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FATCA Discussion Thread (Ask your questions) Part Two

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Please ask your questions here about FATCA.

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3,498 thoughts on “FATCA Discussion Thread (Ask your questions) Part Two”

  1. This seems to dissent?
    In Scandinavian speak, this implies agreement-not-at-this-time with multilateral agreements.

    (5) If Member States are parallel and uncoordinated Agreement in accordance with Article 19 of Directive 2011/16/EU distortions would arise that would be harmful to the internal market. If the automatic exchange of information expanded on the basis of an EU-wide legislation, Member States would no longer have to rely on that provision with a view to concluding bilateral or multilateral agreements in this area that could be considered appropriate in the absence of relevant Union legislation.

    (5) Om medlemsstaterna ingår parallella och icke-samordnade avtal i enlighet med artikel 19 i direktiv 2011/16/EU skulle snedvridningar uppstå som skulle vara skadliga för den inre marknaden. Om det automatiska utbytet av upplysningar utökas på grundval av en unionsövergripande rättsakt skulle medlemsstaterna inte längre behöva åberopa denna bestämmelse med sikte på att ingå bilaterala eller multilaterala avtal på detta område som skulle kunna anses lämpliga i avsaknad av relevant unionslagstiftning.

    (The statement seems to be from the EU area of the parliament, however it has the logo of the EU)

  2. This looks like EUratCA.

    “3a. The competent authority in each Member State shall, by automatic exchange of information, to any other Member State competent authority, information on tax periods from January 1, 2014 for the following items paid, guaranteed or held by a financial institution that directly or indirectly benefit a beneficial owner (beneficial owner) who is an individual resident in that other Member State: (a) Dividends. (b) Capital gains. (c) all other income generated in respect of assets of financial accounts. (d) Any amount that the financial institution is the guarantor or obligor for, including any refunds. (e) Account balances.

    ”3a. Den behöriga myndighet i varje medlemsstat ska, genom automatiskt utbyte av upplysningar, till varje annan medlemsstats behöriga myndighet lämna upplysningar om beskattningsperioder från och med den 1 januari 2014 avseende följande poster som betalas, garanteras eller innehas av ett finansinstitut och som direkt eller indirekt gynnar en verklig ägare (beneficial owner) som är en fysisk person bosatt i den andra medlemsstaten: (a) Utdelningar. (b) Kapitalvinster. (c) Alla andra inkomster som genereras med avseende på tillgångar på finansiella konton. (d) Alla belopp som finansinstitutet står som garant för eller är gäldenär för, inbegripet eventuella återbetalningar. (e) Kontosaldon.

  3. I Think that it might be the EU telling every country to implement EUratCA by 31 Dec 2014?

    Article 2 1. Member States shall by 31 December 2014 adopt and publish the laws, regulations and administrative provisions necessary to comply with this Directive. They shall forthwith inform the Commission thereof. They shall apply these provisions with effect from 1 January 2015. When Member States adopt those provisions, they shall contain a reference to this Directive or be accompanied by such a reference on the occasion. The procedure for such reference shall be laid down by Member States. 2nd Member States shall communicate to the Commission the text of the main provisions of national law which they adopt in the field covered by this Directive.

    Article 3 This Directive shall enter into force on the twentieth day following that of its publication in the Official Journal.

    Article 4
    This Directive is addressed to the Member States. Done at Brussels
    Council The President

    Artikel 2 1. Medlemsstaterna ska senast den 31 december 2014 anta och offentliggöra de lagar och andra författningar som är nödvändiga för att följa detta direktiv. De ska genast överlämna texten till dessa bestämmelser till kommissionen. De ska tillämpa dessa bestämmelser från och med den 1 januari 2015. När en medlemsstat antar dessa bestämmelser ska de innehålla en hänvisning till detta direktiv eller åtföljas av en sådan hänvisning när de offentliggörs. Närmare föreskrifter om hur hänvisningen ska göras ska varje medlemsstat själv utfärda. 2. Medlemsstaterna ska till kommissionen överlämna texten till de centrala bestämmelser i nationell lagstiftning som de antar inom det område som omfattas av detta direktiv.
    Artikel 3 Detta direktiv träder i kraft den tjugonde dagen efter det att det har offentliggjorts i Europeiska unionens officiella tidning.
    Artikel 4
    Detta direktiv riktar sig till medlemsstaterna. Utfärdat i Bryssel den
    På rådets vägnar Ordförande

  4. am I wrong? Did the EU just Policy Launder through a directive to all its member states to implement EUratCA?

  7. Russia might want to jump to GATCA:

    Russia might adopt Foreign Account Compliance Tax Act in 2014

    Moscow originally took a guarded view of signing up with FATCA. Talks between a Russian delegation and U.S. officials in late May drew a blank. Russian Finance Minister Anton Siluanov communicated that Russia was ready to provide U.S. tax authorities with information through government structures, but only under a separate agreement.

    In April, however, Russia — along with the other G20 members — signed a communiqué on the automatic exchange of information between countries. The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development promised to prepare standards that would no longer have “gray” or “black” lists (Russia is on the “white” list of those who honor their obligations).

    Nevertheless, negotiations had been going slowly, and media sources previously reported that politics could possibly interfere with the financial links between Russia and the United States: The recent cooling in relations between the two countries has led Moscow to see U.S. initiatives as an attempt to impose its laws.
    …
    Russia could still try to haggle the U.S. down. This is not impossible. In 2012, Britain, France, Germany, Italy and Spain joined FATCA under pressure from the United States. But they also agreed on the mutual exchange of data, which means that the United States will have to share information with European tax authorities. According to PricewaterhouseCoopers expert Achim Obermann, this could eventually help create a global information sharing system.

