Monday, August 4, 2014

SDOP or is the IRS trying to "ZWERNER" me ?

I think it is save to assume that the government will never be required to refund the so-called “5% miscellaneous offshore penalty” (which of course is not a penalty under the law in the first place), pursuant to the very terms of the Certification.  The taxpayer waives ” . . . all defenses against and restrictions on the assessment and collection of the [5%] miscellaneous offshore penalty.”  It is a one way street. The most troubling issue of this program for U.S. residents, is they are agreeing to pay something that does not exist under the law and may have no correlation with any income taxes owing; i.e., the so-called “5% miscellaneous offshore penalty.”  Why should a “good faith” taxpayer be paying any portion of their principal to the government, if they made an inadvertent mistake of what are typically very complex provisions in the tax law?
I suspect we will see cases where the government will go after (selectively) some taxpayers who enter into the streamlined process.  The cases they will select are the ones they think the taxpayer should have gone in under the OVDP.  That will be the determination of the government, not the individual taxpayer; and hence can put the taxpayer in further jeopardy.
http://tax-expatriation.com/2014/07/30/the-risks-to-uscs-and-lprs-filing-late-u-s-income-tax-returns-via-the-so-called-streamlined-process/ 

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