updated 2:28 PM CEST, May 24, 2023

Opinion

Bruce Zagaris: GAO report demonstrates that U.S. 'must reform foreign asset reporting'

On April 1, the U.S. Government Accountability Office published a report detailing what it said was the long-overdue need for the government to take action on foreign asset reporting. The report, entitled "Foreign Asset Reporting: Actions Needed to Enhance Compliance Efforts, Eliminate Overlapping Requirements, and Mitigate Burdens on U.S. Persons Abroad” (GAO-19-180), was addressed to members of Congress.

'Dangerous liaisons': Foreign assets and their U.S. taxpayer nominees

For various reasons, people, including those with U.S. tax obligations,  have long taken advantage of the option to use so-called "nominees" to hold legal title to some of their non-U.S. assets. But while there can be arguably good reasons for doing so, especially in countries where Shariah Law can dictate how assets are distributed when someone dies, it can also result in huge and unexpected problems.

Here, in an excerpt from her most recent blog, Dubai-based tax expert Virginia La Torre Jeker considers some of the issues that can arise.

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