There's the version of tax resolution the late-night commercials sell you. Then there's how it actually works. I'm Darrin Mish, a Tampa tax attorney. I've spent 32 years on the inside of these cases. Here's the real version.<\/p>\n
Dr Arvind Ahuja was convicted by a jury on federal charges of tax evasion by not disclosing foreign bank accounts held by him in India and the Bailiwick of Jersey. Dr Ahuja, a well-known Milwaukee neurosurgeon was convicted of one count of filing a false 2009 individual income tax return and one count of not filing a Report of Foreign Bank and Financial Accounts (FBAR).<\/p>\n
Dr Ahuja transferred millions of dollars from bank accounts in the US to his HSBC bank account in India between 2005 and 2009 from which he earned about $2.7 million in interest alone. Dr. Ahuja also holds bank accounts in HSBC in in the Bailiwick of Jersey, a British Crown dependency located in the Channel Islands off the coast of Normandy, France. With the help of bankers at an HSBC representative office in New York, Dr. Ahuja manages all his foreign bank accounts.<\/p>\n
Charges against him were that he did not declare that he had signature authority in his bank accounts in India and Jersey, filing a false income tax return in 2009 that did not reveal his interest income on certificates of deposit at HSBC India and failure to file a FBAR for 2009 to report his foreign accounts to the government. During his trial, Dr. Ahuja\u2019s accountant testified that the neurosurgeon never did declare the existence of his foreign accounts when preparing his tax returns.<\/p>\n
Under US law, all American citizens who maintain or have any signatory authority over any bank account in a foreign country with over $10,000 in assets must declare them in Schedule B, Part III of their income tax returns. Besides that, Americans also have to submit a FBAR to the US Treasury if they have any financial account in a foreign country with assets over $10,000.<\/p>\n
In Dr. Ahuja\u2019s case, US Attorney for the Eastern District for Wisconsin, James Santelle said, \u201cThis prosecution reflects the continuing commitment of the United States Department of Justice, including my office and the Tax Division, to identify, investigate and prosecute individuals who fail to abide by well-established obligations to report and pay on their tax indebtedness\u201d. In commenting on the jury\u2019s verdict in Dr. Ahuja\u2019s case, John A. DiCicco the Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General of the Tax Department in the Justice Department said, \u201cThis case is a warning to individuals who still think they can use offshore bank accounts to commit tax crimes. Citizens who honestly report their income and pay their taxes can take comfort that the Department of Justice is committed to the prosecution of tax cheats who use these offshore accounts.\u201d<\/p>\n
DiCicco thanked all the relevant parties concerned in the investigation and prosecution of Dr. Ahuja\u2019s case. The IRS has a special Whistle Blower\u2019s department that rewards those with accurate information leading up to the successful apprehension and conviction of those who evade taxes. The reward may come up to 30% of the amount of tax, penalties and interests collected.<\/p>\n