The USA “extends its expansion” to the east

10.02.2012 Recently the USA government has decided to draft a new agreement on information exchange with several European states. This international instrument is necessary for the United States to implement the provisions of adopted in March 2010 Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act. According to this legal act the USA authorities obtain information from relevant authorities of other countries participating in the agreement on foreign bank accounts of USA taxpayers as well as information on the percentage ownership of USA residents in foreign companies. The articles of the Act about the provision with necessary information by foreign financial institutes will come into force from 1 January 2013.

If a country does not participate in an appropriate agreement with the USA the international bank transactions of credit organizations could be forcibly imposed 30% income tax if the bank-counterpart or correspondent bank decides that the beneficiary is a taxable person in the USA and the source of transferred funds us connected with the USA income.

Expert’s opinion

“When implementing its politics the USA gives no choice to anyone as always.

In the case of foreign accounts of American residents the USA government "invented" the following scenarios for the European states: either the state “in amicable way” provides with the necessary information or appropriate financial institutions are compulsory to pay 30% tax on income from transactions. We should agree that it’s difficult to name such a situation as a “choice”.

On the basis: www.irs.gov

Vorontsova Maria ( the lawyer of international consulting department of Honest&Bright)