The Biggest Lie You've Been Told about Going Offshore

Bob Bauman JD writes at International Living Postcards

Is it un-American to go offshore?

In the United States, government officials and the U.S. Internal Revenue Service have for years done their best to convince people that obtaining a second passport is somehow crooked, even unpatriotic. The media persists with this steady drumbeat of negativity, even though the U.S. Supreme Court has repeatedly upheld the legal and constitutional right of U.S. citizens to hold dual or even multiple citizenships.

Indeed, a second passport—a second citizenship—is one of the most important tools in any sovereign person's personal and financial toolkit.

This idea that it is unpatriotic for otherwise good Americans to have foreign bank accounts, own foreign investments and real estate, and live in foreign lands has long been the unspoken policy of the U.S. Internal Revenue Service and other government agencies.

In fact, I even once heard an assistant U.S. Attorney General publicly state to a conference of several hundred lawyers and bankers in Miami that, at the U.S. Department of Justice, whenever an individual had offshore accounts, he or she was assumed to be engaged in something that was probably illegal.

Despite this pressure from the top, attitudes among the public about offshore measures are changing...

It's been slow up to now; that makes sense when you consider human nature, which dictates that most folks prefer to make and save their money in their home country. After all, most people are comfortable with the familiarity of their domestic economy of our home nation, even if the government is near bankrupt as it is in America.

In 2014 the number of Americans with a valid passport hit a record 117,443,735. That's more than double the number a decade earlier, and a huge jump from the number of U.S. passports in the 1980s. Today more than one in three Americans have a valid passport, versus one in 30 back in 1989. (Another 1.4 million Americans living near the Mexican and Canadian borders had "passport cards.")

But most do not realize the ease with which a second passport can be obtained. This is especially true if you have a parent or grandparent who is, or was, a citizen of selected foreign countries including Ireland, Italy, or Poland among others.

There are many good and sufficient practical reasons why aware Americans should "go offshore" financially—simple financial survival first among them.

At a time when the United States government is deeply in debt (over $18 trillion) and the president and his radical allies are promoting wealth redistribution, with major banks still on the brink, prudence dictates offshore planning and activity.

Offshore you can find far greater asset protection, stronger financial privacy, higher returns in carefully selected markets, more diversification of investments and among currencies, increased safety and security, both personal and financial, and deferred taxes on annuities and life insurance.

Unfortunately relatively few Americans are taking advantage of the fruits of global diversification. I think you owe it to yourself and to your family to take advantage of offshore advantages. At the very least, you should hold a portion of your assets offshore—just in case.

So-called "patriotism" does not require us to commit financial suicide when there are reasonable escape exits to better places.

For these good reasons—and for self-interest as well—none of us can afford to be xenophobic in this 21st century.

There's a whole wide world out there—offshore—and you need only recognize that fact and act upon it.

Editor's note: In his bestselling guide to the offshore world, former U.S. congressmen and legal expert, Bob Bauman, tells you much more about how the right offshore strategy could benefit you. He'll share more about how and where you could get a second passport...where the best offshore havens in the world are today...and how going offshore could help to protect your financial freedom and privacy.

Why Is Mexico Calling?

Zero hedge says it best:

Here are some of the biggest myths we see in the system today:

1. The dollar will continue to be the dominant currency.

This is a total farce. Grumblings grow louder around the world to establish a new non-dollar financial system, and China has taken the lead to make this a reality.

2. The US is still the dominant military power in the world.

If you measure by the quality of trained personnel, this is true. But what good is all of that military power if you can’t afford to do anything with it?

3. The police exist to protect the people.

Wrong again. With so much civil asset forfeiture taking place at the point of a gun(federally funded assault rifles), it’s clear they’re far more concerned about protecting those that maintain the status quo than protecting you.

4. Elections make a difference

Completely false. Most Western governments borrow money to pay interest on the money they’ve already borrowed.

In the US, they spend so much on mandatory entitlements and interest they could eliminate almost the entire government and still not run a balanced budget.

At that level of desperation, it matters not who’s in power.

5. Your bank is safe

Your bank might HAVE a safe. But if you look at objective data, many banks in the West have incredibly thin levels of capital and liquidity—the exact opposite of what a safe bank is supposed to have.

Oh yeah, they’re backed by poorly capitalized deposit insurance funds, which are guaranteed by insolvent governments.

And bear in mind that even if your bank is reasonably capitalized, you are still guaranteed to lose money on a tax adjusted, inflation adjusted basis if you you’re holding your savings there.

6. You have to go to college in order to get ahead

Quite the opposite—going to college in many cases can get you behind; just ask any 36-year old still paying down that $100,000 student loan debt.

The world is a big place full of opportunity. Skills and experience matter more than pieces of paper.

Here’s a better option, especially for young people: head overseas, and become an apprentice to a successful, knowledgeable individual that you respect.

Any young person who thinks that going to college is a good idea should just ask any of their unemployed friends saddled with $100,000 of debt if it was worth it.

7. I saw it on TV so it must be true.

Ufff. The mainstream media exist to paint a distorted version of reality so that people are kept placated, docile and largely clueless about what really goes on in the world.

8. Debt doesn’t matter because we owe it to ourselves

Whoever first said this must have a lot of whips and chains in his closet because he seems to enjoy pain.

If we owe the debt to ‘ourselves,’ that means that we will need to default on ourselves.

This means no more Social Security, Medicare, etc. It means causing the US Federal Reserve to become insolvent and spark a currency crisis. It means causing the collapse of every bank in the country.

Sure, no biggie.

