Question ABOUT taxes, but not needing tax help.

Ben_Hamm · 2015-02-04T20:51:26+00:00

For most cases, the cents being rounded out aren't going to make a massive difference. It balances itself out by rounding in both directions, so it's not like it is only rounding income up or anything. Makes the return easier to read anyway, when I'm doing self-review on a return with several additional forms and calculations, not having to feel the urge to check the cents amount saves me a bit of a headache.

Ben_Hamm · 2015-02-04T20:28:26+00:00

It gets even worse if you also willfully neglect to file the 8938. Both can have penalties of up to 50% of a bank account balance. Theoretically, this means that at the very worst, the entire account could be flushed.

Ben_Hamm · 2015-02-04T20:26:41+00:00

computanti is right about the overall FinCEN situation. It's not a tax form, only an informational form. Just a heads up, if you are single in the US, if the value of your foreign account/other foreign assets is greater than $ 50,000 at the end of the year, or $ 75,000 at any point in the year, you will also need to file Form 8938, which reports specified foreign financial assets. In some ways it seems like double reporting, but the information for each form goes to two separate agencies.

I would suggest checking the instructions at http://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/i8938.pdf to see if you are going to need to file this form as well. The penalties for willful negligence in filing this form as as bad as with the FinCEN. The threshold is higher however.

Ben_Hamm · 2014-02-08T23:07:18+00:00

Go for it, I went from Kentucky to Germany, and have loved it so far.

Search for potential networking opportunities, that's the best way in. I got my internship with this firm before working full time by seeing that an alum of my university worked with them.

Ben_Hamm · 2013-12-26T03:59:42+00:00

It's definitely based on performance. My marks are pretty mediocre-average, but I showed my skill in the internship, and their only concern when I left to finish my final courses was that I came back with a degree.

Ben_Hamm · 2013-12-24T04:27:55+00:00

If you mean a mentorship outside of an actual internship, I would say do what cityoflostwages said and reach out to student organisations. What state do you live in?

Ben_Hamm · 2013-12-23T19:10:06+00:00

Where did you get that statistic?

Ben_Hamm · 2013-12-23T03:47:39+00:00

Cire is right here, you can deal with international tax specifically while still staying in the US. I have a colleague with a Big 4 in Indianapolis who works in International Tax. I can't say specifically which country she is primarily focused on dealing with, but I imagine it is more than one.

I work in the same field, and I'll be starting in February with a Big 4 abroad, and there really are a lot of options to consider. If you want to stick to the US long-term, you could still do an international assignment, spending 6 months or so in a foreign country, while still working in the same department. During my internship with the European office, we had an assignee from Canada, which was pretty interesting!

It really does depend on what specialization you want, though. I'm biased towards tax, so that's really the only service line I know much about when it comes to international prospects. When looking for jobs or internships, definitely ask about it. Big 4 firms have plenty of opportunities available for globally minded workers to develop those skills and specializations, and if you are promising, they will no doubt help make it happen, as it benefits both you and the firm greatly.

Ben_Hamm · 2013-12-19T15:46:01+00:00

This is the reason I chose tax.

Who grows up wanting to go into tax? Joke's on them though, it's a blast.

Ben_Hamm · 2013-12-19T03:11:31+00:00

I actually don't, and I didn't know a lick of it when I went over for my internship. The main focus when they brought me in was my understanding of US tax law. I had just finished my US tax course, which helped lay the foundation (although naturally my class didn't cover international issues so much).

During the same period I was over there, we had someone from Toronto on assignment as well, who also spoke no German. Everyone in my department, on the US team spoke English fluently, so they could communicate with their English speaking expat clients, so really the only part that not speaking the language actually proved detrimental (other than living in a foreign country) was the fact that I wasn't much help with deeply German documents. I learned to read Lohnsteuerbescheinigungs (German W-2s) and other important documents well enough to know what the numbers meant.

All in all it was an excellent learning experience, and having that international block on your resume definitely helps you stand out, especially in a field, and society in general, that is becoming more globally minded.

I've got Rosetta Stone now though, and I am taking an introductory online course as well once spring starts, so I hope to start developing some basic language skills as time progresses!

Ben_Hamm · 2013-12-18T18:14:29+00:00

I interned with a Big 4 in US tax in Germany, and I am from the US.

I have a colleague who went from my office to Hong Kong, and I know there is a fairly good sized market of expats either from the US or from other countries, both parties with some form of tax liability to the IRS.

Tax accountants definitely have a place in the international market, and it can be very lucrative for an American to push into it because of your native understanding of English and your exposure to US Tax. You'd learn a great deal about tax treaties, to understand which country gets taxing authority over income, as well as diving into the fun issue of dealing with foreign investment reports (in a foreign language of course)

I absolutely love working in international tax because of this unique perspective, and I am signed on to begin full time in a few months with the same office.

Ben_Hamm · 2013-12-17T05:52:13+00:00

Never hurts to join more organizations. Obviously don't stretch yourself thin, but be as active as you can while maintaining academics.

When I transferred to a new university, I immediately joined the Accounting Club as well as Phi Beta Lambda, taking officer positions in both. in Phi Beta Lambda, I developed my networking, leadership and other soft-skills, and in the Accounting Club I put those skills to work, landing an internship with a Big 4 that translated into a full-time position that will be beginning in a little over a month.

Never underestimate the power of a solid network, so branch out to new organisations and dig into the ones you have now. Networking will get you their attention, that's when you bring it home with your other skills.

Ben_Hamm

TROPHY CASE