Individuals expatriating from the United States will face a high tax price when attempting to take their assets with them under legislation (H.R. 3056) approved 23-18 by the House Ways and Means Committee July 18.  Although the bill's primary focus is to stop the private debt collection program at the Internal Revenue Service, its centerpiece revenue raiser will dramatically change the landscape for those who attempt to give up their U.S. citizenship to escape U.S. tax on their assets. Expected to bring in $764 million over 10 years, the complex provision would impose an immediate tax on individuals who renounce their U.S.  The bill includes detailed, specific rules for the tax and how it would affect a wide range of assets, including deferred compensation, tax-deferred accounts such as retirement and pension plans, and nongrantor trusts.    In general, H.R. 3056 requires that all property of a covered expatriate be treated as sold on the day before the expatriation date for its fair market value for tax purposes.  Gains and losses from the sales would have to be taken into account for the taxable year of the sale, according to the bill.  Expatriating taxpayers will be allowed to exclude up to $600,000 in income from the sale treatment of the property, the legislation stipulated.  However, the exclusion may not reduce taxable income below zero.

An Expat’s Guide to Investing Offshore Life as an expatriate has never been more exciting or rewarding, but being an expatriate does not mean that you can ignore the importance of saving and investing.  If becoming wealthy is important to you (it’s probably important to you since you’re reading this), get this eBook and help yourself live the kind of life you've always dreamed about. This guide is intended for expatriates who indeed have little or no idea how or where they can save and invest money.  Whatever your situation is as an expat, if you are interested in saving and investing (and you should be), then this guide will be useful and applicable to you and your circumstances.

In addition to the changes for deferred compensation and tax-deferred accounts, the legislation will impose a 30 percent tax on taxable portions of distributions from non-grantor trusts.  If the fair market value of such property exceeds its adjusted basis in the hands of the trust, gain will be recognized to the trust as if such property were sold to the expatriate at its fair market value.  The bill also specifies that covered expatriates would be treated as having waived any right to claim withholding reductions under U.S. tax treaties for distributions from nongrantor trusts. 

It is important to not that this bill is still making its way through Congress but is expected to pass in some form.  Depending on the date the bill becomes law, it could affect individuals who expatriate during the present tax year.  Accordingly, careful planning for expatriating should be done with this pending bill in mind. 
 

Your computer, software, databases, files, applications, systems software and computer networks are all part of your information technology (IT) assets.  Like most other public and private organizations, you and your company are extremely dependent upon IT and would find it impractical if not almost impossible to function without it.  Any temporary or extended loss to any portion of these IT assets could have tremendous impact on your company’s financial and economic stability and to your own security.  This eBook details 18 Steps for Protection of Your Information Assets as part of a plan to ensure the protection and recovery of your vital information assets. The reality is that because you depend on crucial IT assets, you cannot risk being without such a plan. Randall Colville created this well-organized and indispensable eBook for a clear purpose: to provide some easy-to-do steps for you to protect your information assets and to ensure that your business can continue if a problem occurs.