William Byrnes' Tax, Wealth, and Risk Intelligence

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The Federal Government has estimated that the “United States loses an estimated $345 billion in tax revenues each year as a result of offshore tax abuses primarily from the use of concealed and undeclared accounts held by U.S. taxpayers or their controlled foreign entities.” [1]

In consideration of the goal of eliminating this gap, “it is not surprising that the government recently ratcheted up its pressure on taxpayers who structured their activities, in many cases, with the active help and assistance of promoters and facilitators to avoid reporting their taxable income on their tax returns or hide these offshore accounts from the government.” [2] This increased “pressure” came in the form of the HIRE Act passed in the first quarter of 2010. [3] As was discussed earlier this week,[4] the new law provides for reporting requirements by foreign financial institutions with U.S. accountholders about the status, specifically identity and balance, of their account. [5] Read the entire article at AdvisorFYI.