Hiding Assets In Switzerland and Tax Evasion

According to a former classmate of mine, the U.S. government has an office with Internal Revenue agents in Switzerland that will sip coffee in the morning while looking out the window at the entrances to major banks there. When someone looking like a tourist heads to one of the banks with a suitcase (presumably with cash in it), one of the agents will go over and strike up a conversation. Whether or not this is true, I’d personally not want to be the guy caught with a suitcase full of cash by the IRS. These days, some Swiss banks are actively cooperating with the U.S. government to identify income tax evaders.

With income tax returns due on April 15, some U.S. Internet marketers mistakenly believe that putting money offshore somehow protects them from paying taxes owed to the Internal Revenue Service (the American equivalent of the United Kingdom’s Inland Revenue).

Unfortunately, that’s not the case.

For example, a Texas man just plead guilty to filing false tax returns and faces up to 3 years in prison for it. He was apparently hiding his funds in Swiss bank UBS.

Remember, minimizing your taxes legally (tax avoidance) is okay. Not paying what you owe is illegal (tax evasion).