7,500 offshore tax evaders come clean

[sabra]

Source: Reuters

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Thousands of wealthy Americans have volunteered information about unreported income hidden in overseas accounts ahead of the deadline for a U.S. government tax amnesty program, the U.S. tax commissioner said on Wednesday.

Roughly 7,500 Americans have taken part in the amnesty program, more than double the participation reported a few weeks ago, Doug Shulman, commissioner of the Internal Revenue Service, told reporters during a briefing. The amnesty program ends on Thursday.

The IRS is expanding its offshore tax crackdown and will open new criminal offices in Beijing, Sydney and Panama, Shulman said. "The IRS has new momentum in this entire area and in the coming months our efforts will only intensify," he said.

Under the amnesty program that began in September, tax cheats can declare offshore income, pay reduced fines and get general immunity from criminal prosecution. The program turned up undeclared income from offshore accounts ranging from $10,000 to more than $100 million, Shulman said.

Read more: http://www.reuters.com/article/ousivMolt/idUSTRE59D4M320091014

[truthisfreedom]

1. Nice. Now if I only had enough money to shelter some offshore.

[gateley]

These folks are who the IRS SHOULD be focusing on. nt

[JuniperLea]

2. Far better to come clean now...

Than to be sought out later!

This is good news! This could help pay for health care for all!

:)

[Maraya1969]

6. That's what I was thinking. Another source for the common good.

Also it seems like no one is talking about how we are going to have an influx of money next tax season when the bush tax cuts run out. That cost 1.6 billion dollars. I would love to have an estimate of how much will come in without that break.

[JuniperLea]

9. I was wondering the same thing about the tax cuts...

Perhaps no one wants to point and whisper about that particular elephant in the room, for fear of what the RW would do.

[Igel]

28. There's no elephant.

Obama's said that he wants to extend some of the tax cuts for the middle class (details to be forthcoming, it would seem). Pelosi has clearly said that most of them will be allowed to expire. Since it would take getting the necessary bill out of Finance before the House could vote it it, and the Finance committee is majority dem, it seems that most of them will expire.

In any event, the expiration of the Bush tax cuts are built into the budget assumptions going forward.

There's been some noise from the right, but not so much. One thing at a time.

As usual, there'll be the usual word games. Since taxes will de facto increase, some will call it a tax increase; since the tax cut was temporary, it will be billed by others as a diminution or simple repeal of a tax cut, not an increase at all. The same word games are played when a projected funding increase is reduced, resulting in a net funding increase but one smaller than anticipated--some bill it as a funding cut, others as an increase.

[notesdev]

3. Amnesty? Immunity?

Where does the regular Joe go to get this privileged treatment?

[newtothegame]

4. What should a wealthy American do if they don't agree with where their tax dollars go in the US?

ed for sp

[MineralMan]

5. What do you mean? Are you suggesting that they're doing

the right thing by evading paying their taxes?

None of us gets to decide where our tax dollars are spent, except through electing legislators who support our point of view. Why should the rich be any different?

[druidity33]

7. i wish i could unrec your reply. nt.

[Mari333]

10. I dont want my taxes to pay for 2 ridiculous wars but I pay my taxes anyway

I dont want my taxes to bail out wall street but I pay my taxes anyway.

[MineralMan]

11. I'm not sure what the poster meant, actually.

Sadly, he/she has not returned to clarify...

[katkat]

17. What should a wealthy American do if they don't agree

Re What should a wealthy American do if they don't agree with where their tax dollars go in the US?

The same thing an unwealthy American does, pay up or engage in civil disobedience by not paying their taxes and go to jail.

If I had the option (without going to jail) not one cent of my taxes would go to the current wars. Good luck to me with that.

What I don't understand is why these people are getting amnesty. Not only are they (1) plain out crooks as opposed to making errors, but (2) the money from the penalties would be huge, and the country can certainly use that.

[marybourg]

21. Because if they got nothing for coming forward "voluntarily"

they'd have nothing to lose by just hanging back and hoping not to be caught & it would take a lot of money to investigate and prosecute.

[katkat]

29. a lot to lose

I think they have a lot to lose. Prosecuting tax cheats has done well in the past. And clearly the IRS is going after them this time. I hope for some jail sentences.

[marybourg]

19. Take their money to another country and see if they like it better. nt

[go west young man]

20. They should go to jail for tax evasion.

[Blue_Tires]

26. emigrate somewhere else...

and try to find some other country that allows him to thrive as much while paying less in taxes (he won't, unless he's a drugs/girls/guns/black market smuggler)

[NashVegas]

27. Move to Spain

[Mr. Sparkle]

8. Given the state of the budget right now, every little help's. n/t

[vinylsolution]

12. But what about the corporations who are....

... hiding mega-$billions in offshore havens, and paying no taxes?

That's the tax evasion crackdown America really needs.

[valerief]

14. You got that right! nt

[HillWilliam]

13. I'll get excited when they nail Phil Gramm

and his Swiss-bank cronies. The biggest fish always get away.

[valerief]

15. I think it's illegal for me to say what I'd like to see happen to Phil Gramm. nt

[El Supremo]

24. I will too.

And his wife, a director at Enron.

[Soylent Brice]

16. wow

"The program turned up undeclared income from offshore accounts ranging from $10,000 to more than $100 million..."

and 7,500 people, THUS FAR, have taken advantage of amnesty. imagine how many more of these turds are out there. imagine how many more millions they have stashed.

we're talking about potential billions in tax revenue.
i just don't get the mentality.

[katkat]

18. crunching numbers

Here's what a website said about the penalties "The current penalty is 50 percent of the high balance of each account over the last three years — but the I.R.S. will reduce that penalty to 5 to 20 percent...The I.R.S. will also require taxpayers to pay any taxes and interest owed over the last six years, as well as assess a standard, accuracy-related penalty of 20 percent"

So:
income (not net assets, but taxable income) of $10,000 to $100 million
7,500 tax cheats

gives $75 million to $750 billion in income.

let's be very conservative and say:
the tax rate is 25% and
use 5% of just the income instead of the unknown balances and
20% accuracy(ha) penalty
totals 50%:

$37.5 million to $37.5 billion

and this is just the ones in the amnesty program and ignores interest and compounding. Good hunting for the others, IRS.

[Soylent Brice]

30. $37.5 million to $37.5 billion

:wow:

thanks for the numbers breakdown.
i'm sure when all is said and done, it will be significantly more than that.

INSANE.

[L0oniX]

22. I wonder how many of them are senators and congresscritters?

[jaksavage]

23. Or donors. nt

[santamargarita]

25. Where is the list of names?