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Offshore Accounts Voluntary Disclosure Lawyer Spring Texas

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If you have undisclosed foreign accounts and you are a resident of Spring, Texas, it is important for you to understand your options in terms of who can help you with the voluntary disclosure of your noncompliant offshore accounts. In this article, I will help you understand your offshore accounts voluntary disclosure lawyer Spring Texas options (I am adding the location – Spring, Texas – in an attempt to match your potential search keyword).

Offshore Accounts Voluntary Disclosure Lawyer Spring Texas: International Tax Lawyer

Since the issue that concerns you is offshore voluntary disclosure of noncompliance concerning foreign accounts and foreign income generated by these accounts, you are dealing with US international tax law (i.e. federal law) and you need help from a US international tax lawyer. In fact, you can easily replace your search words Offshore Accounts Voluntary Disclosure Lawyers with a search for International Tax Lawyer.

Alternatively, you can also search for FBAR Tax Lawyer Spring Texas, because your foreign account reporting noncompliance will most likely involve FinCEN Form 114, commonly known as FBAR. However, you should understand that an FBAR lawyer is still an international tax attorney, because FBAR is part of US international tax compliance.

Offshore Accounts Voluntary Disclosure Lawyer Spring Texas: Voluntary Disclosure Expertise

In selecting your international tax lawyer, it is vital to understand that you need a lawyer who specializes in offshore voluntary disclosure and who is familiar with the various offshore voluntary disclosure options. Offshore voluntary disclosure covers: SDOP (Streamlined Domestic Offshore Procedures), SFOP (Streamlined Foreign Offshore Procedures), DFSP (Delinquent FBAR Submission Procedures), DIIRSP (Delinquent International Information Return Submission Procedures), VDP (IRS Voluntary Disclosure Practice) and Reasonable Cause disclosures. Each of these options has it pros and cons, which may have tremendous legal and tax (and, in certain cases, even immigration) implications for your case.

Offshore Accounts Voluntary Disclosure Lawyer Spring Texas: Geographical Location Does Not Matter

While the expertise and experience of your offshore voluntary disclosure lawyer are highly important, the geographical location (i.e. the city where the lawyer resides) does not matter. Obviously, the term Offshore Accounts Voluntary Disclosure Lawyer Spring Texas applies to lawyers who reside in Spring, Texas.

It is important to understand, however, that this term also applies to lawyers who reside outside of Spring, Texas, but offer their offshore voluntary disclosure services to the residents of this city. This is the case because offshore voluntary disclosures concern US international (i.e. federal) tax law. The locality of a lawyer should not affect his ability to deliver his US international tax services to you.

Sherayzen Law Office is Included in the Definition of Offshore Accounts Voluntary Disclosure Lawyer Spring Texas

Sherayzen Law Office, Ltd. is an international tax law firm that specializes in all types of offshore voluntary disclosures, including SDOP, SFOP, DFSP, DIIRSP, VDP and Reasonable Cause disclosures. Our professional tax team, led by attorney Eugene Sherayzen, has successfully helped hundreds of US clients around the globe, including in city of Spring, Texas, with their offshore voluntary disclosures. We can also help you!

Contact Us Today to Schedule Your Confidential Consultation!

2020 FBAR Criminal Penalties | FBAR International Tax Lawyers

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2020 FBAR criminal penalties is a potential threat to any US taxpayer who willfully failed to file his FBARs or knowingly filed a false FBAR. In this essay, I would like to review the 2020 FBAR criminal penalties that these noncompliant US taxpayers may have to face.

2020 FBAR Criminal Penalties: Background Information

A lot of US taxpayers do not understand why the 2020 FBAR criminal penalties are so shockingly severe. These taxpayers question why failing to file a form that has nothing do with income tax calculation should potentially result in a jail sentence.

The answer to this questions lies in the legislative history of FBAR. First of all, it is important to understand that FBAR is not a tax form. The Report of Foreign Bank and Financial Accounts (“FBAR”) was born in 1970 out of the Bank Secrecy Act (“BSA”), in particular 31 U.S.C. §5314. This means that the initial primary purpose of the form was to fight financial crimes, money laundering and terrorism. In other words, FBAR was not initially created to combat tax evasion.

Rather, FBAR criminal penalties were structured from the very beginning for the purpose of punishing criminals engaged in financial crimes and/or terrorism. This is why the FBAR penalties are so severe and easily surpass the penalties of any tax form.

It was only 30 years later, after the enaction of The Uniting and Strengthening America by Providing Appropriate Tools Required to Intercept and Obstruct Terrorism Act of 2001 (the “USA Patriot Act”), that the enforcement of FBAR was turned over to the IRS allegedly to fight terrorism. Instead, the IRS almost immediately commenced using FBAR to fight the tax evasion schemes that utilized offshore accounts.

The Congress liked the IRS initiative and responded with the American Jobs Creation Act of 2004 (“2004 Jobs Act”). The 2004 Jobs Act further increased the FBAR existing penalties and created an new non-willful penalty of up to $10,000 per violation.

