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Course Details

This course will discuss IRS examinations of taxpayers living abroad. Our expert panel will guide tax practitioners through the examination process and explain best practices to withstand the ongoing scrutiny of these taxpayers' returns.

Faculty

Description

The IRS has and continues to audit a higher proportion of expat tax returns. The IRS 2019 Databook revealed that approximately 10 percent of expatriates' tax returns are selected for audit. Considering the complexity of the returns, this should not be surprising.

The rules for these nonresidents are often the reverse of those for residents. The filing status Married Filing Jointly can require a special election, self-employed taxpayers often are not entitled to deduct expenses, and simple presence in the U.S. for 183 days can trigger capital gains. Remarkably, two-thirds of expats paper file these complicated returns.

In April 2023, the IRS Large Business & International Division released its list of currently active compliance campaigns. A dozen of these issues include campaigns targeting international taxpayers. These audits include expats who filed Form 8854, Initial and Annual Expatriation Statement, as well as those who did not.

Included on the list is its compliance campaign focusing on Section 965 transition tax payments. The Service required these payments by U.S. shareholders of certain foreign corporations on unrepatriated (untaxed) earnings as part of the 2017 Tax Act. The IRS stated that these audits could be expanded to other issues, particularly those relative to the 2017 Tax Act.

Tax professionals and advisers working with individuals who have relocated abroad must understand the issues triggering these IRS audits, prepare clients for these audits, and know how to handle these demanding examinations.

Listen as our panel of foreign tax experts explains the current IRS campaigns targeting expatriates.

Outline

  1. Expatriates: introduction
  2. Common expat audit issues
    • Non-filers
    • Filing status
    • Unreported capital gains
    • Information reporting returns
    • Unallowed business deductions
    • Other areas
  3. Latest IRS expat compliance campaigns
    • Section 965 transition payments
    • Exit taxes and unsubmitted Forms 8854
  4. Examination process
  5. Best practices

Benefits

The panel will cover these and other critical issues:

  • Which expatriate returns are being targeted by the IRS?
  • How to best handle unfiled returns, including FBAR filings
  • When should a taxpayer consider an appeal?
  • What additional issues are being reviewed during Section 965 examinations?
  • How can expats and tax advisers best prepare for IRS examinations?

NASBA Details

Learning Objectives

After completing this course, you will be able to:

  • Determine which expatriate returns are being targeted by the IRS
  • Recognize how to best handle unfiled returns, including FBAR filings
  • Ascertain the IRC 965 transition tax procedures
  • Decide whether to voluntarily disclose and comply with procedures for expatriates
  • Identify the streamlined procedures and the opportunities for both residents and nonresidents to take advantage of them

  • Field of Study: Taxes
  • Level of Knowledge: Intermediate
  • Advance Preparation: None
  • Teaching Method: Seminar/Lecture
  • Delivery Method: Group-Internet (via computer)
  • Attendance Monitoring Method: Attendance is monitored electronically via a participant's PIN and through a series of attendance verification prompts displayed throughout the program
  • Prerequisite: Three years+ business or public firm experience preparing complex tax forms and schedules, supervising other preparers or accountants. Specific knowledge and understanding of international taxation including residency determination, foreign entity classifications, application of treaty benefits, as well as GILTI, Subpart F, and the related Section 250 deductions.

Strafford Publications, Inc. is registered with the National Association of State Boards of Accountancy (NASBA) as a sponsor of continuing professional education on the National Registry of CPE Sponsors. State boards of Accountancy have final authority on the acceptance of individual courses for CPE Credits. Complaints regarding registered sponsons may be submitted to NASBA through its website: www.nasbaregistry.org.

IRS Approved Provider

Strafford is an IRS-approved continuing education provider offering certified courses for Enrolled Agents (EA) and Tax Return Preparers (RTRP).