    St. Petersburg G20 Summit in September 2013 — tax evasion on the summit agenda

    This will be the first time fiscal matters have appeared on the G20 agenda.

    The Russian G20 Sherpa and head of the Russian Presidential Experts’ Directorate, Ksenia Yudaeva, told a June 10 news conference called to review the results of the first six months of Russia’s G20 Presidency that leaders of 19 nations and the European Union were planning to discuss two initiatives in the tax sphere.

    The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) will present its proposals on an automatic information exchange between fiscal authorities, and a meeting of G20 finance ministers will issue a report on a joint policy to prevent tax evasion and the transfer of profits by legal methods through offshore zones.

  9. @Medea Fleecestealer

    “Supporters of the law, the centrist Christian Democrats, the Conservative Democrats, the Liberal Greens as well as the centre-left Greens, argued it was better to accept the bill to minimise the risk of an escalation of the tax row with the US.”

    Don’t they know that once you give into the demands of the extortionist, nothing will stop them from taking more?

  10. Yes, but whatever happens the US is going after the banks. If they pass the bill presumably it’ll be a fine, without the hassle of going to court. If they don’t then the US take the banks to court and deals with them there and could bring about more collapses. That’s why they’re arguing for acceptance – to minimise the risk of further bank collapses.

    The questions no one is asking or answering yet are: what happens after the year is up? Is the US presuming that the Swiss will have accepted FATCA and made an agreement by then? What will happen if they don’t?

  14. I have a preexisting account in 2013 with balance less than $50K so my account needs not be reviewed and reported in 2013. For 2014, if I maintain the balance less than $50K, will my account be reviewed and reported for 2014 and subsequent years?

  16. Have a read through this whole latest Hansard record http://openparliament.ca/search/?q=Witness%3A+%22190033%22

    Interesting participants, including someone from the federal Dept of Finance, and Arthur Cockfield, Canadians for Tax Fairness – Mr. Dennis Howlett, and H. David Rosenbloom. “…tax attorney and a professor of tax law. My area of specialization is international, or cross-border, taxation. I am a member of Caplin and Drysdale, a U.S. law firm. I am also director of the international tax program at New York University School of Law. In the late 1970s, I was the international tax counsel in the United States treasury department. In that capacity, I was the chief U.S. negotiator of the 1980 income tax convention between Canada and the United States.”

    ex.
    “…I do suggest to the committee that you carefully distinguish between concern about corporate-level tax avoidance, the use of tax havens by multinational companies, and transfer pricing, things that concern the multinational company on the one hand, and things that concern individuals taxpayers on the other. For the most part there we’re talking about offshore accounts, the use of offshore trusts, etc. I think we’re talking about two related but distinct problems, and I think there ought to be different responses…”

  17. a friend of mine just told me that his wife, a CFO at a new European bank, signed the necessary papers for the IRS, which I assumed was for the FFI-QFI
    She said, though, that the bank has no right to ask any questions of customers.
    Apparently, PWC and KPMG locals know how to set it up to get FFI paperwork without actually being able to deliver.
    The privacy law doesn’t allow to ask for more info than what is needed and demanded according to current law.
    Perhaps they have no problems with the indicia such as US addresses or standing orders to USA, and likely they have the ability to close any account they want to, or to threaten to close it.

  19. Attn:Brockers

    This afternoon I put a call into the CRA to request some info on Canada’s existing treaty with the US. They forwarded me to Competent Authority, the division of the CRA that deals with tax treaties. They are in Ottawa and can be reached at 613-957-2071. I spoke to a representative that had a great deal of info on the matter. I called with some general questions, she gave me info on the “Agreement”. Here is what she confirmed for me.

    First off, the Ministry of Finance had some concerns about s.15 of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms. They concluded that Fatca reporting does not contradict or conflict with the charter.

    1. FATCA is a reality. The agreement will be signed this summer. Info will be available on the CRA website beginning in September 2013.
    2. All US persons in Canada are considered US residents for tax purposes according to the US, based on that, Canada considers us US residents as well.
    3. Beginning in 2014, Canadian financial institutions will begin identifying US persons to report to the CRA. CRA will report individuals with bank account #’s balances, etc. to the IRS.
    4. All bank accounts over $50K will be reported.
    5. Registered account such as RRSP’s, RIF’s, TFSA’s and RESP’s are exempt (she did not mention RDSP’s)
    6. If your bank account is held jointly with a non-US person, it gets reported as well.
    7.CRA’s first wave of reporting to the IRS will take place in April 2015 and will cover 2013 and 2014. After that, balances will be reported once per year in September.
    8. CLN/renounciation/relinquishment does not get you off the hook for taxation for 10 years. Your balances will continue to get reported for 10 years after issue of CLN.

    She recommended that I get my hands on a copy of “A Tax Guide for Citizens in Canada” by Carswell.

    There are many more questions that I would like to ask her. I encourage everyone seeking answers to call the CRA for information.

  20. @ Marie
    That’s terrible news. I’m about to start building a fund for when the “lawyering up” begins.

    @ Tim
    Can you get written confirmation about this agreement to be announced this summer? Won’t it have to be ratified by parliament in the fall or would that just be a rubber stamp exercise?

  25. My stomach has been churning all evening, especially considering the part about filing taxes for 10 years after a CLN has been issued. I can’t see how they do not consider this a direct violation of the Charter.

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