Category Archives: My Thoughts

Offshore Investment
11/21/2014 - 11:13 AM
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Aged populations will be the norm by 2020, placing a great deal of stress on world wide economic systems, especially those founded on government backed treasuries and bonds. Other areas of weakness will be Social Security and Medicare. As our population ages, we can expect higher taxes on our IRA and passive investments. Here’s why

IRS Criminal Investigation
11/02/2014 - 1:00 PM
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If you thought an IRS audit was bad news, just wait until the IRS agents with guns come and take you down.  The IRS Criminal Investigation Division, or CID, can seize your records, tap your phone, spy on your emails, and treat you like a major criminal – all for failing to pay up.  The

When to Hold
09/29/2014 - 12:04 PM
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With the U.S. market at historic highs, how do you know when to hold and when to fold?  Here’s the best investment advice I’ve seen: “Buy at the point of maximum pessimism; sell at the point of maximum optimism.”  Sir John Templeton (1912 to 2008), known as the great contrarian. I have always taken this

Attack on the Dollar
08/29/2014 - 2:55 PM
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Russia is mounting an attack on the dollar and will threaten your retirement account in 2015.  An attack on the dollar that results in a significant devaluation will have a major impact on your assets denominated in dollars. As I said in my last post, France Attacks the Dollar, our mighty greenback is in trouble. 

Swiss Bank Secrecy
03/17/2014 - 5:47 AM
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  Swiss bank secrecy, and banking privacy the world over, are dead and gone! The banks of Switzerland are bowing down to the United States yet again…Swiss bank secrecy is dead and gone again. The difference this time is that basically all Swiss banks are paying up, not just those with branches in the United

U.S. Source Income
10/16/2013 - 11:48 AM
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We get a lot of good questions from Expats around the globe during the April 15 and October 15 tax seasons. Here are a few from this go-round. Moving to a High Tax Country Q: “I’ve just moved to Australia in the last year.  I currently have very little assets in the US and am

Panama Foundation Scam

Panama vs. Singapore by By Christian Reeves and Lief Simon (www.offshorelivingletter.com) “Panama is the next Singapore,” declared a friend over lunch the other day. He wasn’t the first I’ve heard make the prediction. Since finding its legs after the U.S. military handed over the canal, Panama’s economy has been on an uninterrupted upward trend. Even throughout

Seize my IRA
07/22/2013 - 8:55 AM
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One of the most common questions I get is, “can the government seize my IRA?” With all of the uncertainty in the USA, and the growing hostility towards our government and its practices, many Americans are concerned about their retirement accounts. For most, their retirement account is their only liquid asset, the majority of their

Offshore business tax reporting
11/03/2012 - 10:09 AM
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IRS Snitch Gets Rich – UBS Whistleblower Receives $104 Million. How much are 40 months of your life, and your dignity, worth? $104 million (or about $4,600 for each hour spent in prison) seems a good answer. As you may have heard, The Internal Revenue Service awarded tax whistleblower and former UBS banker Bradley Birkenfeld

Attack on the Dollar
11/03/2012 - 10:05 AM
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U.S. Goes After Cash Transactions The New York Times recently reported that Federal and state authorities are investigating a handful of major American banks for failing to monitor cash transactions in and out of their branches. The government claims that this may have enabled drug dealers and terrorists to launder tainted money, according to officials

11/03/2012 - 10:01 AM
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Debtors’ Prisons are back in the U.S. of A. As States search for ways to increase revenues, they have been using their weapon of mass destruction – their prison system – to bludgeon those unable to pay fines and tickets in to coughing up some cash. And it’s not limited to government agencies. Owe money