Countries Change Stance on Tax Reporting
March 16, 2009 by Allison Boyer
Filed under Business
Seven countries in Europe and Asia have agreed to modify their stances on tax information reporting for U.S. taxpayers with foreign accounts. Under a previous treaty, they would only honor IRS requests for information is they could provide “specific evidence of tax offenses.” Now, lower standards will apply.
Countries and territories changing their stances on bank information reporting include Liechtenstein, Switzerland, Luxembourg, Austria, Andorra, Hong Kong, and Singapore. In the past, these were some places people would “hide money” (we’ve all heard about the infamous Swiss bank account used by bank robbers and mobsters in movies, right?), and now, that information will be much more easily released to U.S. authorities.
The IRS is encouraging U.S. taxpayers with foreign accounts not currently in compliance with U.S. tax law to pursue the IRS Voluntary Disclosure Policy. Most people who opt to disclose information under this policy will not be pursued for criminal persecution.
Image: IRS.gov
