The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act completely rewrote Section 965 to force a one-time repatriation of deferred earnings and profits in foreign corporations. It forces income recognition in the 2017 tax year, so there is not a lot of time to figure this one out!
Rufus Rhoades will give a one-hour free workshop on March 23, 2018 at 9:00 am Pacific Time. Register here; it’s free.
I call this a workshop because the intention is for Rufus to talk a bit about the new law, then we will open it up for questions and input. Some of you out there are smart about Section 965, so please share with us. We can all pool our collective ignorance to become individually brighter. 🙂
Along those lines, it is important to bring in as many resources and perspectives as possible. I learn from reading what others write, and listening to what they say.
Here are some links I have collected from Out There on the Interwebs. I have omitted anything that requires a subscription.
If you know of other good Section 965 discussions, please tell me so I can update this page. Email = phil “at” hodgen.com.
Notice 2018-7. (PDF). The first guidance from the IRS on Section 965.
Notice 2018-13. (PDF). “Additional Guidance Under Section 965 and Guidance Under Sections 863 and 6038 in Connection with the Repeal of Section 958(b)(4)”.
Rev. Proc. 2018-17. (PDF). Guidance on changing your accounting period when faced with Section 965.
Here are better-than-average overviews, or deep dives on a particular slice of Section 965.
Tax Cuts and Job Act News. A curated web page from the International Tax Policy Forum with links to articles they like about the new tax law. Good if you have subscriptions to the publications they link to.
Tax Cuts and Jobs Act significantly affects US private companies with outbound investments. Ernst & Young has a summary web page with brief discussions of the new law. Of particular interest is the relatively short section under the heading Application of Transition Tax to US individuals and trusts, their pass-through entities and closely-held C corporations.
News Analysis: How Some Taxpayers Got Cut Out of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act. From a real journalist. 🙂 Not 100% a Section 965 discussion, but useful to add context. This article discusses how some taxpayers are harmed by the new tax law: individuals owning foreign corporations, foreign pass-through businesses, etc. Includes a brief discussion of Section 965.
Philip D. W. Hodgen is the principal attorney of HodgenLaw PC, an international tax law firm based in Pasadena, California. He earned his undergraduate degree from Claremont McKenna College and his law degree from the School of Law at the University of California, Los Angeles. He then went on to earn a Master of Laws degree with a specialty in taxation from the University of San Diego School of Law. Admitted to the California bar in 1982, Phil spent nine years in law firms and with a large U.S. bank before starting his own firm in 1991.
Phil is a past chair of the International Tax Committee of the State Bar of California's Tax Section and was a member of the Executive Committee of the State Bar of California's Tax Section for 2004-2007. Phil frequently speaks on a variety of international tax, trust and estate topics to attorneys, accountants, and real estate professionals.
You cannot do a tax-free rollover of your RRSP into an IRA. An Individual Retirement Account in the United States is the equivalent of the Registered Retirement Savings Plan in Canada. One idea people have is that if they are going to live in the United States permanently they would like to roll over their…
There’s a deal in place, says the Wall Street Journal. No details yet, so let’s see if/how much the Swiss have bent on secrecy. At least all of my UBS clients are in the pipeline already. 🙂
For your reading pleasure, here is Notice 2009-62. If you have signature power over a foreign financial account but the money isn’t yours, then you have an extension of time to deal with the “Come to Jesus!” clean-up and file all of your paperwork with the IRS. If this applies to your particular situation, it…
According to Reuters, UBS has settled with the IRS. Names will be named. (How many? Yours? We shall see.) Beans will be spilled. Fingers will be pointed. Bureaucratic chests will be puffed outward. Meanwhile, back on earth. . . . (I have been accused of being obtuse in the past. By my wife. Let me…
Jack Townsend has — as usual — a thoughtful analysis of the implications of the UBS settlement in which UBS will cough up a few thousand names of U.S. taxpayers. (Exact details of the settlement haven’t been publicized yet.) It seems clear to me (and to Mr. Townsend) that the settlement depends on the Swiss…
Here’s a lightly adapted version of the letter we use. If you want to launch your own voluntary disclosure for your offshore account, here’s what to do: Go to the IRS website and find the address and phone number for the IRS Criminal Investigations office for where you live. Call them and get their fax…
Tax laws change over time, and the information in this post above may be less accurate today than it was at the time of the last revision. This post is not tax advice for your specific situation. Please contact an international tax professional to get personalized advice for your situation.