Search found 4 matches

by Mr.Bowtie
Thu May 18, 2017 6:31 am
Forum: Non-US Investing
Topic: Choosing a foreign broker. 1099-DIV issue.
Replies: 3
Views: 748

Choosing a foreign broker. 1099-DIV issue.

I'm an accidental US citizen with no real ties to the US living "abroad". This is the first year I invest & make "real" money. I haven't filed US taxes before (haven't needed to before this year) and the process is a little confusing. I now have two brokers to chose from (I made an earlier post regarding a different issue where only one broker was an option). One is very cheap, about $1 per trade and no annual fee and the other is fairly expensive at about $25 per trade and 0,1% annual account fee. The cheap one has terrible customer service and will not provide me with a 1099-DIV. The expensive one has amazing customer service and will provide me with a 1099-DIV. How much is the 1099-DIV worth? Is having a foreign b...
by Mr.Bowtie
Sat Apr 15, 2017 6:42 am
Forum: Non-US Investing
Topic: Foreign brokerage & US withholding taxes for US citizen
Replies: 4
Views: 861

Re: Foreign brokerage & US withholding taxes for US citizen

Great news, they've agreed to not withhold taxes on US sourced income. I emailed the country manager and he sorted things out. The customer service rep I've been going back and forth with is pretty upset :D

One more question. I assume I'll need to use foreign tax credits at some point. My brokerage won't send me a list of how much is withheld at the fund level, i.e. a typical international fund will have 6-7% withheld in total of the dividend. Do I need the brokerage to send me documentation for this, or can I print something out from Vanguards tax center, like:

https://advisors.vanguard.com/VGApp/iip ... tkIndx2016

Thank you for the help :)
by Mr.Bowtie
Thu Apr 13, 2017 7:50 am
Forum: Non-US Investing
Topic: Foreign brokerage & US withholding taxes for US citizen
Replies: 4
Views: 861

Re: Foreign brokerage & US withholding taxes for US citizen

I contacted my broker again and they said that FACTA doesn't require them to provide me with a 1099-DIV or any other US tax documents. They do however send an annual statement detailing all my trades, dividends, taxes withheld, etc. All customers receive this, i.e. not only US customers, and isn't in english. Any idea of this "will do"? I don't want to deal with PFIC issues, so I'm taking steps to avoid that. It's interesting though, I talked to an accountant that runs a small business only doing tax returns for expats/US citizens abroad, who said that PFIC issues are way overblown by most people. They're a hassle and it will cost you a little more to prepare your tax papers, but by overwhelming odds won't have any negative tax co...
by Mr.Bowtie
Fri Apr 07, 2017 8:05 pm
Forum: Non-US Investing
Topic: Foreign brokerage & US withholding taxes for US citizen
Replies: 4
Views: 861

Foreign brokerage & US withholding taxes for US citizen

Hi I'm a US citizen living abroad and I've recently opened a brokerage account here. The brokerage firm had me fill out a W-9, but they still withhold 15% tax on US dividends, as though I'm not a US citizen (15% is the treaty rate between the US and the country I reside in). We've emailed back and forth about 50 times, but I can't seem to get anywhere with them. Instead of going through them, is it possible to reclaim the withheld amount on my US taxes? I haven't filed taxes before because this is the first year I make enough to need to file (I'm young), so I'm not sure how all of this works. Just to get it out of the way: opening a US brokerage account isn't an option for various reasons, contacting a different broker isn't an option at th...