The Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA) is a serious headache for Americans living abroad. Indeed, that is probably an understatement. If FATCA is a headache, it is perhaps best characterized as a migraine, carrying significant compliance pain.The offshore...
Month: July 2015
Tax liens, part 2: How do you clear up a federal tax lien?
In the first part of this post, we discussed several possible responses to a federal tax lien.One option, as we noted, is to resolve the underlying tax debt through an offer in compromise or an installment agreement before you are hit with a tax lien. It is also...
Federal tax liens, part 1: responding to the notice
A tax lien doesn't take your property. Technically, a "levy" does that, not a lien.But if you get a notice of federal tax lien (NFTL) in the mail, it's important to take action promptly in response. Otherwise, the IRS could keep you from selling your home or getting...
Time limits on audits: be aware of the exceptions
"Don't look back," famous Americans from Satchel Paige to Bob Dylan have counseled. Neither of those two men, however, worked for the IRS.The general rule is that the IRS gets to go back only three years to audit you after you file a return. There are, however,...
Fourth of July special: taxation and representation
The Fourth of July is a fitting occasion to put tax law in a larger picture.After all, protests over taxation without representation played a key role in the movement toward American independence from Britain. The image of tax protesters dumping chests of tea into...