Not all of our VIP Members are from the USA but a big percentage are and if you have undeclared assets in Costa Rica you may want to take a close look at this week’s announcement from your ‘friends’ at the Internal Revenue Service.

“The Internal Revenue Service announced today a special voluntary disclosure initiative designed to bring offshore money back into the U.S. tax system and help people with undisclosed income from hidden offshore accounts get current with their taxes. The new voluntary disclosure initiative will be available through Aug. 31, 2011.

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“As we continue to amass more information and pursue more people internationally, the risk to individuals hiding assets offshore is increasing,” said IRS Commissioner Doug Shulman. “This new effort gives those hiding money in foreign accounts a tough, fair way to resolve their tax problems once and for all. And it gives people a chance to come in before we find them.”

“The 2011 initiative has a higher penalty rate than the IRS’s previous voluntary disclosure program, which ended on Oct. 15, 2009, but offers clear benefits to encourage taxpayers to disclose foreign accounts now rather than risk IRS detection and possible criminal prosecution. In addition, the 2011 initiative includes new guidelines to provide fairness to people with smaller amounts of undisclosed assets or unusual situations.”

Unlike most countries, US citizens are unfortunate in that they are expected to file a US income tax return each year and pay taxes on their worldwide income no matter where they live!

While companies like Blackstone – one of the world’s largest private equity firms – pay less than 1% of pre-tax income of $19 billion over five years, the typical American worker pays around 20% of his or her income in individual taxes which sounds real fair, right?

If you are a US citizen with a few undeclared dollars stashed away in a bank account in Costa Rica, you might want to ask your accountant about this or, you could end up singing: “Hi ho! Hi ho! It’s off to Guantanamo we go!”

Only kidding… I hope!

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Written by Scott Oliver, author of 1. Costa Rica Real Estate Scams & How To Avoid Them, 2. How To Buy Costa Rica Real Estate Without Losing Your Camisa, and 3. Costa Rica’s Guide To Making Money Offshore.

Andrew Makarik

to@welovecostarica.com

Andrew Makarik is the main editor of WeLoveCostaRica, a fan of this sunny country. He is also a loving husband and a has a lovely daughter. By being a devoted family man and the biggest Costa Rica fan, he wants to make more people feel at home there. WeLoveCostaRica unites people and helps them find new home or a new travel destination. This website is a friendly community where everyone can find not only information, but also new friends and travel pals. Andrew is also passionate about IT and programming, so he himself maintains a friendly atmosphere in this cozy environment of WeLoveCostaRica.com.