DELOITTE PRESENTS IN AMCHAM’S US INDIVIDUAL INCOME TAX SEMINAR

Deloitte will present in a seminar on U.S. Individual Income Taxation hosted by the American Chamber of Commerce Bahrain (AmCham) on Tuesday, 23 February 2016.  AmCham Bahrain is a member of the global network of American Chambers of Commerce working on the promotion of commerce, investment and goodwill between the United States of America, the membership, and the Kingdom of Bahrain.

Deloitte’s representative, Alex Jones, Director in the firm’s US/UK High Net Worth group based in London, which delivers bespoke international tax planning solutions to CEOs, other high level executives and entrepreneurs, will discuss US tax issues for US expats and others holding US citizenship or green cards (as well as those holding significant US assets), including an overview of the reporting issues flagged up by FATCA that some individuals may not realize are required.

AmCham Bahrain President, Qays H. Zu’bi, stated: “There is a need for US citizens and persons with US investments to become informed about their US tax filing obligations. This tax seminar is a ‘must attend’ for anyone interested in the unique tax filing and bank report obligations imposed upon US individual taxpayers living and working abroad.”

“AmCham is pleased to have Mr. Alex Jones from Deloitte, an expert in US expatiate tax issues, speak on this important topic, stated Mr. Zu’bi.  “It is important to note that every US citizen is subject to tax on his/her worldwide income regardless of the source of that income. Persons born in the United States are citizens automatically. US citizenship doesn’t depend on getting or having a US passport or social security number.”

Topics to be covered during the seminar include:

• Recent tax developments and tax law changes
• Eligibility for the Foreign Earned Income and Foreign Housing Exclusions (FEIE)
• Foreign Bank Account Reporting requirements (FBAR)
• Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act for individuals (FATCA)
• Becoming compliant with US tax filing obligations and the programs available
• US tax consequences of doing business outside the US and investing in a foreign company
• Tax issues for individuals with significant investments in the US

“US taxpayers are subject to particular US tax issues, and this is even more the case for those who live or work outside of the US.  Whether this relates to investment in non-US assets, creation of non-US businesses, foreign income taxes paid or having non-US family members can only complicate matters further. US reporting obligations and the recent introduction of FATCA make navigating the maze of rules even more critical,” added Jones.

Mubeen Khadir, Tax Director with Deloitte Bahrain, highlighted the importance of US citizens needing to know their obligations, especially, in light of a number of initiatives aimed at increasing the level of tax information that is exchanged globally. He noted that Automatic Exchange of Information regimes such as FATCA and CRS (common reporting standard) allow tax authorities to gather information on accounts held by both individuals and entities at Financial Institutions worldwide. Ultimately, these are designed to tackle perceived tax evasion and to increase voluntary tax compliance.