Paul@CRCIE

Basically any fund outside of the US could be considered a PFIC so you would run into the same problem even if there's a DTA in place. 

Hi Mallard,   I'm not a tax advisor, but any asset you hold wordlwide should be reported on your annual German tax declaration.    All the best, Paul

HI Jeba,    Because they're a US citizen and if they invest in overseas funds they'll basically be charged tax twice wiping out any potential gains.    It's on account FATCA regulations that Obama singed into legislation.    All the best, Paul

Please watch this space re investing in ETF's and Mutual Funds In Europe...   However, mirroring an ETF won't happen like it should as ETF's have structures in the background that keep them closely linked to the index their tracking. In real life your portfolio will diversify off the path of the index it's supposed to track.    Plus and this is probably the most important aspect of the proposal, have fun paying an accountant to keep track of all the trades and rebalancing to report to the Finanzamt for even trying to keep your portfolio on some sort of path the etf is taking. 

Yep, with the I Bond you would only pay tax back in the US if you're residing there at the time of maturity.    Still has to be reported on your german tax declaration.   All the best, Paul

Great info. Thank you. 

Hi @PandaMunich,   Can you tell me why the Finanzamt will allow tax relief on contributions from Germany to existing IRA's located in the USA, but not allow tax relief on new IRA contracts?    It seems somewhat discriminatory.    Thanks, Paul

Hi allaboard,   Nothing will happen your paid up UK pensions. They will continue to grow tax free. Only time taxation comes into play is when you need to draw on them.    They would still need to be mentioned on your tax declaration though.    Paul

Hi Russell, Normally life assurance companies would cancel a policy if 3 months of arrears occurs.    Do you mean Health Insurance?    If so, there is no reason why you can't obtain health insurance now. You indeed should have to pay back payments for the time you were uninsured, however, some companies (on occasion) let this slide or are open to negotiation. Please contact me directly for more info here.    And yes, the longer you leave it, the bigger the potential bill is.    Just get yourself insured.   Paul. 

Hi Fisherw,   It's tricky in Germany as a US citizen. There are options however, but you do require specialized advice. Are you employed or self employed etc are some thing we need to know?   Please feel free to DM me or contact me over crcie.com to go through your options.    Chat soon, Paul