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Streamlined Disclosure Attorney Austin | FATCA OVDP Lawyer

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If you are a resident of Austin, Texas, and you have undisclosed foreign accounts, it is highly likely that you have searched for Streamlined Disclosure Attorney Austin. Let’s analyze this search term – Streamlined Disclosure Attorney Austin – to understand exactly what kind of an attorney fits this search.

Streamlined Disclosure Attorney Austin Search Applies to SDOP and SFOP

Let’s first look into the search for “Streamlined Disclosure”. In reality, this is a search for an attorney who offers legal help with respect to two types of Streamlined Filing Compliance Procedures: SDOP (Streamlined Domestic Offshore Procedures) and SFOP (Streamlined Foreign Offshore Procedures).

Streamlined Disclosure Attorney Austin Search Applies to Attorneys Who Offer Legal Services in Austin

Now, we need to analyze the geographical aspect of this search – i.e. Austin. What does it mean when one says that he is looking for an Austin attorney? Obviously, it applies to attorneys who reside in Austin and who offer streamlined disclosure services in Austin.

Furthermore, this search for a Streamlined Disclosure Attorney Austin also applies to attorneys who reside outside of Austin but offer their legal services to the residents of Austin. The reason for this conclusion lies in the federal nature of the Streamlined Filing Compliance Procedures – this is purely an IRS program and it has no local input from Austin (except the IRS office in the city). Since this is federal law, the actual residence of your Austin attorney does not matter.

What really matters is whether he offers legal services in Austin and whether he is competent in the matters concerning Streamlined Filing Compliance Procedures. This leads to the final part of the search for Streamlined Disclosure Attorney Austin – what kind of a specialized “attorney” are you searching for?

Streamlined Disclosure Attorney Austin Search Applies Only to International Tax Attorneys

By searching for Streamlined Disclosure Attorney Austin, you are really trying to find a very specific kind of an attorney – an international tax attorney. SFOP, SDOP, OVDP (now closed) and any other voluntary disclosure options are just IRS programs (though, important programs) within the framework of the much larger legal area of US international tax law practice.

Hence, a Streamlined Disclosure Attorney Austin search is an attempt to find an international tax attorney who not only understands Streamlined Filing Compliance Procedures, but who also possesses deep understanding of the US international tax system, its laws and regulations, and the place SDOP and SFOP occupies within this system. This understanding is crucial to an attorney’s ability to properly analyze the case and choose the best legal strategy for his client.

Sherayzen Law Office can be Your International Tax Attorney

Sherayzen Law Office, Ltd. is an international tax law firm that specializes in all types of offshore voluntary disclosures, including OVDP closed, SDOP and SFOP. Our professional tax team, led by attorney Eugene Sherayzen, is highly experienced in helping US clients around the globe with their US international tax issues, including offshore voluntary disclosure. This is why Sherayzen Law Office should be your top candidate when you search for Streamlined Disclosure Attorney Austin.

Contact Us Today to Schedule Your Confidential Consultation!

OVDP International Tax Attorney: Letters from Swiss Banks & OVDP

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This is a natural question for an OVDP International Tax Attorney: in light of the ongoing U.S. Department of Justice (“DOJ”) The Program for Non-Prosecution Agreements or Non-Target Letters for Swiss Banks (the “Program”), should every U.S. taxpayer with undisclosed Swiss accounts enter the Program?

As everything in international tax law, the answer of whether you should enter the OVDP program (now closed) after receiving a letter from the Swiss Bank is not that simple and depends (as any good OVDP International Tax Attorney will tell you) on the particular circumstances of your case. The article below is not intended to give legal advice, but it is merely a discussion of various possibilities – please contact Mr. Eugene Sherayzen, an experienced international tax attorney of Sherayzen Law Office for professional advice with respect to your undisclosed foreign accounts.

OVDP International Tax Attorney: Letters from Swiss Banks

Ever since more than a hundred banks officially announced (and a lot of private banks did so unofficially) that they will enter the Program, U.S. taxpayers with undisclosed Swiss bank accounts have received letters from their Swiss banks asking the taxpayers whether they are in compliance with U.S. tax laws, whether they have filed their FBARs (Report of Foreign Bank and Financial Accounts, currently Form FinCen 114 (formely TD F 90-22.1))and, if not, whether they entered the IRS Offshore Voluntary Disclosure Program (OVDP).

Indeed the emphasis in all of the letters has been on the OVDP without any regard to the individual circumstances of the taxpayers and despite the fact that many of these taxpayers learned about the existence of the FBARs from the very letters from their Swiss banks.

OVDP International Tax Attorney: Common Chorus to Join OVDP

It is not only the Swiss banks that are urging these taxpayers to enter the OVDP. The IRS is also very eager to see as many people enter the OVDP as possible. Shockingly, the great majority of accountants readily take on the legal (not accounting) issue of whether a client should enter the OVDP. The accountants herd their clients into the OVDP without ever discussing the consequences of doing so or any other legal alternatives.

The end result of this common stance has been to convince the terrified taxpayers that OVDP is the only route available to them irrespective of their circumstances, whether the FBAR non-compliance was willful or non-willful, whether they have reasonable cause for the delayed filing of their FBARs or not, whether they owe any taxes or not, and so on.

OVDP International Tax Attorney: OVDP is Option #1

Of course, as an OVDP International Tax Attorney, I agree that there is no doubt that OVDP is Option #1 that must be considered by U.S. taxpayers who received a letter from their Swiss banks However, being Option #1 does not mean the only option and does not mean that it should be automatically followed.

Moreover, even under the OVDP, there are many issues, strategies and possibilities that must be explored by your OVDP International Tax Attorney.

Undoubtedly, OVDP has tremendous benefits to offer to U.S. taxpayers with willful non-compliance and who may be facing realistic criminal penalties. On the other hand, the calculation becomes much more complicated when your client simply did not know about the FBARs and the IRS is not likely to be able to sustain its burden of proof on the willfulness issue.

Comprehensive Legal Analysis of the Voluntary Disclosure Alternatives Must Be Considered

In all cases, but even more so in the non-willful cases, a very complex calculation and cost-benefit analysis must be conducted by your OVDP International Tax Attorney, comparing traditional FBAR penalty structure with the OVDP penalty structure. Outside factors, such as time, legal fees, complexity of the issues, impact on tax returns, appeal possibilities, and many others, should be considered your OVDP International Tax Attorney. Once all factors are considered, the Attorney should advise you on the available Voluntary Disclosure alternatives and the probability of success.

Only then, armed with this knowledge and based on the analysis of a good OVDP International Tax Attorney, should a U.S. taxpayer with undisclosed Swiss accounts make his decision.

Contact Sherayzen Law Office for Professional Legal and Tax Help With the Voluntary Disclosure of Your Foreign Accounts

The point of this article is not to diminish the value of the OVDP, but to argue that all U.S. taxpayers with undisclosed foreign accounts should be given a chance to consider all of their voluntary disclosure options based on the comprehensive analysis of their particular circumstances.

This is precisely what Sherayzen Law Office experienced international tax firm can do for you. We will thoroughly analyze the facts of your case, assess the potential FBAR and OVDP penalties and tax liabilities, analyze the voluntary disclosure alternatives, create a comprehensive voluntary disclosure plan for you, and implement this plan (including the preparation of all legal documents and tax forms).

Contact Us to schedule a Confidential Consultation with an experienced International Tax Attorney.