Serbinski Accounting Firms

I am a dual citizen of the US and Canada currently living in Canada. I had a small insurance policy in Germany established decades ago and to which I did not make any contribution after leaving Germany. I did disclose this account/policy on my yearly FBAR form. Upon reaching retirement age I receive...

I think at this day and age, every US citizen living abroad is forced to consider renunciation. I am saying this because I already see financial institutions around the world that simply refuse US citizens as clients. The main reason is the cost of compliance with US regulations. This is now even fr...

I am a Canadian Citizen who returned to Canada in 2003 after having worked for a number of years in the US. I am not yet 59 1/2, and wish to withdraw a portion of my IRA. I have received form W8-BEN from my IRA custodian, but am unsure of what "Article", "rate of withholding", an...

You should liquidate what you can liquidate without tax penalties and move your money to Canada and reinvest it there. You should liquidate before you become a resident of Canada, otherwise you might find yourself with taxes due in Canada on the liquidation. The IRA is bit trickier. You may want to ...

How would a Canadian residing in Canada go about converting a traditional IRA account to a RRSP in Canada? The basic framework seems simple: - Close the account or take a partial distribution. - Pay US taxes and 10% early withdrawal penalty, file 1040 NR etc. - Take what's left and add in what the I...

Is it necessary to file a joint return, in order to claim the additional child tax credit, or can one claim it as either married filing separately or head of household?

Thank's Nelson I'll get the software and figure it both ways. I have just one more question. Let's say my employment income is covered by the FEIE and I claim one personal exemption for $3,200 and I have interest income of only $500. Would the exemption not offset the interest and than some? Thank's...

If I remember correctly (I may not) FTC only applies to what is left after FEIE and deductions and exemptions. If there is nothing left it would yield no gain.
I agree with you that I should be using software to do the FTC, but this is yet another expense to consider.

OK Nelson - I see your point. I can always file an amended return for last year. However, I have a few days on business in the US every year - not much, but I have to account for that. In addition, doing all these tax credit calculations takes (me) a lot more time than the relatively simple FEIE met...

Nelson wrote: While we are being technical, there is GREAT advantage for anyone living outside US with US citizen children to file a 1040, and NOT use FEIE, thus making themselves eligible for the $1000 per child tax credit, which would be paid even if there is no tax liability. A Cdn resident would...

Thanks Nelson, I am aware of FEIE via 2555 and I am going to use it. The question of head-of-household filing status is merely technical as neither it nor married filing separate will yield any tax liability for me this year. Next year may be different, but then this will become a topic for a differ...

I am a US citizen living in Canada. I am married to a Canadian citizen (not a US resident). I am planning to contribute to a spousal RRSP before March 01, 2006 and include the resultant Canadian tax deduction on my 2005 Canadian tax return. I think in Canada I would be considered the contributor to ...