Tax return question

[Holden97]

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Additionally if you ever have more than 10,000 AT ONE TIME in an offshore business or account (such as Neteller) you must notify the IRS.

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I think the reporting we're talking about is actually to the Department of Treasury (TD F 90-22.1). Also, "business or account" is somewhat ambiguous - the Treasury Department rules only apply to "bank accounts, securities accounts, or other financial accounts." For example, if you loaned $50,000 to Toyota in the normal course of business, I don't think that is reportable.

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This is true if your total out of country money is over 10k, right? Not just 10k at one spot. If you have 5k in Neteller, 3k at Party, and 3k at Stars, I think this qualifies. I could be wrong, but I've been careful to stay below 10k total just to be on the safe side.

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Yes, aggregate out-of-country funds, but pay close attention to the definition of financial account.

The penalties for non-timely filing are "strict" penalties as a result of some changes in the American Jobs Creation Act in 2004. That means that (supposedly) there is no relief for "reasonable cause" (ignorance/reliance on professionals, etc.).