Law Articles
To search for a particular term please use the following search box.
Click on a Topic to see available articles for that topic.
- Accidents
- Administrative Law
- Admiralty Law
- Articles
- Banking
- Bankruptcy Law
- Canon Law
- Case Law
- Civil Law
- Civil Rights
- Class Action Lawsuits
- Commercial Law
- Common Law
- Comparative Law
- Constitutional Law
- Consumer Law
- Contracts
- Corporate Law
- Courts
- Criminal Law
- Cyber Law
- Dispute Resolution
- Employment Law
- Equity
- Evidence
- Family Law
- Fiduciary Law
- General Practice
- Government
- Health Law
- Immigration Law
- Insurance Law
- Intellectual Property
- International Law
- Jurisprudence
- Labor Law
- Law and Economics
- Maritime Law
- Military Law
- Natural Law
- Personal Injury Law
- Philosophy of Law
- Property Law
- Public Law
- Real Estate Law
- Social Security
- Space Law
- Statutory Law
- Tax Law
- Traffic Law
- Trusts and Estates
- Water Law
Return to Law Dictionary Index
Legality of Offshore Investments
by Ronald Hudkins
Having an offshore banking account, corporation or trust are common themes in legal thrillers, spy novels and eastern European politics. There is a reason to be concerned about the legality of such accounts, for although many people would like to include them in their estate planning, a legal misstep regarding the use of any of these asset management tools could result in thousands of dollars lost in back tax payments and legal problems with none other than the IRS in addition to the possibility of spending time in prison. With that in mind, it is not surprising that many Americans shy away from offshore banking altogether.
To begin with it is illegal to have a secret bank account in another country that you don�t tell the IRS about. It is also illegal to move unreported cash even if it is your money. The penalty for either of these offenses makes bank robbery look like a more attractive option.
However, with our own country continuing to advance the goal of globalization, of course it is legal to invest in, and to interact with, foreign markets and there are some tremendous incentives to do so. The key to taking advantage of these opportunities is to start modestly and remember that if it sounds too good to be true then it probably is too good to be true. Secondly, it is your duty as an American citizen to report your financial activities to the IRS. So divest yourself of notions of secrecy in the absolute and think in terms of tax savings rather than not paying taxes. If someone tells you that they can help you avoid paying any tax whatsoever, they are offering to help you engage in a criminal enterprise. And if you already are a criminal of some sort then perhaps you should look into the matter, but for the vast majority of those reading this article, don�t endanger a life spent being a law abiding citizen by buying into an outrageous scheme.
As I said before, U.S. citizens and permanent residents are required to disclose their banking accounts abroad, where they are located and what the account numbers are, on a form called a TDF 90-22.1. However, there are exceptions to having to file this report and taxpayers are confused about the definition of these exceptions as well as the meaning of key terms within the document. One excellent way to begin to understand what must be reported, and when, is to look to the Jacobs Report. The Jacobs report which can be found at http://finance.groups.yahoo.com/group/jacobsreport/ and it is an extensive document filled with the applicable law and IRS instructions as well as the accumulated wisdom of many web sites and foreign bank reports.
Remember, the cardinal rule when beginning your inquiry into offshore banking is to find out about these matters in detail. You need to check into things yourself and keep in mind that if a deal sounds too good to be true then it is. In addition, keep in mind the fact that you want to be a tax avoider not a tax evader. Consult your estate planner and a tax specialist because the laws in many of the nations that provide tax havens have changed somewhat since the beginning of the War with Afghanistan and Iraq, because the U.S. is looking for hidden terrorist cash reserves and that has changed the way discretion is handled in many tax haven nations that are friendly with our government.
About the Author
Ronald Hudkins is a retired U.S. Army Military Police member that was assigned as a staff researcher. He has coordinated with military and criminal investigators, set on court marshals and worked closely with the Staff Judge Advocate Generals Office (JAG). He has a keen sense of legal matters - their interpretation, initiatives and guidelines. For imperative financial planning needs he suggests his book �Asset Protection and Estate Planning for All Ages.� Additionally, he offers a Free Newsletter at his web site: http://www.AssetProtectNow.com