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Les Edelman, J.D. |
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Policy Statement
(Last Revision: January 24, 2010)
Edelman Tax Services is the tax consulting division of Cyprus-based
PYXOS Management Consultancy Ltd, and is managed by Mr. Les Edelman,
an American tax lawyer with degrees in Economics (UC-Berkeley) and Law (UCLA) and over
15 years of experience in US and international personal and corporate income tax law.
Edelman Tax Services provides a wide range of US and international tax services, including US & State tax consulting,
US & State tax return preparation, and representation before the IRS.
This document summarizes Edelman Tax Services' policies and fees.
Location of Client Service
Mr. Edelman makes one or two annual trips to Budapest, and travels to other European locations on an as-needed basis.
However, most clients are successfully served through electronic communications.
Tax Return Preparation Process
Generally, the tax return preparation process begins with a phone consultation to discuss the prospective client's
overall tax situation and to determine the scope of service. To make this initial call more productive, we request that prospective clients fill out in advance the questionnaire which appears
at the bottom of this web page (which can be copied and pasted into an email with your responses). Then, either during the call or afterwards via email, we will provide you with a list of specific information
that we will need to prepare your tax return. In many cases, we will collect your information by asking you to fill out our data collection spreadsheet.
Filing Extensions: The federal deadline for taxpayers residing abroad is automatically extended
two months to June 15 (no form need be filed to obtain this extension). The various US states often have
similar extensions, but this must be determined on a state-by-state basis. If you are unable to send us all of your tax information by the end of May,
then we strongly advise you to request an extension by filing Form 4868, which will extend your return filing deadline to October 15, 2010.
We can prepare and efile the Form 4868 for you, or you can prepare and mail the form yourself. If we expect that you will owe tax, we will estimate your tax liability based on the information available
and advise you to make a payment in conjunction with filing Form 4868.
Delivery/Submission of Tax Return: We offer electronic filing of US tax returns at no additional charge, and encourage clients to e-file whenever possible.
When e-filing is either not possible or not desired by the client, then the client must submit a paper return.
In the latter case, we can either mail a hard-copy of the return (postage is recharged), or we can e-mail the return in PDF format for the client to print out. In all cases, we provide the client with detailed filing instructions.
Tax Return Preparation Fees
Our fee to prepare your US tax return will depend on a combination of two factors: complexity and time.
Generally, the more complex the return, the more time it takes to prepare.
However, some tax returns are complex, but do not take an especially large amount of time to prepare. Such returns justify a higher fee based on the
market rates for professionals with the requisite skills and knowledge to handle the complex issues.
Other tax returns are not that complex, but nevertheless take a lot of time to prepare, e.g., disorganized or confusing data, data provided in piecemeal,
or when we have to track down your data ourselves.
Returns such as these may look simple on their face, yet justify a higher fee due to the disproportionately large amount of time required to prepare such returns.
We endeavor to quote a reasonably accurate fee estimate before preparing a tax return, and
in most cases the fee initially quoted will be the final amount billed. However, occasionally additional information
or issues arise in the course of preparing a return which complicate matters to the extent that a fee adjustment
is warranted. We make best efforts to notify clients of these situations as soon as possible after we discover them and to
discuss any proposed fee adjustment.
Federal Tax Returns:
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Minimum fee: $1,000 (all amounts are quoted in USD)
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Most returns fall in the range of $1,250 to $2,000
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Special IRS information reports pertaining to foreign entities (e.g., Forms 5471 & 8865) are subject to
separate fees, which generally fall in the $750 to $1,500 range.
We are able to prepare these forms based on financial statements provided in English, French, German, Hungarian, Serbian, Croatian, Czech and Romanian.
Financial statements in other languages will generally need to be translated to English.
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Business tax returns for U.S.-based partnerships and corporations (Forms 1065, 1120, and 1120S) are subject to separate fees,
which generally fall in the $750 to $1,500 range, depending on time required and complexity. You will need to provide reasonably well-organized financial statements (i.e., income and expense or P&L
statement, and in certain cases a balance sheet for the beginning and end of the tax year).
If we have to create financial statements for you based on raw financial data, there will be a significant additional charge depending on the time required.
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Foreign Bank Account Reports (FBAR): FBAR preparation is charged at a $100 base fee plus $25 per reported account.
We encourage clients to prepare their own FBAR. Click for more information about who must file an FBAR.
State Tax Returns: State returns are generally charged at 25% of the Federal return fee
Discounts: We generally provide a fixed 10% discount for US government employees,
educators, religious workers, and clients with less than $30,000 in gross income (before exclusions) for the relevant tax year.
Tax Consulting Fees
Tax consulting encompasses advice, planning, legal research, and review of tax returns prepared by the client or a third party, etc.
Mr. Edelman's consulting rate is $400/hour.
Payment of Fees
We accept personal US bank checks, wire transfers, and major credit cards.
Detailed payment instructions will be included with our invoice.
Please make all checks payable to the order of "PYXOS Management Consultancy Ltd".
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Information Requested to
Establish Engagement and Estimate Fee
Your full name, birthdate, and social
security number:
[provide same information for spouse, if married]
Mailing address:
Email address:
Best phone number to reach you:
Names and birthdates of children (or other dependents):
If you are married, is your spouse a US citizen or
a US greencard holder?
FOR ALL THE FOLLOWING QUESTIONS PROVIDE SEPARATE
INFORMATION FOR YOURSELF AND YOUR SPOUSE [provide spouse's information
only if your spouse is a US citizen, US greencard holder, or you
have made (or will make) an election to treat your nonresident alien
spouse as a US tax resident and to file a joint US tax return]:
When did you leave the US to make your home abroad?
Where have you lived over the last 3 years (provide places
and dates)?
If not obvious from the above, did you move (not just
across town) in 2009?
For whom did you work in 2009? If you were self-employed,
describe briefly the nature of your work and where you perform it.
Was your earned (work) income for 2009 less than $91,400?
Did you (or will you) pay any foreign taxes during (or for) the year 2009?
Do you own or rent your home overseas? If you rent, did your total 2009 foreign housing costs
(rent, utilities, etc, but not including pay TV or phone) exceed $14,624?
Describe briefly your sources and estimates of
non-earned income (i.e., investment income such as interest, dividends,
etc)
Did you have any of the following in 2009: extraordinary
medical/dental expenses, US state/local taxes, charitable contributions
(to US charities), US real estate taxes or mortgage interest, or
unreimbursed employee busines expenses?
Do you own real estate anywhere? If so, where is it located, and do you rent it out?
Did you contribute to, or take distributions from, an IRA or any
other type of pension or retirement plan? If so, provide basic information.
Approximately how many days, if any, did you spend in the US in
2009?
Do you have an ownership interest in any of the following? If so,
provide basic information.
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US or foreign partnership |
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foreign corporation |
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US or foreign trust (as grantor or beneficiary) |
Do you (or your spouse if applicable) have a financial interest in any foreign (i.e., non-US) bank/financial account(s)?
Do you (or your spouse if applicable) have signature authority over any foreign financial account(s) in which you DO NOT have a financial interest? (for example, you have control over an employer's or relative's foreign financial account).
Any other information that you think may be relevant to your 2009 tax situation?
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