Asia Tax ForumMay 9-10, 2012 – Raffles, SingaporeMay 9-10, 2012 – Raffles, Singapore

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IRS International OperationsU.S. Embassy Beijing Chinchie Killfoil, Tax Attaché

Asia Tax ForumMay 9-10, 2012 – Raffles, SingaporeMay 9-10, 2012 – Raffles, Singapore

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A Few Details About IRS• Bureau of Department of Treasury• Collects more than $ 2.7 trillion USD in

revenue yearly to fund the U.S. Government • Processes 250+ million tax returns• Spends 41 cents for every $100 collected• 98,000 employees

Asia Tax ForumMay 9-10, 2012 – Raffles, SingaporeMay 9-10, 2012 – Raffles, Singapore

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IRS Strategic Goals

T 2-4

Goal 1:Improve service

to make voluntary compliance easier

Goal 2:Enforce the law

to ensure everyone meets their obligation

to pay taxes

Strategic Foundation: Invest for High PerformanceStrategic Foundation: Invest for High Performance

Asia Tax ForumMay 9-10, 2012 – Raffles, SingaporeMay 9-10, 2012 – Raffles, Singapore

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Services and EnforcementDeputy Commissioner

70 employees

Small Business/Self-Employed (SBSE) 28,000 employees

Wage and Investment(W&I) 47,000 employees

Large Business and International(LB&I) 7,800 employees

Office of Professional Responsibility50 employees

Tax Exempt and Government Entities(TEGE) 2,300 employees

Criminal Investigation(CI) 4,000 employees

Whistleblower Office10 employees

88,000 employees

Asia Tax ForumMay 9-10, 2012 – Raffles, SingaporeMay 9-10, 2012 – Raffles, Singapore

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LB&I International Function

Director, International Business Compliance (IBC)

Director, Transfer Pricing Operations

CommissionerLarge Business &

International

Director, International Individual Compliance

(IIC)

Deputy Commissioner (International)

Assistant Deputy Commissioner (Int’l)

IRS Commissioner

Treaty UnitIRS Deputy Commissioner

for Services & Enforcement

Foreign Posts

Service-wide Strategy

JITSIC

EOI Program

APMA Program

Transfer Pricing Practice

International Exam Function

International Exam Function

Asia Tax ForumMay 9-10, 2012 – Raffles, SingaporeMay 9-10, 2012 – Raffles, Singapore

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Large Business and InternationalLB&I

• Serves 210,000 taxpayers• Businesses with $10 million + assets• Large multinational companies• Complex issues• Serves International taxpayers (IBC & IIC)• 7,800 employees (1,700 devoted to

international, the rest domestic large case)• 4 overseas posts (CI has 10 overseas posts)

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Exchange of Info around the World

Dean BurkeEOI Program

MgrWashington DC

Dean BurkeEOI Program

MgrWashington DC

Raul Pertierra Rev Service Rep

Plantation, FL

Raul Pertierra Rev Service Rep

Plantation, FL

Kelli WinegardnerTax Attaché

London

Kelli WinegardnerTax Attaché

London

Aziz BenbrahimTax Attaché

Paris

Barbara FranklinTax Attaché

Frankfurt

Chinchie KillfoilTax Attaché

Beijing

JD CarrollDirector JITSICWashington DC

SEP 07 2011

Frankfurt London Plantation, FL Paris Beijing

Washington DC

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Regional Responsibilities…

• Beijing: Asia• London: UK, Scandinavia, Africa• Paris: Mid-East, Western & Southern Europe• Frankfurt: Central & Eastern Europe, Central

Asia, Mid-East• Plantation, Florida: Caribbean Islands, Central

and South America

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So, what is a Tax Attaché?

• Competent Authority’s representative for their regional area

• Manage Exchange of Information (EOI) with foreign governments

• Establish and maintain relationships with Treaty Partners

• Provide Service to U.S. Taxpayers abroad• Eyes and ears of IRS in foreign jurisdictions

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Exchange of InformationIt is done under -• Bilateral Treaties• Tax Information Exchange Agreements (TIEA)• OECD/Council of Europe Convention on Mutual

Administrative Assistance in Tax Matters (Multilateral Treaty)

• Mutual Legal Assistance Treaties (MLAT)• Hague Evidence Convention

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Common information exchanged:

• Bank, brokerage & other financial records • Witness interviews• Business records• Public records• Real estate ownership records• Accountant & attorney records• Insurance company records

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Common information exchanged…

• Tax return information• Record of filing• Filing status• Amount of taxes paid• Types, sources, and amounts of income• Address of residency (residency)

ANY information related to tax investigation!

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Types of EOI Requests• Specific – for specific taxpayers • Spontaneous –provided without request -

information might indicate non-compliance• Automatic – information exchanged on a routine,

systemic basis• Simultaneous – both US & treaty partner

examine same TP or related TP with common issues

• Industry-wide – industry or sector about trends, practices, pricing, etc.

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Recent Developments - FATCA

• Two components – Foreign Financial Institutions (FFI) Identify United

States Accounts and report directly to the IRS on Form 1099-FFI

– U.S. taxpayers report foreign financial asset holdings on Form 8938 starting with 2011 tax return if certain thresholds are met.

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Recent Developments - FATCA

• Foreign Financial Institutions (FFI) Identify United States Accounts and report directly to the IRS on Form 1099-FFI

• FFI to register on-line starting 1-1-2013• FFI to report Name, Address, TIN & Account Balance

(reporting starts in 2014 with respect to 2013)• Income Amounts (reporting starts in 2016)• Gross Proceeds (reporting starts in 2017)

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Recent Developments - FATCA

• For more information please visit the FATCA Page on www.irs.gov

• More FATCA information in another session later.

Questions?