You'll need to sign in or create an account to connect with an expert.
Dear pk,
Thank you so much for your detailed, patient, and helpful explanations! I have one last question: Considering the tax implications, I am thinking about exercising my option to buy shares now and then selling them after one year. Does my H1B visa allow me to hold shares of a foreign company?
Dear @roalddahl14 ,. your visa status in and of itself does not impact your ownership of foreign or domestic assets. However, once you become a US person ( citizen / GreenCard / Resident for Tax purposes ) US treasury regs come into play -- FBAR, FATCA and doing business with sanctioned persons and/or countries. You are treated just like all other US persons.
Hope this clarifies your concerns.
Namaste ji
pk
Thank you. I am resident for tax purposes (I have been in the US since 2018). So, am I still allowed to own shares of a foreign company?
Dear pk,
Thank you. I am resident for tax purposes (I have been in the US since 2018). So, am I still allowed to own shares of a foreign company?
@roalddahl14 , there is no prohibition on US persons owning equity of foreign entities UNLESS it is a sanctioned entity ( by US Treasury ). Bosch India is certainly not on that list. So enjoy your equities.
Namaste ji
pk
Dear @pk
Following up on my earlier questions, my H1B visa is set to expire at the end of this year, which may require me to return to India temporarily. I have not yet cashed in my equity as mentioned above.
If I leave the U.S. for several months, with plans to return on a new visa sometime in the middle of the next year, I plan to keep my U.S. bank account active during that period.
Assuming I’m not living or working in the U.S. for the initial part of 2025, what tax implications would apply if I transfer funds from encashed equity in Singapore to my U.S. bank account during that time? Would I still be subject to U.S. taxes on this transfer, despite not being a resident or working in the U.S. at the time of the transaction?
Thank you for your guidance!
@roalddahl14 , while we cannot/ (will not) provide tax avoidance/lowering strategies for specific situations, we can only provide generic suggestions as to what will happen in some scenarios / situation ( basically hypothetical situations).
(a) When one is a Non-Resident for tax purposes, one is taxed ONLY on US sourced incomes in contrast to a Resident , whom is taxed on world income. Thus one must become a Non-Resident Alien for the tax year to exclude foreign income in the calendar year.
(b) The tax residency is determined each year on its own ( 186 days present counting all the days present in the current calendar year, plus 1/3rd the days present in the previous year plus 1/6th of the days present during the 2nd. previous year ).
(c) Foreign source income deposited into a US bank account while the owner of the account is a Non-Resident Alien does not make that income US sourced or taxable. However, if the foreign source income is because of work performed during Tax Resident period ( delayed payment ) would be deemed constructively received during the resident period.
(d) Note that changing tax status ( i.e. from tax resident to NRA ) for the sole purpose of avoiding taxes may not be legal. If it happens for other reasons and tax reduction is a byproduct then it may be legal. Please consult a tax attorney for such situations. It is the intent that matters.
(e) IRS strongly suggests not closing bank / financial account(s) for a period ( perhaps six or nine months ) when a tax resident leaves US permanently ( i.e. with no definite plans to return ) for purposes of final settlements post exit from the USA. Strength and extent of financial connection is one of the factors that determine whether the tax payer should be treated as a Resident or Non-Resident ( especially when the tax payer want to exclude income from US taxation).
Hope this covers your question. If you need more specific answers , please consider PM
pk
Thank you. This is very useful.
Dear @pk ,
I sincerely appreciate your time and effort in answering my questions before. As mentioned in my responses, my Singaporean startup equity fully vested in 2021, but I have not yet taken possession of the shares. I am now working on converting the equity to shares and hold them for at least a year to qualify for long-term capital gains treatment before selling.
