The Internal Revenue Service (IRS)  is reaching out to help U.S. ex patriates and U.S. citizens with dual citizenship residing oversees to catch up on tax filings, deal with foreign retirement plan issues and help with other tax concerns. 

On June 26, 2012, IRS Commissioner Doug Shulman announced a series of what it calls ” common-sense steps” that the IRS is taking to U.S. citizens abroad get current with their tax obligations and resolve pension issues. 

The IRS is aware that some U.S. taxpayers living abroad have failed to timely file U.S. federal income tax returns or Reports of Foreign Bank and Financial Accounts (FBARs).  Some of these taxpayers have recently become aware of their filing requirements and want to comply with the law.  The 2012 deadline to file these reports is fast approaching on June 30, 2012.  As part of these efforts, Shulman announced the IRS will provide a new option to help some U.S. citizens and others residing abroad who haven’t been filing tax returns and provide them a chance to catch up with their tax filing obligations if they owe little or no back taxes. The new procedure will go into effect on Sept. 1, 2012.

To help these taxpayers, the IRS offered the new procedures that will allow taxpayers who are low compliance risks to get current with their tax requirements without facing penalties or additional enforcement action. These people generally will have simple tax returns and owe $1,500 or less in tax for any of the covered years. 

The IRS also announced that the new procedures will allow resolution of certain issues related to certain foreign retirement plans (such as Canadian Registered Retirement Savings Plans).  In some circumstances, tax treaties allow for income deferral under U.S. tax law, but only if an election is made on a timely basis.  The streamlined procedures will be made available to resolve low compliance risk situations even though this election was not made on a timely basis.

Taxpayers using the new procedures announced today will be required to file delinquent tax returns along with appropriate related information returns for the past three years, and to file delinquent FBARs for the past six years. Submissions from taxpayers that present higher compliance risk will be subject to a more thorough review and potentially subject to an audit, which could cover more than three tax years.

The IRS also announced its offshore voluntary disclosure programs have exceeded the $5 billion mark, released new details regarding the voluntary disclosure program announced in January and closed a loophole used by some U.S. citizens.  See IR-2012-64 for more details.

U.S. employers who employ executives or other U.S. citizens to work oversees as employees or consultants may want to share information about  the new programs and the underlying compliance obligations that they are designed to address to promote awareness of the possible relief to those who might benefit from the announced relief.  In addition, employees and other individuals who do or have recently lived, worked, or maintained accounts or other assets outside the United States also should consult with qualified tax advisors promptly about whether they have any unresolved liabilities or responsibilities and if so, concerning the advisability of using any of the newly announced programs to redress these concerns.

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