In US Expatriate Tax Planning – Part 2, Ms. Allen picks up the conversation regarding tax and legal issue U.S. expatriates might face. The discussion turns to real estate matters, and the issue of moving money from the United States to a Foreign Financial Institution (FFI) for the purposes of buying a home. Many U.S. expats do not realize this is a triggering event for FBAR filing requirements. If an individual account or the aggregated total of all your offshore financial accounts exceeds $10,000 at any point in the tax year, even See more +

In US Expatriate Tax Planning – Part 2, Ms. Allen picks up the conversation regarding tax and legal issue U.S. expatriates might face. The discussion turns to real estate matters, and the issue of moving money from the United States to a Foreign Financial Institution (FFI) for the purposes of buying a home. Many U.S. expats do not realize this is a triggering event for FBAR filing requirements. If an individual account or the aggregated total of all your offshore financial accounts exceeds $10,000 at any point in the tax year, even if for an hour or a day, it triggers the requirement to file associated FBARs. A lot of the deductions we are able to take here in the U.S., such as depreciation and amortization, are not available in foreign tax returns. How should a U.S. expat manage real estate transactions?

Ms. Allen continues the conversation, turning to international tax treaties and how these treaties and associated tax credits balance out. Also sharing the heirarchy of tax treaties, bilateral tax treaties, and many of the rules that regulate reportable income. Tax credit computation may seem to be a dollar-for-dollar transaction, but Ms. Allen shares the misleading nature of this assumption and the impact of timing issues and paying one tax entity in order to seek a deduction from another.

This issue of ABCast concludes with a discussion about marriage for U.S. expatriates. What issues does a U.S. expat face if they decide to get married overseas, and how can this impact taxes here in the United States. Many expats fail to consider the impact of a foreign marriage and/or divorce, and that either or both may not be recognized here in the U.S. Should you get married / divorced here in the U.S. as well? Ms. Allen shares a real life example of a client who faced incredible tax and monetary challenges simply because of an offshore divorce. California also taxes it’s citizens based upon worldwide income. Many U.S. expats fail to understand the reach of California and the taxes our state may impose upon those who earned their retirement funds while working and living in California.

Listen now and we hope you enjoy learning more about the important issues associated with the tax issues and challenges facing US expats. See less -