I have a couple of follow-up questions based on recent discussions with the Singaporean startup:
Tax on Share Purchase: In next month or two, when I convert my equity to shares—essentially purchasing all of them for US$1.00 (a discounted rate due to my prior role and vested equity)—would this trigger a taxable event? A Singaporean broker advised me to verify this, stating that I might owe taxes based on the fair market value of the shares. Is this correct? I understand that I will be taxed when I sell or cash out the shares, but I’m unsure how I could be taxed upon purchase, especially since this does not generate income.
Tax Treatment for Pre-U.S. Work: I am currently on an H1B visa and not supposed to work for any employer other than the one sponsoring this visa (and I have not). This equity was awarded for my work at the startup from October 2017 to mid-August 2018, before I moved to the U.S. in late August 2018. Per the terms, the equity then vested over the next three years, even though I was no longer employed by the startup. How should I report this in my U.S. tax return to indicate that it stems from work performed before I came to the U.S.? Should I attach my contract agreement with the startup as supporting documentation?
I appreciate your guidance and look forward to your insights.
Best regards,
RD
Dear @pk ,
I went through some resources on web if I need to pay taxes on share purchase. On the following webpage, apart from taxes on selling shares, it mentions that equity-holder may also have to pay taxes for "vesting restricted stocks" and "exercising your options". Do these apply to me?
https://carta.com/blog/taxes-on-stocks-what-you-need-to-know/
Regards,
RD
I will break my answers into two different ones :
(a) Response to your PM there in ( although there I would need to know a little bit more as to the character of the warrant/option )
(b) a response here ( because it is of general interest )
Please see IRS U-Tube/ on-line "Show for the tax-pro". This provides a very good explanation of how to deal with "stocks/stock options " etc. received by an individual whom has worked both in the USA and abroad.
You can ignore the first three pages.
The examples here are quite instructive -- just turn it around as to NRA vs RA period.
This one also highlights the difference in the treatment of RSU/ISO and NQSO .
Hope this helps.
Dear @pk ,
Thank you.
(a) Looking forward to your PM.
(b) I appreciate the IRS link. Based on the video, my incentive does not appear to be RSUs, but I’m unsure whether it qualifies as an ISO or NQSO.
I was awarded equity in the company for services performed from October 2017 to mid-August 2018. After that, I moved to the U.S. and no longer worked for the Singaporean company. This incentive was a warrant/promise allowing me to purchase shares at a discounted price after the vesting period. The equity vested over three years, making me eligible to exercise the warrant (i.e., pay to acquire the shares) in 2021. However, I have not yet taken possession of the shares.
The company has informed me that I can purchase the awarded shares by paying a nominal total of $1.00. My plan is to hold the shares for a year to benefit from long-term capital gains tax before selling and transferring the proceeds to my U.S. bank account.
Would this be classified as an ISO or NQSO?
Regards
RD
Dear @pk,
After discussing this with the start-up, they say my equity setup is likely ISO.
In light of this, I will appreciate your response to my 2 questions.
@roalddahl14 that was the conclusion I was coming to ., Will send more later.
NQOs, short for non-qualified stock options, are the most common type of employee stock option. They allow you to purchase stock for a fixed price for a defined period of time, as the market value of the stock continues to rise, allowing employees to profit off the difference. NQOs are just as they sound—unqualified. This means that they are not restricted by waiting periods, profit, price, employee status or any other stipulation. When employees sell shares after they vest, they have the potential to receive immediate, unlimited profit.
ISOs, short for incentive stock options, are a type of employee stock option only offered to key employees and top-tier management that can confer preferential tax treatment. Unlike NQOs, they are subject to many restrictions. They must be held for a much longer time period, and thus can carry more risk; however, they have a higher potential for better returns.
If you have no restrictions placed on you regarding the time period and if you are given the freedom on when to sell these shares, then this could be considered a NQDO but may be subject to interpretation.
Here is an excellent reference that may help you decide the type of stock option this is.
Differences Between ISO and NQDO Stock Options.
Still have questions?
Questions are answered within a few hours on average.
Post a Question*Must create login to post