Tax Fraud

UBS Swiss Bank Account Owner Pleads Guilty to Failure to File Foreign Bank Account Reports (FBARs)

April 15, 2010 | by Dennis N. Brager

Former UBS Swiss bank account owner Harry Abrahamsen, a New Jersey resident, became the third former UBS client charged this year when he admitted in court that he concealed almost $800,000 in Swiss bank accounts and pleaded guilty to failure to file a Foreign Bank Account Report, Form TDF 90-22. 1 ( FBAR) for the calendar year 2005. Abrahamsen stated that he established an offshore company with the assistance of a Swiss lawyer and Swiss banker in order to hide these offshore financial accounts from the IRS. According to the Justice Department, he funded his accounts with $1.3 million in false and inflated expenses paid by his printing company to a Swiss company.

Abrahamsen faces as long as five years in prison when he returns to court for sentencing on July 27th, along with a fine of $250,000. He also agreed to pay taxes and interest, as well as a 50 percent FBAR civil penalty on the highest balance of his accounts. It is not clear whether he will also have to pay a 75% civil tax fraud penalty. Based upon the amounts disclosed in public documents the taxes and penalties will probably exceed 100% of the amount in his Swiss bank account.

UBS turned over data to the U.S. on Abrahamsen as part of its deferred-prosecution agreement. Had Abrahamsen made a voluntary disclosure to the IRS, it is possible he could have avoided his criminal tax problems.

Another Round of Offshore Bank Account Tax Fraud Cases Begins

April 8, 2010 | by Dennis N. Brager

In a move designed to remind people of their duty to report offshore bank accounts and file Foreign Bank Account Reports (FBARs), federal prosecutors are beginning another wave of UBS tax evasion prosecutions just ahead of the April 15 tax-filing deadline. This newest wave reportedly includes accounts significantly larger than in previous cases. One tax lawyer has been quoted as saying that his client’s Swiss bank account held between $10 and $50 million.

In a separate announcement on Monday, April 5th, IRS Commissioner Doug Shulman said the IRS is still sifting through 15,000 records on foreign bank accounts that it received from individuals who took part in the IRS tax amnesty program. The IRS is looking for patterns in the records to identify other offshore banks and advisors that helped individuals hide funds in foreign financial accounts, and may have committed tax fraud. That area will be “the next wave” of the investigation, according to Shulman. Some tax attorneys have speculated that HSBC and Credit Suisse are the next ones on the IRS hit list.

Although the IRS tax amnesty program for unreported offshore income ended in October, it is not too late to make a voluntary disclosure of your offshore bank accounts, and possibly avoid criminal tax fraud charges. For more information contact the tax attorneys at Brager Tax Law Group, A P.C.

Criminal Tax Problems for HSBC Customer Who Failed to File FBARs

February 22, 2010 | by Dennis N. Brager

In the latest of a string of guilty pleas related to FBAR cases, Dr. Andrew Silva, a Virginia surgeon pled guilty to one count of conspiracy to impede the United States, and to making a false statement. Several interesting points about this tax fraud case.

• Dr. Silva inherited the Swiss bank account from his mother.

• Silva failed to file a Report of Foreign Bank Account, Form TDF 90-22.1 (FBAR), but was charged with other crimes instead.

Deportation for Tax Fraud and Other Tax Crimes

February 11, 2010 | by Dennis N. Brager

Filing a false tax return in violation of Internal Revenue Code (IRC) Section 7206 can result in deportation of a resident alien, i.e. a green card holder, according to the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals. Kawashima v. Holder (9th Cir. 2010). In a long running case Mr. Kawashima pled guilty to subscribing to a false tax return in violation of IRC Section 7206(1). His wife pled guilty to aiding and assisting in the filing of a false tax return in violation of IRC Section 7206(2).

Generally green card holders can be deported for committing an “aggravated felony.” Tax fraud or tax evasion in violation of IRC section 7201 is specifically defined by the immigration laws as an aggravated felony. Aggravated felonies also include any offence that involves fraud or deceit which exceed a loss to the victim of more than $10,000. The Kawashimas argued that since tax fraud was specifically defined as an aggravated felony Congress meant to exclude all other tax crimes including filing a false tax return. The 9th Circuit disagreed, holding that under the plain language of the statute not only was tax evasion a removable offense, but so was filing a false tax return.

