Has anybody found any tax difference in trading as US citizen vs. non-resident in US markets ? Any opinions greatly appreciated.
Be careful on this, the IRS has criteria for US residence for tax purposes. For example Green card holders (US residence) are treated as citizens for tax purposes. There is also a substantial presence test that looks at how long you have been in the US for the tax year. Take a look at this IRS publication: http://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/p519.pdf If you are not a citizen or green card holder, and trading outside the US, then I believe there is no US tax liability. Kiwi
If you are residing in US for more than 180 days per year. You pay the same amount of tax as a US Citizen or Green Card Holder. However if non-US resident, does not pay tax to the IRS.
So what is the legal situation when you`re out of the country and trading from off-shore location ? Do you owe any taxes to anybody ? How about dividends and others ?
it depends on where the corporation is resident. ie where was the corporation incorporated, where are the management living etc.
You may get out of your first 80k if you have the right set-up which can turn your trading income into earned income. And if you're paying taxes in the country you're resident in, you may get tax credit for the portion that you have paid to the other country. However, on anything over 80k, if you're a US citizen, you owe taxes somewhere no matter where you trade from even if you're using an entity. If you're not a US citizen and your trading from a no tax jurisdiction, you don't pay tax to anybody. I'm not an expert, but I used to work overseas.
OK, but if your income comes from trading in US ? Does Uncle Sam taxes you even when you live in Cayman Islands ?
Not if you're a US citizen. The IRS doesn't recognize controlled foreign corporations. You may get tax credit for taxes you paid to another country, but you must pay taxes somewhere.