March 14, 2023 by John F. Oakey
On Feb. 28, 2023, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in the case of Bittner v. United States1 that the non‑willful penalty for failure to file the Foreign Bank and Financial Accounts (FBAR) report was on a per report basis, not per account basis.
December 13, 2022 by Shelley Smith
United States citizens and Green Card holders are both considered U.S. persons, regardless of where they live. U.S. persons living outside the U.S. (such as in Canada) must continue to file U.S. tax returns annually, even if they have no income from the United States. For such individuals, there are mechanisms to avoid or reduce U.S. tax exposure and, in many cases, end up owing no U.S. tax at all. Still, failure to file returns, related forms and certain foreign information reporting can result in significant penalties.
November 19, 2021 by Shaun Andresen
In December 2017, President Trump signed the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) into law. The TCJA made significant amendments to the Internal Revenue Code (IRC). Among them was the introduction of a transition tax under IRC section 965—a tax on accumulated earnings of certain foreign corporations in the hands of U.S. shareholders. This new tax marked a transition to taxing the active income of foreign corporations.
May 28, 2021 by Todd King, Martha MacRae, Connor MacKenzie
The Biden administration’s “Made in America Tax Plan” and what it could mean for U.S. citizens residing in Canada
December 9, 2020 by Shelley Smith
Canadian residents may be wondering whether Joe Biden’s democratic tax policies will affect them once he becomes President. In many instances they will.
October 6, 2020 by Kevin Tippett
For a few years following the 2008 financial crisis, we saw many investors and snowbirds purchasing U.S. properties to take advantage of real estate bargains and a weak U.S. dollar. Over a decade has passed, the Canadian dollar has weakened, and with limited ability—or desire—to travel to the U.S. due to COVID-19 we are noticing a significant increase in U.S. real estate sales by Canadian residents. The situation provides an incentive to review some of the common U.S. tax issues when a Canadian resident sells U.S. real estate.
March 19, 2020 by John F. Oakey
On March 18, 2020, the IRS issued Notice 2020-17 deferring federal income tax payments due on April 15, 2020 to July 15, 2020. This notice was superseded on March 20, 2020 by Notice 2020-18 which expanded the relief measures.
March 13, 2020 by Trevor Reid
U.S. citizens and residents who own foreign trusts are often caught by the rules of the Internal Revenue Code section 6048, which requires those individuals to report transactions with, or ownership of, foreign trusts. This information is reported on Forms 3520 and 3520-A. Non-compliance with these laws comes with steep penalties starting at $10,000 per missed filing.
March 10, 2020 by John F. Oakey
The U.S. government, along with most governments, has invested resources in understanding cryptocurrency and is developing policies to deal with virtual currency. As of today, Bitcoin still remains the most invested virtual currency on the market with a market cap of approximately $200 billion.
December 12, 2019 by Dan Roberts
Are you a Canadian service provider (either an individual or a corporation) performing services for a U.S. business? If so, you could be considered a foreign person to that U.S. business, and the payments you receive may be subject to a U.S. 30 per cent federal withholding tax.
November 20, 2019 by Shelley Smith
With the economy in Alberta the way it is, it is no surprise that oilfield workers are searching for business opportunities south of the border. But they and any other Canadians seeking to establish their business in the U.S. may not realize that there can be a lot of red tape to deal with. Proper planning is key before entering into this type of venture.
September 11, 2019 by Mike Hayward
On Sept. 6, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) announced a new tax compliance program entitled “Relief Procedures for Certain Former (U.S.) Citizens” (Relief Procedures).
July 4, 2019 by John F. Oakey
The IRS announced on June 4, 2019, that it will end its tax transcript faxing service in June and will amend the Form 4506 series to end third-party mailing of tax returns and transcripts in July. The announcement indicated that transcripts have become increasingly vulnerable as criminals impersonate taxpayers or authorized third parties to file fraudulent returns for refunds.
March 7, 2019 by Todd King, Martha MacRae
As an update to our article Planning for IRC 951A: No Reprieve for the GILTI, the IRS has recently released regulations that provide a significant benefit to many US individual taxpayers grappling with the new GILTI regime.
February 13, 2019 by Todd King, Martha MacRae
This article will provide an overview of the GILTI (Global Intangible Low-Taxed Income) rules and their implications, as well as exploring planning options that should be considered by those subject to the rules.
January 14, 2019 by Trevor Reid
The IRS warned recently that the Streamlined Filing Compliance Procedures may end. The message is clear: don’t wait any longer.
In December 2017, U.S. lawmakers passed the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, the most comprehensive U.S. tax reform in more than 30 years. This infographic offers a basic guide to recent changes that may be applicable to U.S. citizens living abroad.
August 24, 2018 by Shawn Strandberg
The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) has announced it will begin to wind down the 2014 Offshore Voluntary Disclosure Program (OVDP) and close it entirely on Sept. 28, 2018.
March 14, 2018 by Martha MacRae, Todd King
From a taxation perspective, the period from July 2017 to February 2018 has been one of the most tumultuous in recent history for Canadian private company owners. For those who also have the privilege of being U.S. citizens or resident aliens, things have gotten downright ludicrous. In a rush to pass into law the most sweeping tax reform in a generation, U.S. lawmakers have stuck U.S. citizens resident in Canada with retroactive, double taxation, the elimination of much of the tax deferral previously available in their companies, a looming April 17th payment deadline and virtually no rules or regulations to guide them through the chaos.
December 21, 2017 by Kevin Tippett
*Updated January 9 2017
On November 2, 2017, the Ways and Means Committee of the U.S. House of Representatives released a tax reform bill entitled The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act. Since then, the House and Senate Tax Cuts and Jobs Act Conference Committee released its final version of the legislation that is expected to become law in the coming days. It is the most comprehensive U.S. tax reform in more than 30 years.