Tax lawyer
 

Several years ago we had an investment with Beacon Wealth Management. Our money was invested in various ways,all under the control of BWM. We have had a notification from our tax office saying an account was operating in Gibraltar under our name which was not declared on our tax form and we are facing a hefty fine. BWM have issued a letter stating that we had no direct knowledge of this account, but this has not been accepted even though BWM say it has been accepted by other tax districts were clients had a similar problem. If any one has details of a good tax lawyer, preferably one who also speaks English, it would be most appreciated.

Re: Tax lawyer
 

Hi, ALL world-wide income must be declared on your annual Déclaration des Revenus. The pertinent Tax Offices settle the tax questions between them, and if there isn't a Tax Treaty between France and the country concerned, you pay in France. Is the hefty fine due for not declaring it, or for not paying the sums due over the years? Rather than pay a "tax lawyer" for advice, get an appointment with your local Tax Office, accompanied by a French-speaker, in order to sort things out, and then consult an avocat, if you decide to contest the Fisc's decision.
Where do you live? Les Pages Jaunes will give you a list of "avocats fiscalistes" in your area and you'd have to find out yourself whether they are English-speaking...
HTH

Re: Tax lawyer
 

Hi
I can't help with your request but I wonder if it would be better to use an accountant.
This is happening in many countries due to the mutual reporting on accounts between countries.
If you earned interest or plus value and didn't declare it then you are liable for the undeclared tax due plus penalty plus interest.
This isn't a legal matter, it is an accounting matter.
In the UK, HMRC has sent out similar letters stating that they are aware of an undeclared foreign bank account.
They in fact don't know the details but are "shaking the tree" to frighten you into declaring everything that you may have not declared.
The level of the "penalty" may depend on whether you voluntarily declare your "oversight" or whether you try to fight it.
A tax accountant will have knowledge of how the fisc operates and may be able to argue on your behalf that you accept the error in your tax return because of your genuine oversight ( lack of knowledge ) regarding this account.
The letter is deliberately written to frighten you.
Hope that you get it sorted.

Re: Tax lawyer
 

Thanks for the reply.. The fine is for not declaring the account, but this was not possibly as we had no knowledge of the account. We have a good friend ,who is French and has some knowledge of tax matters, who has argued our case with the tax office to no avail.

Re: Tax lawyer
 

Thank you for your advice,although at this stage I'm not sure an accountant can help. Here is a bit more information regarding the problem. We placed monies with Beacon Weath Management to invest. They invested the money in AG2R LA Mondiale,they are part of Nexus Global which is a division of Blacktower Financial Management based in Gibraltar. So the only knowledge we had of any investment was AG2R. Our contact at BWM was informed of the problem and she supplied us with a letter stating we had no knowledge of BFM in Gibraltar. She said other clients had a similar problem and had been fined,but the letter had resulted in the fine being cancelled. Unfortunately our tax office has not followed the same path. She has furnished details of the tax districts which have cancelled the fine and I'm hoping that a lawyer could present this information in "legal terms" and resolve the matter.

Re: Tax lawyer
 

Do the "other clients" live in France? If they do and your Tax Office disregards your investment company's letter and your French friend's arguments, then, as suggested above, look for a local avocat fiscaliste in the Pages Jaunes. He/she wouldn't necessarily need to speak English if your French friend's available to accompany you. Without knowing where you live, no one here can recommend one....
What does the notification actually say? Normally the fine for non-payment is 10% of the accumulated sums due, but I've no idea about lack of declaration of income.
"Hefty" is subjective - 4 figures? I had a, to my mind, "hefty" 4-figure sum to pay the fisc this year over 4 months, because it neglected to tax certain of my declared incomes the year before. I wondered at the time why my taxes had decreased, but theirs' not to reason why, carpe diem, etc.... At least they didn't "fine" me for their mistake....
Hope you find a satisfactory solution to your problem!:)

Re: Tax lawyer
 

Do not forget that there are tax mediateurs available

https://www.impots.gouv.fr/portail/p...les-mediateurs

Re: Tax lawyer
 

Hi dmu,yes the other clients do live in France. The fine is 1,500 euros and I'm located in Normandie,near Fecamp. My friend, who is a retired financial consultant for La Poste, has presented all the correct arguments but to no avail. His daughter works for the tax office in Paris and has given advice. This is all from 2016 when we had only recently moved to France. We have also been fined 4 x 1,500e for not ticking the correct box on our tax return even though we declared all income and payed the tax.

Re: Tax lawyer
 

When your French friend argued your case at your Tax Office, did they give him the rejection in writing? You'll need this when requesting the aid of a Médiateur as per the above link, as he/she can only act after being shown a document justifying that the "first step" has been rejected.
Sorry I can't help further....