How does FATCA affect you?

What prompted me to get in touch was a recent spate of communication by some of you regarding FATCA. Some people who spoke to me are seriously concerned about the state of events and there is a lot of controversy about it.

The not-for-profit organization ACA claims that one of FATCA's problems is citizenship-based taxation. ACA is calling for the US to change its taxation system to a residence-based taxation as is the case with ALL other OECD countries.

The following links can give you a better insight into the subject: 

• http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2014/may/5/superlawyer-jim-bopp-takes-on-mccain-backed-tax-ac/?page=all.
• https://americansabroad.org/issues/fatca/
• https://americansabroad.org/issues/fatca/fatca-bad-america/
• https://www.democratsabroad.org/sites/default/files/Democrats%20Abroad%202014%20FATCA%20Research%20Report_0.pdf
• http://www.repealfatca.com/index.asp?idmenu=4&idsubmenu=146&title=why-republicans-are-right-to-support-repeal-of-fatca
• http://www.huffingtonpost.com/news/fatca/

We would like to hear your thoughts and opinions on how this will affect you.

US Ambassador Adresses Fatca Information Event

American citizens residing in Malta, including a number of returned Maltese migrants attended an information session at which the US FATCA legislation and its impact were explained by industry experts.

Her Excellency Gina Abercrombie-Winstanley, the US Ambassador to Malta was keynote speaker. Her opening address urged US taxpayers living in Malta to ensure their US tax affairs are in order.

Dr. Jonathan Phyall, Senior Legal & Compliance Officer at APS Bank Ltd explained that the Inter-Governmental Agreement signed between the Malta and US governments to implement FATCA imposes certain obligations on Maltese banks and financial institutions. As of this year, Maltese financial institutions are required to report to Malta’s Inland Revenue Department (IRD) financial assets held by American citizens in Malta. The first such report covering the period 1st July 2014 to 31st December 2014 is due shortly in April 2015.

Mr. Pierre Vella, a Project Manager at the Malta Information Technology Agency (MITA) described how the information collected from financial institutions and reported to the IRD will be transmitted to the Inland Revenue Service (IRS), the US tax authority.

Mr. Massimo Pelli, European Manager of Corporate TeamWorks Inc, a leading US tax consultancy represented in Malta by Athena International Ltd took the floor next. He clarified the point that all holders of US Passports or valid Green Cards have an obligation to make an annual tax declaration to the US IRS. In recognition of the fact that many expats or returned migrants may have non-wilfully omitted to make their IRS declarations, new “streamlined” procedures are currently available that offer US taxpayers the opportunity to reach compliance with the IRS without risk of penalties.

Contact Athena today or request a callback to find out more.