By Michael W. Brooks, Esq. President DIRECTS At DIRECTS (Domestic and International Real Estate Closing Tax Services, Inc.), all day, every day, we work on tax matters relating to FIRPTA (the Foreign Investment in Real Property Tax Act). We work for clients from throughout the world who invest in real…
By Michael W. Brooks, Esq. (President DIRECTS) In January 2017, the IRS suspended the right of privately licensed tax professionals and companies (such as my firm- DIRECTS) to certify non-US passports, which slowed down significantly the time it took for a non-US person who sold US real estate to obtain…
By Michael W. Brooks, Esq. As discussed in Part 1, we know Foreign Investors are permitted to enter IRC Section 1031 (like-kind exchange) transactions provided certain conditions are met. The Foreign Investor can avoid (really delay) paying tax on the sale of the first property (the relinquished property), provided the…
By Michael W. Brooks, Esq. As with US persons, non-US persons and parties (“Foreign Investors”) are allowed to enter into Internal Revenue Code Section 1031 (like-kind exchange) transactions. Foreign Investor exchanges allow owners of investment and business real estate to delay paying income tax on the appreciation of the…
Starting in 2016, US individual taxpayer ID numbers (“ITINs”) not used in the prior 5 years on a US tax return will be deactivated by the IRS. So, staring in 2016, if a foreign person hasn’t sold US real estate since (at the latest) 2010 (which should have led to…
As you know, procuring ITIN’s for non-US citizen/residents is essential when these individuals sell (or rent) US/California real estate. Starting in 2015, the IRS has made an already challenging process even more cumbersome. In 2016, the IRS plans to add yet another layer of complexity. 2015 Change- Form 8288’s Now Really Must…