Pre-Immigration & Cross-Border Tax Planning
The day you become a U.S. tax resident, the IRS starts taxing your worldwide income. The planning that saves the most money happens before that day. We help foreign families restructure assets, time income, and set up reporting before they move, so U.S. residency does not become a tax trap.
Talk to an attorneyFounded
1965
Attorneys
11
AV-rated
Martindale-Hubbell
Office
Bellevue, WA
Founded
1965
Attorneys
4
AV-rated
Martindale-Hubbell
Office
Bellevue, WA
Pre-immigration tax planning attorneys for Bellevue and Seattle foreign investors
Oseran Hahn helps foreign individuals and families plan their U.S. tax position before they become residents, and manage it afterward. We determine when U.S. tax residency actually begins, plan the steps worth taking before that date, address the rules that tax foreign companies and trusts once a person is a U.S. taxpayer, set up the reporting that comes with foreign assets, and coordinate the whole picture with the visa or green-card strategy. Most of our clients come from China, Taiwan, Korea, and Japan, and the goal is the same: enter the U.S. system cleanly, without a surprise tax bill that good timing would have avoided.
U.S. tax planning for a move turns almost entirely on timing, because the rules change the moment residency begins. We pin down when residency starts under the tax tests; we plan the pre-residency steps that reset basis and clear out problem assets; we deal with the controlled-foreign-company, passive-investment, and foreign-trust rules that follow a new U.S. taxpayer; we set up the FATCA and FBAR reporting; and we coordinate it all with the immigration plan and, where relevant, the eventual exit.
When U.S. tax residency begins
U.S. income tax turns on residency, which is defined differently for tax than for immigration. Under IRC §7701(b), a person becomes a U.S. resident for tax purposes by holding a green card or by meeting the substantial presence test, a day-counting formula based on time spent in the country. The start date matters enormously, because a U.S. resident is taxed on worldwide income while a nonresident generally is not. We calculate when residency will begin under each test, and often the single most valuable step is managing that date.
Pre-residency planning
The window before residency is where the real planning happens. Common moves include selling appreciated assets to step up their basis before U.S. tax applies, accelerating income into the nonresident period, restructuring or unwinding foreign companies and trusts that become reporting headaches once a person is a U.S. taxpayer, and checking the value of assets for later use. Each step has trade-offs and a deadline tied to the residency start date. We map the options against the move-in timeline and execute the ones that fit, before the door closes.
Foreign companies, funds, and trusts
Once a person is a U.S. taxpayer, the rules governing foreign holdings get punishing. A foreign company can be a controlled foreign corporation under IRC §951, pulling its income onto the owner's U.S. return; foreign mutual funds and many pooled investments are passive foreign investment companies taxed harshly under IRC §1291; and foreign trusts trigger the grantor-trust and reporting rules of IRC §679. We identify these exposures before the move and restructure where it helps, so a family's existing holdings do not turn into a yearly tax and compliance problem.
Reporting foreign assets
U.S. taxpayers must disclose their foreign financial life. The FBAR (FinCEN Form 114) covers foreign bank and financial accounts above a threshold, and FATCA (Form 8938) requires reporting specified foreign assets, with separate forms for foreign companies, trusts, and gifts. The penalties for missing these are steep and are assessed per form, per year. We set up the reporting from the first U.S. tax year and, where past years were missed, advise on the IRS disclosure programs. For the ongoing compliance side, see FATCA and FBAR Compliance.
Coordinating with immigration and the exit
Tax and immigration planning have to move together. The visa choice affects the residency start date; a green card creates tax residency that does not end just because someone leaves; and long-term residents who later give up a green card can face the expatriation, or exit, tax under IRC §877A. Tax treaties can also override the default rules through residency tie-breakers and reduced withholding. We coordinate the tax plan with the immigration strategy from the start, and plan the eventual exit when permanent residence is not meant to be permanent.
More than forty years helping families and family offices from across Asia enter the United States. Tax is rarely separate from the visa and the investment, and we plan the three together so one decision does not undo another.
Tax and immigration in one plan.
The residency date that drives the tax plan is set by the immigration choice. We handle both, so the visa timeline and the tax timeline are built to fit, not reconciled after the fact.
We plan before the deadline.
The most valuable pre-immigration moves expire the day residency begins. Engaging us before the move, not after, is what makes the savings possible.
Built for cross-border complexity.
Foreign companies, funds, and trusts each carry their own U.S. rules. We map a family's existing holdings against those rules and restructure before they become a recurring tax and reporting burden.
The attorneys behindthe work.
Our business and corporate attorneys handle this work alongside our litigation team, so you have coverage whether your matter stays transactional or becomes something more.
What clientsask us first.
When does U.S. tax residency actually start?
It depends on the test. You become a U.S. tax resident by getting a green card or by meeting the substantial presence test, a formula that counts your days in the country over three years. The start date can differ from your immigration status, and managing it is often the most valuable single piece of planning.
Why does planning before I move matter so much?
Because once you are a U.S. tax resident, the IRS taxes your worldwide income and your foreign holdings fall under harsh rules. Steps like stepping up the basis of appreciated assets or restructuring a foreign company generally only work before residency begins. After the move, most of those options are gone.
I own a company and investments abroad. Is that a problem?
It can be. A foreign company may become a controlled foreign corporation, foreign funds are often passive foreign investment companies taxed unfavorably, and foreign trusts carry special rules. None of these are fatal, but they need to be identified and often restructured before you become a U.S. taxpayer. We review your holdings and tell you which ones to address.
What is the exit tax, and does it apply to me?
The expatriation tax under IRC Section 877A can apply when a long-term green-card holder or citizen gives up that status, treating worldwide assets as sold on the way out. It does not affect everyone, but if permanent residence may be temporary, it should be planned for at the start, not discovered at the exit.
Do you handle the annual foreign-asset reporting too?
Yes. We set up the FBAR and FATCA reporting from your first U.S. tax year and coordinate the forms for foreign companies, trusts, and gifts. If you have missed filings from past years, we advise on the IRS disclosure options. The ongoing compliance work is covered in our FATCA and FBAR Compliance service.
Recentarticles.
Tell us when you expect to move and what you own abroad, ideally before residency begins. A foreign investment attorney will follow up within one business day, and the first conversation is confidential.
Oseran Hahn P.S. · 11225 SE 6th St, Suite 100 · Bellevue, WA 98004
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