreign accounts to report these accounts to the US. One of the most common types of account that must reported is the depository account. However, the definition of depository account changed significantly from the proposed regulations to the final regulations.
DetailsDuring 2012 US citizenship and, more particularly, the tax consequences of US citizenship became a major source of anxiety for US citizens living in Canada. Widespread reports in the media of increased US enforcement of tax and financial account reporting obligations of US citizens living outside the United States created considerable anxiety. They also spurred…
DetailsBefore delving headfirst into the taxation of intellectual property, it is important to understand what constitutes intellectual property and how it relates to intangible property. Intangible property is any property that has no physical substance, and intellectual property is intangible property created by individual(s). While these terms are often used interchangeably, some types of intangible…
DetailsOn January 17, 2013, the Department of Treasury and the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) announced the release of the final FATCA regulations (Regulations). The Regulations become effective on January 28, 2013, and diverge significantly from the current temporary regulations. While there are numerous changes in the Regulations, we highlight just some of the significant changes:…
DetailsThe US Department of Treasury announced that the US and Spain signed a Protocol to their bilateral income tax treaty (the Treaty). The Protocol includes twenty-six pages of addenda and revisions to the Treaty. The Department of Treasury highlighted some of the Protocol’s changes to the Treaty: 1) the Protocol provides for “exclusive residence-country” taxation…
DetailsThe Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA) and its subsequent regulations have created a dizzying array of implementation deadlines for taxpayers, financial institutions, and withholding agents. The accompanying chart organizes the key dates related to FATCA implementation. Please note that because of the complexity of FATCA it was not practical to include all implementation dates…
DetailsOn December 3, 2012, the US and Switzerland initialed a bilateral agreement to implement Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA) (the agreement must still be approved by the Swiss Parliament). Previously, on November 20, 2012, Spain announced that it had agreed to a bilateral agreement implementing FATCA and on November 19, 2012, the IRS announced…
DetailsOn November 19, 2012, the IRS announced that the US and Mexico have signed a bilateral agreement to implement the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA). This announcement comes just a couple days after the November 14, 2012 announcement that the US and Denmark signed a similar bilateral agreement to implement FATCA. With the addition…
DetailsFlott & Co. recently contacted the Department of State, suggesting that Volume 7 (Consular Affairs) of the US Department of State Foreign Affairs Manual (“FAM”) be revised. Specific guidance is needed for cases when former US citizens living abroad wish to establish that they relinquished their US citizenship at a date in the past and a Consular…
DetailsFlott & Co.’s recent experience in assisting two former US citizens seeking formal documentation of their prior loss of US citizenship underscores the need for expanded guidance on the relinquishment of US citizenship in the US Department of State Foreign Affairs Manual (Volume 7 – Consular Affairs) (“FAM”). In cases that appear to have been…
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