More on FATCA Agreement by Cayman and Costa Rica
U.S. Treasury Department Announces Cayman Islands And Costa Rica Agree To Implement FATCA, Sign Agreements To Disclose U.S. Accountholder Information
Kevin Thorn of Thorn Law Group discusses impact of recent Intergovernmental Agreements (IGA’s) with the Cayman Islands and Costa Rica. The IGAs require Cayman and Costa Rican banks to disclose account information to the U.S. government.
Kevin E. Thorn
“With the increasing number of intergovernmental agreements and foreign countries agreeing to comply with FATCA, foreign banks are cooperating more and more with the IRS and are handing over information about their employees and customers.”
Washington, DC (PRWEB) December 12, 2013
The Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act, also known as FATCA, is now going to be implemented in the Cayman Islands due to the fact that they signed an intergovernmental agreement , or “IGA”, with the United States on November 29, 2013 (See, “Agreement Between the Government of the Cayman Islands and the Government of the United States of America to improve International Tax Compliance and Implement FATCA”, Department of the Treasury, Nov. 29, 2013, http://1.usa.gov/1cEuDSi.) Similarly, Costa Rica also agreed to comply with FATCA requirements. (See, “Agreement Between Government of the United States of America and the Government of the Republic of Costa Rica to improve International Tax Compliance and Implement FATCA”, Department of the Treasury, Nov. 26, 2013, http://1.usa.gov/1fog59R.) This means that foreign financial institutions in the Cayman Islands and Costa Rica will be required to report tax information about U.S. account holders to their government, who will in turn, because of the treaties, report it to the IRS.
The U.S. Treasury has now signed FATCA intergovernmental agreements with many countries around the world including Switzerland, the United Kingdom, Germany, Italy, and the People’s Republic of China. The IRS is closing in on U.S. taxpayers with undisclosed overseas accounts in banks in these countries.
Kevin E .Thorn, who is the Managing Partner of Thorn Law Group, represents numerous U.S. taxpayers who have undisclosed offshore bank accounts around the world. Many of his clients are participating in one of the three IRS Amnesty Programs offered by the IRS in 2009, 2011 and 2012, and he states, “U.S. taxpayers with undisclosed offshore accounts face increasingly substantial risk by not coming forward at this time. With the increasing number of intergovernmental agreements and foreign countries agreeing to comply with FATCA, foreign banks are cooperating more and more with the IRS and are handing over information about their employees and customers.”
He continues, “The Department of Justice and the Internal Revenue Service will continue to put pressure on all foreign countries to sign an IGA with the U.S. in order to obtain American client information from offshore banks and bring United States taxpayers back into compliance.”
For additional information on the news that is the subject of this release, contact Kevin E. Thorn, Managing Partner of Thorn Law Group at 202-270-7273 or visit us at http://www.thorntaxlaw.com/.
About Thorn Law Group, PLLC: Thorn Law Group, PLLC is a law firm dedicated to helping clients resolve complicated tax, criminal tax, and international tax problems.
Contact:
Kevin E. Thorn
Managing Partner Thorn Law Group, PLLC
202-270-7273