This is just another reminder that the collateral consequences of a criminal tax conviction can reach far beyond the potential prison time.

California Income Tax Evasion Charged

January 20, 2010 | by Dennis N. Brager

The California Franchise Tax Board (FTB) has arrested an individual for felony income tax evasion. According to the FTB Phillip Leech was the CFO of In & Out Desighns, Inc. which allegedly earned more than $1.3 million over a three year period, but didn’t file corporate income tax returns. There are a couple of interesting things about this tax fraud case. One is that Leech was apparently not the owner of the corporation; nevertheless because he was the CEO and CFO the FTB pointed out that he had a duty to file the income tax returns, and was charged with tax evasion. The amount of tax alleged to be owed by the corporation was not huge, $122,000, but the FTB still brought a criminal tax fraud case.

Another interesting point is that the criminal tax fraud case was brought only after the FTB issued notices to the corporation requesting tax returns. Sounds like Mr. Leech should have paid more attention to his mail!

If you have a tax problem with the California Franchise Tax Board, the Internal Revenue Service, or another California tax agency call the tax litigation lawyers at Brager Tax Law Group, A P.C.

Tax Amnesty Offshore Voluntary Disclosure FBAR Deadline Extended

September 21, 2009 | by Dennis N. Brager

The IRS announced that the Offshore Voluntary Disclosure program granting tax amnesty to those who failed to file Foreign Bank Account Reports, Form TD-F 90-22.1 (FBAR) has been extended. The new deadline for filing a request to participate in the Offshore Voluntary Disclosure program is Oct. 15th. The prior deadline for participating in the Offshore Voluntary Disclosure program was Sept. 23rd.

The IRS had previous announced in March of this year that individuals and entities who had an interest in offshore bank accounts, and who had failed to file FBARs who voluntarily came forward, and notified the IRS of the existence of their offshore financial accounts would qualify for a reduced penalty regime. Normally the penalty for failing to file an FBAR on Form TD-F 90-22.1 can result in a penalty equal to the greater of $100,000 or 50% of the balance in the offshore account. In addition, non-filers of FBARs could be subject to criminal tax penalties, as well as a civil tax fraud penalty of 75% of any taxes that were owed. For more details on potential penalties please review our earlier post.

The IRS has said it extended the deadline in response to the requests of numerous tax attorneys and other tax professionals who requested additional time. The IRS stated that there would be no further extensions of the deadline for the Offshore Voluntary Disclosure program.

FBAR Tax Amnesty Deadline Looms

September 14, 2009 | by Dennis N. Brager

Less than 10 shopping days before the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) Foreign Bank Account Report Tax Amnesty ends. September 23rd is the last day that owners of Swiss Bank Accounts, and other foreign financial accounts have to disclose their offshore holdings to the IRS Criminal Investigation Division in order to escape criminal tax prosecution, and take advantage of the lower civil tax penalties being offered by the IRS as part of its Offshore Voluntary Disclosure Program a/k/a offshore tax amnesty.

Those who fess up before that date will not only be spared the possibility of jail time, but will also be eligible for reduced penalties. The normal civil penalties for failing to file a Foreign Bank Account Report, TD F 90-22.1 (FBAR) is the greater of $100,000 or 50% of the balance in the account. The FBAR penalty can be imposed for each year there is a balance in the combined accounts greater than $10,000. The civil tax fraud penalty is 75% of the amount owed. For a more detailed list of possible penalties I have them listed here.

Our tax litigation attorneys are consulting with dozens of clients with offshore bank accounts. If you would like our advice contact Brager Tax Law Group, A P.C.