2020 FBAR Criminal Penalties: Description

Now that we understand why the 2020 FBAR criminal penalties are so severe, let’s describe what these penalties actually may be. There are three different 2020 FBAR criminal penalties associated with different FBAR violations.

First, a criminal penalty may be imposed under 26 U.S.C. 5322(a) and 31 C.F.R. § 103.59(b) for willful failure to file FBAR or retain records of a foreign account. The penalty is up to $250,000 or 5 years in prison or both.

Second, when the willful failure to file FBAR is combined with a violation of other US laws or the failure to file FBAR is “part of a pattern of any illegal activity involving more than $100,000 in a 12-month period”, then the IRS has the option of imposing a criminal penalty under 26 U.S.C. 5322(b) and 31 C.F.R. § 103.59(c). In this case, the penalty jumps to incredible $500,000 or 10 years in prison or both.

Finally, if a person willingly and knowingly files a false, fictitious or fraudulent FBAR, he may be penalized under 31 C.F.R. § 103.59(d). The penalty in this case may be $10,000 or 5 years or both.

Contact Sherayzen Law Office for Help With Past FBAR Violations

If you were required to file an FBAR but you have not done it, contact Sherayzen Law Office to explore your voluntary disclosure options. Our international tax law firm specializes in FBAR compliance and we have helped hundreds of US taxpayers around the world to resolve their past FBAR noncompliance while reducing and, in some cases, even eliminating their FBAR penalties.

We can help You! Contact Us Today to Schedule Your Confidential Consultation!

FinCEN Form 114 Business Filers | FBAR Lawyer & Attorney Delaware

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In a previous article, I described individuals who need to file FinCEN Form 114. This essay is a continuation of the same series of articles concerning FinCEN Form 114 filers. Today, I will devote my attention to FinCEN Form 114 Business Filers.

FinCEN Form 114 Business Filers: FBAR Filing Requirement

We first need to understand what Form 114 is. The Report of Foreign Bank and Financial Accounts, FinCEN Form 114 also known as “FBAR”, is one of the most important information returns administered by the IRS since 2001 (the form itself has existed since 1970). FBAR requires a US person to disclose his financial interest in or signatory authority (or any other authority) over foreign bank and financial accounts as long as the highest balance of these accounts, in the aggregate, exceeds $10,000 at any point during a calendar year.

FBAR is the creation of the Bank Secrecy Act, Title 31 of the United States Code (“USC”). In other words, it is technically not a tax form. In fact, its original purpose was to fight financial crimes.

Due to this legal history, FBAR has a ruthless yet highly elaborate penalty system. FBAR penalties range from criminal penalties that include incarceration to the astonishingly high willful and even non-willful civil penalties. This severe penalty system makes FBAR one of the most dangerous US international information returns.

FinCEN Form 114 Business Filers: General Definition

As described above, only US persons are required to file FBARs. There are various categories of US persons: individuals, businesses, trusts and estates. Our focus today is on business filers.

The general rule is that a business entity is considered a US person if it was created or organized in the United States or under the laws of the United States. There are two terms that we need to understand within this general rule in order to the rule apply correctly: entity and the United States.

FinCEN Form 114 Business Filers: Entity

For FBAR purposes, the word “entity” is defined broadly to include without limitation a corporation, a partnership and a limited liability company. This term applies even if a business is a disregarded entity for US tax purposes.

In other words, a single member limited liability company is required to file an FBAR if it has foreign accounts that satisfy the FBAR filing threshold. Again, the reason for applying the legal, rather than a tax a definition of “entity”, is driven by the FBAR’s legal history; it is a Title 31 requirement, not a Title 26 (i.e. the Internal Revenue Code) requirement.

FinCEN Form 114 Business Filers: Definition of the United States

I have already explored the FBAR definition of the United States in another article. Hence, I will only briefly state the rule here. 31 CFR 1010.100(hhh) defines the United States for FBAR purposes as: the States of the United States, the District of Columbia, the Indian Lands (as defined in the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act) and the territories and insular possessions of the United States.

Thus, a business entity formed in Guam is considered a US person for FBAR purposes. Similarly, a partnership formed in Delaware by two non-resident aliens is also a US person. Even an entity created under the laws of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico will still be a US person. If these entities have foreign financial and bank accounts which exceed the FBAR filing threshold, they will also be considered FinCEN Form 114 business filers.

Contact Sherayzen Law Office for Professional FBAR Help

If you are a US business entity which maintains foreign accounts outside of the United States, please consider contacting Sherayzen Law Office for professional legal help. We have extensive experience in helping US businesses to comply with their FBAR requirements as well as to remedy their past FBAR noncompliance through an offshore voluntary disclosure.

Contact Us Today to Schedule Your Confidential Consultation!

This article focuses on FinCEN Form 114 business filers and is part of the series of articles on FinCEN Form 114 filers. The series began with the article that FBAR and Form 114a are the same form, then another article on the FBAR definition of the United States and still another article on the FinCEN Form 114 Filers (with the focus on the individual filers). Future articles are planned to continue this series.