Governments Worldwide Cracking Down on Tax Evaders

According to Trib Live “more than half the world’s money passes almost undetected through a series of financial black holes that shelter it from not only the tax collector but form shareholders, partners and wives.”

Governments throughout the world are getting tired of investors leaving their money in secret offshore accounts in order to avoid paying the full amount of local taxes that are due. Officials are taking a very aggressive approach to cracking down on local tax evaders. If you have your money offshore and have not reported the accounts and any income earned, you need to contact a New Jersey IRS attorney as soon as possible to get help understanding your options.

Global Tax Evasion Crackdown Puts Investors at Risk

 Fox News reports that the government in India is seeking to bring “black money” back into the country. Estimates in 2010 indicated that the total illicit financial flows in India over several decades was around $462 billion. The Prime Minister wants to prosecute those who have hidden their money offshore in order to avoid fulfilling their local tax obligations.  Tax evasion in India is said to be “rampant,” and the names of a total of 627 Indians with offshore accounts have been provided to the U.S. Supreme Court.

The court has set a March 2015 deadline to conduct a comprehensive investigation of those with money that has been put into undeclared offshore accounts.  By the March deadline, it is expected that criminal prosecution will be sought against those who did not comply with tax requirements.

India is not the only country that is working hard to prosecute tax evaders and bring money back into the country that the government believes it should have received as revenue. In fact, the United States government has also been very aggressive in going after people who are seen as not fulfilling their duties to pay taxes.

All U.S. citizens must report foreign accounts and pay taxes on any income. The government is actually going after both banks and bankers who have helped U.S. investors hide money in offshore accounts and not report it to the government. As a result, banks and bankers who are facing criminal prosecution have generally been willing to cooperate with authorities and turn over information on clients.  Whenever the government has identified individuals who failed to report their offshore accounts, large fines and penalties have been imposed. In some cases, the penalties have actually exceeded the amount of money that was being kept in the offshore account.

Investors are getting nervous and with good reason. The global crackdown on tax evasion means it is ever more difficult to avoid reporting income. More than 38,000 U.S. citizens have come forward, declared their accounts and paid a collective total of $5.5 billion in back taxes.

If you are considering voluntarily disclosing an offshore account to the government, you need to talk to a New Jersey IRS Attorney to learn about the process and find out if this is the right choice for you.