9. The United States is the Land of the Free

Draconian surveillance efforts on its citizens. Punitive taxes, fines and regulation. Rising police state. Telling people what they can or can’t put in their bodies, how to grow their food, who to adore, who to hate. Preventing them to collect their own rainwater and live off the grid.

The Real Threat to Your Financial Privacy

International Living Postcards has been providing great information. Today's postcard reveals
"The Real Threat to Your Financial Privacy" By Mark Nestmann, LL.M.

The headlines emerged in early October:

JPMorgan: 76 million customers hacked (CNN)

JPMorgan Chase bank hack: It gets worse (ZDNet)

This is why the enormous JPMorgan Chase hack is so scary (Fast Company)

The mainstream media had a field day with the story that thieves had hacked the data of nearly 80 million bank customers over the summer.

Everyday Americans were outraged, too—understandably so.

So why isn't everyone as teed off when other secretive groups can routinely "steal" the financial data of nearly 320 million Americans?

Who are those groups? They're our federal and state governments. They don't even have to be sneaky about it. They are sanctioned to ask your financial institution for information, and your bank has no choice but to deliver.

Sure, there have been some moves here and there to protect your financial freedom. The Right to Financial Privacy Act (RFPA) was enacted in 1978. It attempted to reinstate some of the constitutional protections that had been eroded by Supreme Court decisions relating to the Bank Secrecy Act (BSA), an act that had effectively turned bankers and financial professionals into government informants.

Generally, the RFPA requires federal agencies to provide individuals with a notice and an opportunity to object before a bank or other specified institution can disclose personal financial information.

But in practice, it means little. The Right to Financial Privacy Act left so many loopholes and exceptions that it has been rendered practically meaningless.

For example:

The RFPA exempts most corporations, trusts, or limited partnerships from any protection by defining a "customer" as an individual or partnership of not more than five partners.

A state agency can obtain financial records and share them with its federal counterparts without violating the RFPA.

The RFPA doesn't restrict state or local government investigations.

Many government agencies, including the Treasury's financial intelligence agency (FinCEN), the Homeland Security Administration, and others, have obtained formal exemptions from the RFPA.

And, it's almost laughably easy for government agencies to obtain financial records. All the agency needs to do is to create an administrative, judicial, or grand jury subpoena certifying that the records are relevant to an ongoing investigation. While the RFPA stipulates that the customer must be informed of the investigation, in practice, such notification may be deferred indefinitely.

There's simply no way around it—and no way to say it more simply than—"we're screwed." At least here in the United States.

Thankfully, there are still protections available outside this country. With nearly 200 sovereign nations, "geographical diversification" can offer you a safer way to protect your cash from intrusive domestic government agencies.

Of course, you need to do it the right way. But there are plenty of information services to help.

Once you've identified your options and reviewed your personal goals and situation, it's just a matter of doing the due diligence needed to make sure it's the right path for you.

One way to inform yourself is to read my special report,5 Ironclad Asset Protection Strategies. It's free as part of an offshore resource that's dedicated to helping you reclaim your freedom offshore. Info about that offshore resource is here. Hurry—it's massively discounted but only until the end of today.

These 3 Tips Could Save You Thousands of Dollars

From International Living Postcards comes this article By Nick Hodges, CPA/PFS, MBA, CFP

It's easy to throw up your hands in despair at the thought of filing your tax returns. It doesn't help that it seems like the rules are forever changing; the vast amount of confusing and contradictory information out there just makes matters worse.

But figuring out your taxes can be, if not easy, then at least straightforward—and a massive money-saving measure, too. Do it right and you can cut down on your tax bill and ensure you're protecting yourself against penalties that can stretch into tens of thousands of dollars.

Here are three of my best tips to save you money and to avoid unnecessary penalties:

1. Know how and what to report on foreign bank accounts
   Many Americans who are building homes offshore open local bank accounts to fund their building project. These accounts often have balances at one time or another that exceed $10,000. This is your IRS reporting threshold.
   If you have an account like this or multiple foreign bank accounts that when combined, total $10,000 or more at any time during the year, you have an additional and separate form to file. This form is the FinCen Form 114 (Report of Bank and Financial Accounts, also known as the FBAR). It is filed separately from your individual tax return. It is due by June 30th of the year following and must be filed electronically.
2. If you disclose, you likely won't pay out more in taxes
   If you're an American living or investing abroad, you may need to file additional IRS disclosures. Rest assured, though: These forms rarely result in additional taxes. Disclosing will also ensure you avoid any penalties, which usually start at around $10,000 for each and every unfiled (or incorrect) reporting form.
   There are a few instances which might cause you to have additional forms to file with your individual tax return. These include buying foreign real estate abroad, using a foreign corporation, opening foreign bank accounts, and investing offshore in businesses, securities, or insurance policies.
   A foreign corporation is reported on IRS Form 5471. For disclosing your foreign financial assets, you'll need IRS Form 8938. There is a threshold you should know, usually starting at a total of $50,000.
   Here's a filing perk you might appreciate: If you are out of the country on April 15, you receive an automatic extension for filing your Federal tax return to June 15. The IRS still wants your money; you have to pay any tax due by April 15.
3. Leave from a no-income tax state
   If you currently file a state tax return and have some extra time before you move abroad, you should consider what we call "The move before you move." States like California and New York want you to continue to pay them state income taxes up to two years after you move abroad. Many of our clients tell us that they will just deal with it when it comes up. But who really wants to fight with a state government from a gorgeous beach two years after you move?
   Besides, if you pick the right state to leave from, you can effectively eliminate that needless inconvenience...and all of your state income tax issues and requirements.
   With just a little forethought and planning, you could potentially save yourself tens of thousands of dollars in income tax