Archive for 2010
St. Kitts & Nevis Impose 17% VAT
The Federation of St. Kitts & Nevis has made doing business there a LOT more expensive. Effective Monday, Nov. 1, 2010, a 17% value-added tax was imposed on all legal and banking services. If you’re forming a Nevis LLC, that means that instead of paying, say, $1,750 to a local trust company, you’ll pay $2,047.50. [...]
Big Changes in Offshore Reporting Requirements in 2011: What You Need to Know
Does the date June 30, 2011 mean anything to you? If you’re a “U.S. person” and hold foreign assets with an aggregate value of $10,000 or more, it should. That’s the deadline for filing a form with the U.S. Treasury with the cryptic name “Form TD F 90-22.1.” This “foreign bank account report” (FBAR) gives [...]
Want a Dutch Passport? It Just Got Harder…
Across the globe, countries are making it more difficult for immigrants to qualify for legal residence and citizenship. The trend is especially prevalent in Europe, fueled by an economic crisis that shows no sign of relenting. Immigrants are easy targets for politicians looking for scapegoats. Right-wing parties in Austria, France, Hungary, Italy, and Spain [...]
A Bull Market in Lead Vests?
Manufacturers of the lead vests used in dental offices to shield patients from x-rays may have a new source of revenue, thanks to the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. Courtesy of the never-ending “War on Terror,” intrepid DHS bureaucrats have now deployed more than 500 mobile x-ray vans. The van drives up to a suspicious [...]
“Mañana” in the Caribbean
Mañana is a Spanish word that, roughly translated, means “tomorrow.” Visitors to Mexico and other Spanish-speaking countries—and especially Anglo-Saxons living there—understand the deeper meaning of Mañana. Rather than “tomorrow,” Mañana is an indefinite time in the future. Mañana is also alive and well in the Caribbean. After I moved to the Caribbean several years ago, [...]
Expatriation Won’t Eliminate Debt or Prevent Extradition
Here’s a question I recently received from a reader. I’m posting it because I think it illustrates some common misconceptions about expatriation. Q. I am a middle-aged male with dual citizenship from the United States and an EU country. I have been saddled with debt due to job loss. If I relinquish my U.S. citizenship, [...]
Feds Fail to Prove Taxpayer “Willfully” Failed to File Foreign Account Report
For the last year, the IRS has been “on a roll.” During that time, it’s penetrated a centuries-old tradition of bank secrecy in Switzerland. It’s forced Switzerland’s largest bank, UBS, to disclose account details on more than 4,000 U.S. taxpayers. And it’s concluded a “voluntary disclosure” program that resulted in nearly 15,000 U.S. taxpayers coming [...]
IRS to Crack Down on Americans Employed Offshore?
It’s bad enough if you’re a U.S. citizen or permanent resident working outside the United States. Your co-workers from other countries only have to worry about paying tax in the country they’re working in. But thanks to the U.S. Tax Code, along with a Supreme Court decision from the 1920s, U.S. citizens must pay tax [...]
Pre-Flight Inspection: A Low Profile Way to Avoid U.S. Customs Hassles
Ever get frustrated waiting in long lines at Passport Control and Customs when you return to (or visit) the United States? Or worry that you’ll be subject to an intrusive, embarrassing search? One way to minimize these hassles is to enter the United States from a port-of-entry in another country; a procedure called “U.S. border [...]
Island Hopping
Depending upon where you live in the Caribbean region, travel can often be an ordeal. This means that some access and connections are easy; others are not. While The Commonwealth of Dominica is centrally located in the Lesser Antilles, air access to and from the island can be tricky at times. This is due to [...]