Serbinski Accounting Firms

I called an expensive CPA today. And he said that in my case he can retroactively submit 8891 with 1040x and make the late deferred election.

It'll cost me a pretty penny but because I only missed it for 1 year, and I am a canadian citizen who's also been paying taxes in Canada, I can submit a ...

OVDP may be overkill in both our cases.

It probably likely requires a lawyer, too. Unless the process is straightforward and you can talk to someone who's been through it, or someone who can talk about it, it's a very risky option.

Penalties could add up over and over. If you feel you are safer ...

@nelsona:

Your point is subtle but finally understood. Thanks

One indeed can back file 8891 but MUST not choose to elect later (in a later year). So they have to pay taxes instead - provided there will be no penalties for under reported income

All taxable income from an RRSP (not elected to defer ...

nelsona:

Are you saying that one can not file 1040X with 8938 attached for a prior year along with 8891 and / or 3520/a forms?

Will it be rejected? Or are you saying that for all prior years, if you have thus far not made the election to defer, you must pay back taxes?

I am a Canadian citizen who is living in the US.

I paid 7000$ in taxes in Canada over and above what I owed the IRS for the year 2012.

Reading all of this and its potential consequences, I am thinking about just leaving the US altogether and telling my employer either to hire me in Canada or quit ...

Well this isn't going to help but it does shed light on the OVDP program.

Pay close attention to questions 15 and 16 on the link below.

What I am telling you I am doing amounts to quiet disclosure which is the title of your post.

http://www.irs.gov/Individuals/International-Taxpayers/Offshore ...

I potentially have $100 tax owing to the IRS from small profits in my TFSA from 2012.

I haven't done any FBARs (I missed 2012).

But I am not freaking out. You do the best you can. Time is of the essence so explain it to your boss/family and get to it.

gpancio:

First of all don't panic.

You are not a tax cheat. Do the conservative thing first - it's not to hire a lawyer and ask for a PLR. Make sure you file your taxes for this year correctly - with 3520/a, 8891 and 8938. Then take a deep breath and file 1040X with all the accompanying forms for ...

Yes TFSAs are trusts by the interpretation of a lot of lawyers and accountants (As I understand it). However there isn't a single mention of TFSA accounts on the IRS website. And they have not made a ruling. I called and they didn't have an answer. That's the only point I was making.

Nelsona: "Yes, if you filed a US tax return and BOTH failed to report foreign income, AND failed to report the existence of these accounts, you are in the worst situation. "

Certainly it's bad to under report income and miss reporting the existence of accounts.

But owing a $100 vs $5000 are two ...

People generally don't get penalized when they come forward and find out about some page 1066 rule they had to comply with.

Come forward asap on all CRA/IRS issues and you'll be fine. I've dealt with the CRA and amended tax returns before.

I am delinquent on 3520/a + 8621 + fbar + 8938 + 8891 from ...

So The Times square location in Manhattan says we only deal with domenstic income returns.

Typical of a federal government employee/agent to give me this response. This person had no idea that a Canadian living in the US even had to file a 1040 much less anything about canada.

Good luck calling 1 ...

There is an IRS office 5 minutes walk from where I work in Manhattan. There's another one about 20 minutes away by subway.

I'll hit both. A lot of people are filing 3520 and 3520-A either late or unnecessarily and getting penalties assessed. May be it's a more conservative and prudent way to do it ...

Well a TFSA isn't always a foreign grantor trust.

Take a look at this linkedin discussion for example.

https://www.linkedin.com/groups/I-have-client-who-is-2283518.S.214128380?view=&gid=2283518&type=member&item=214128380

The IRS has not officially ruled on whether 3520 and 3520-A are mandatory. I ...

Hi

I moved to the US in January 2012 and filed taxes in the US and Canada in 2013. I owed the difference in Canada and paid it.
My accountant did not help much beyond the 1040 I had to file in the US in 2013.

For this year he told me I would have to do FBAR and 8938. As I started reading about ...