Serbinski Accounting Firms

Thanks again exPenn! that is good to know about SS benefits if you have between 1.5 and 10 years of credits. That's the boat we are in; I have > 10 years, but my wife has less. If hers would not be subject to WEP, then going that route might actually be better for us. YHou mentioned that technically...

Congratuations aed11! That kind of mirrors my experience as well, except that for me the agent was indeed able to abate them over the phone, with paperwork gradually following over the next 6 weeks or so. I still have not heard of anyone on this forum who had an actual $10K fine which was enforced, ...

exPenn - Thanks for this really useful analysis! I had misinterpreted the statement about half of the pension; I thought SSA was referring to have of my Social Security, rather than half of my CPP. That's very helpful. I have a couple of lingering questions: 1) I had heard that Cdn earnings could be...

Just trying a bump for this post … do I have this right?

Hi all - I wanted to clarify how different kinds of holdings in my RESP are treated for IRS purposes. I'm a USC living in Canada with an RESP. Basically, I want to ask if I'm managing these 3 holdings correctly: 1) Canadian Mutual Funds - I am claiming gains/losses in these yearly with an 8621, Mark...

Hi all - I'm a US citizen living in Canada. I have an RESP with mutual funds and cash. If it has C$20K in MF's and C$10K in cash, I know I deal with the MF's using the 8621 (mark-to-market), and I understand how to do that. But, I'm curious about how to deal with the cash; if it was C$10K throughout...

Stewak2 - That sounds reasonable enough. I don't think he'd need to file any US forms until meeting that income threshold, whether in Canada or the US. Good luck!

Thanks again DrJFM! These are always the first forms I complete as they have the earliest deadline and the nastiest fine. I finished them this year in February. I wish I had not asked for the TIN, but I've got it now and I will assume that they will not require a 1041 next year; if they do, I will r...

Thanks DrJFM - It was good to see that your arithmetic seems the same as mine. It always feels backwards to me, but it seems to have worked. I have largely taken your approach, but I didn't attach the bank statements as my theory is that more information will just confuse them. I'm not sure whose is...

Hi aed11 - I'm sorry you are having this experience. I don't have any specific advice, but there are a number of threads on here which deal with people who have had such a penalty assessed. I believe that in all the ones I've seen (including one of my own), the penalty was fully abated, once the fil...

A little further info … I guess I'm still unclear after reading the instructions for the form; I am not sure if the form is required if I held the fund at any time during the year, or if it's only needed if it's owned at the end of the year. I found some other posts (MGeorge) that were close to this...

I am a USC in Canada. I held a mutual fund in my RESP because I planned badly. I have used mark-to-market on the 8621 form every year since I have held this fund. I finally sold it during 2018. a) Do I need to file an 8621 for it for 2018? b) Do I claim this as a capital gain (loss), based on my fai...

I got the EIN for the trust itself. If you don't have an SSN, I think you would apply for one for yourself as well, but that's just a guess..

Hi eriquee - To get the EIN, you have to contact the IRS directly. I am not sure if you can do it all on line, or if you have to call them. But it is not too hard, and it's free. I did mine over the phone to get it immediately, and it took maybe 30 minutes. Good luck!

I am a USC in Canada. I had two separate RESP accounts which I have merged into a new account. I treat these as trusts, so I'm completing my 3520 and 3520-A forms. On the 3520 for the new account, I am indicating a gratuitous transfer on the day the funds entered this account. This resulted in zeroi...