UBS Tax Fraud Case Settlement Details Revealed

August 20, 2009 | by Dennis N. Brager

UBS has agreed to reveal the names and account information of 4,450 U.S. persons who are owners of UBS Swiss bank accounts who the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) believes have committed tax fraud. Clearly Swiss bank secrecy has more holes than Swiss cheese. The names will be revealed under the following procedure. UBS will notify its customers who are on the list that their names are to be turned over to the IRS. Those Swiss bank account owners who believe that doing so is in violation of Swiss law will be entitled to a decision from the Swiss Federal Tax Authority (SFTA) as to whether the turnover is legal. The Swiss have committed to processing any requests by the IRS so that the first 500 UBS Swiss bank accounts will be turned over within 90 days of the formal request by the IRS to the Swiss, and the last of the Swiss bank account names are to be turned over within one year.

Of course the names of who is on the list has not been disclosed, nor have the criteria for which Swiss bank accounts will be on the list been revealed. No such information is expected for 90 days. Clearly the intent is that some of the Swiss bank account owners who are not on the list, but don’t know they are not on the list will be motivated to participate in the IRS tax amnesty program which closes September 23rd.

Our tax attorneys are counseling many clients on the ins and outs of the IRS voluntary disclosure program. If you have a foreign bank account, and are interested in finding out more, please contact the tax litigation lawyers at Brager Tax Law Group, A P.C.

Fourth UBS FBAR Tax Fraud Defendant Pleads Guilty

August 17, 2009 | by Dennis N. Brager

A Los Angeles, California man pled guilty to one count of failing to file a Foreign Bank Account Form TDF 90.22-1 (FBAR) pursuant to the Bank Secrecy Act 31 USC 5314. This is the fourth person with a UBS Swiss bank account to plead guilty to tax evasion charges. John McCarthy admitted that he skimmed funds from his business, and sent it to an offshore bank account at UBS held in the name of his Hong Kong corporation. According to the plea agreement it was UBS, and his Swiss lawyers who came up with this idea that created all of McCarthy’s offshore tax problems. The IRS found out about McCarthy when UBS turned over his name as part of the criminal tax case against UBS that was resolved earlier this year. The maximum penalty that the Court can impose is five years in prison; a fine of $250,000, or twice the amount of gross gain or loss from the offense whichever is greater. Sentencing hasn’t yet occurred. In addition, McCarthy agreed to civil FBAR penalties equal to 50% of the highest year balance in the account will be imposed, along with a 75% civil tax fraud penalty.

Most interesting to me about the case is that the IRS is reaching lower down the food chain. The amount of the unpaid tax was somewhere between $200,000 and $400,00 spread over a 5 year period. Assuming a 33% tax rate this suggests unreported income of as little as $120,000 per year. While this is hardly chicken feed, it shows the IRS willingness to prosecute medium size tax evasion cases.

If you have a foreign financial account, or any kind of tax problem contact the tax lawyers at Brager Tax Law Group, A P.C.

UBS Offshore Tax Evasion Case Moves Closer to Disclosure

August 13, 2009 | by Dennis N. Brager

On Wednesday, the UBS offshore tax evasion case moved one step closer to UBS disclosing the names of persons the IRS believes have committed tax fraud and/or failed to file TD F-90-22.1, Foreign Bank Account Report (FBAR). The IRS announced that it had “initialed a settlement” with the Swiss government to settle the suit seeking the names of 52,000 U.S. persons with offshore UBS bank accounts. The terms of the settlement has not yet been disclosed, but most tax attorneys believe that it will require UBS to provide the names of thousands of Swiss bank account holders. The IRS has said that the terms will not be disclosed until final signatures have been obtained on the settlement, and that could occur as early as next week.

Some tax lawyers speculate that it will be only the names of the largest UBS account holders that will be disclosed, but I tend to disagree. Any settlement would have to provide the Swiss with a fig leaf to argue that they had not compromised their privacy laws. One way of doing this would be to loosen the interpretation of tax fraud under Swiss law, and provide the names of individuals who engaged in some activity suggesting they were covering up the existence of the offshore account. For example, holders of numbered accounts, or accounts held in the name of dummy corporations or trusts, or perhaps dual citizens of the U.S. and other countries who did not use their U.S. passports to open the accounts.

Once the settlement terms have been announced it is unknown how quickly names of UBS Swiss bank account holders will be turned over. However, once the IRS has the names it will be too late for those individuals to participate in the IRS tax amnesty, and receive the benefits of the offshore voluntary disclosure program.