updated 2:11 PM CET, Oct 31, 2023

Online venue for this year's annual DJH International Tax Conference in February

For the first time since she began sponsoring her annual International Tax Conference in 2011, Deborah J. Hicks is arranging for the event to take place online this year, owing to the Covid pandemic, and consequent global lockdown.

As in the past, the conference will feature some of the best-known names in the cross-border U.S. tax industry.

This year's event will take the form of six two-hour sessions, that will take place over three weeks in February, beginning on Feb. 9.

The dates of the rest of the sessions are: Feb. 10; Feb. 16; Feb. 17; Feb. 23; and finally, Feb. 24. 

The sessions will begin at 11am Toronto time on those dates, 4pm London time, and run for two hours. 

Topics scheduled to be addressed include: "Federal and State Tax Update"; "Reporting Requirements for Foreign Retirement Plans, after Rev. Proc. 2020-17"; "Dying with UK Assets"; "The U.S. Provisions on Cryptocurrencies"; and "The Generational Transfer of Wealth and the Future of the Estate Tax Exemption".

'Benefits to online route'

"There are two benefits in doing it this way," Hicks said, after admitting she had initially been reluctant to go the online route.

"The first is that while the London audience often gets to hear from the likes of Peter Megoudis and John Richardson, this time they will also have the benefit of Max Reed, Ray Kinoshita and Elena Hanson," [ of Polaris Tax Counsel, Vancouver; Grant Thornton LLP, Toronto, Ontario; and Hanson Crossborder Tax, of Oakville, Ontario, respectively].

"The Toronto audience, meanwhile, will hear Alex Jones and Glenn Snow [of Frank Hirth, London] for the first time, as well as Lisa Gray and Alex Straight from Blick Rothenberg. And again because it's online, we can also feature Monte Silver, from Silver & Co. in Israel, and Stuart Gibson, a well-known lawyer and now, chief editor for the International Bureau of Fiscal Documentation's U.S. operation."

Another benefit she said she hadn't expected but which has already become evident is that participants have already begun to sign up for this year's online conference "from the Netherlands, Luxembourg, Bermuda and Australia" who previously had never attended her annual tax conference, Hicks went on. 

"So maybe we’ll make an online conference a part of the program going forward, even after we return to having them in person."

As reported, last year's annual DJH International Tax Conference took place in London's historic Smithfield meat market, and drew around 35 participants, according to Hicks.

The price to participate in this year's conference will be £600 plus VAT, according to USExpatTaxConference.com, the website set up to enable would-be participants to sign up. Payments may be made by bank transfer or Visa/MasterCard. 

For those looking to add CPD hours to their books, the event will count as 12 credit hours, which will be automatically given to any enrolled agents who participate in all the sessions. 

For more information and to register, go to www.usexpattaxconference.com.