Tax Treaties

Tax treaties vary wildly between different countries. The US/UK treaty, for example, has a very friendly recognition of each other’s retirement plans. The US/Swiss treaty, on the other hand, does not. Taxpayers will find their retirement accounts getting taxed like brokerage accounts.

More broadly speaking, the tax treaties treat all accounts and income without consistency and do so in language even tax preparers struggle to follow. The result is likely incorrect tax treaty positions taken (or incorrectly not taken) on many tax returns despite everyone's best intentions.

• United States Tax Treaties
• Totalization Agreements