Many people have assets in the US, but if you are not a US citizen or tax resident (domiciled) of the United States you will want to understand how your US assets will be taxed once you pass away.

Under the current law, “non-domiciled aliens” who own or have an interest in US situated assets valued at more than $60,000 USD may be subject to US Federal Estate taxes.  US situated assets include US real estate, personal property such as cars, works of art, jewellery, securities of US companies and US pension plans, e.g. 401K plans.

Various countries (such as the United Kingdom) have entered into treaties with the US that may impact the taxation of certain assets. The citizenship and domicile of a non-US citizen must be considered on a case by case basis to understand estate taxes both in the US and the non-domiciled person’s home country.

Determining whether a non-US citizen is domiciled in the United States is a complicated analysis and is not the same determination used to establish if a non-citizen is a “resident” in the United States for income tax purposes.

Please contact our team if you have any questions.