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i purchased some iraqi dinars.there is talk of a pretty hefty re val.how does irs view tax on currency on large increases
Optional Information: State/Country relating to question: California Already Tried: gathering info on tax consequences on iraqi dinars
Hi and welcome to Just Answer!Your foreign currency is treated as an asset - means no gain is recognized unless it is disposed (for instance - converted to a different currency) and the gain is treated as a capital gain. Long term capital gain may be used if you held the asset more than a year. If the asset was owned less than a year - that will be short term capital gain and will be taxed at your regular tax rate.
The IRS position is found in IRS publication 525 - www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/p525.pdf
See page 33 - middle column - Foreign currency transactions. If you have a gain on a personal foreign currency transaction because of changes in exchange rates, you do not have to include that gain in your income unless it is more than $200. If the gain is more than $200, report it as a capital gain.
so if i purchased some on various dates can i put it in a non interest bearing account , hold for a year and take it after a year for the long term cap gain,or does it begin from the day i convert it to usd funds can i get any tax breaks
That is correct - if assets are held more than a year - the gain will be long term capital gain - and will be taxable at reduces rate - currently - not more than 15%. The gain is realized when you dispose your asset - in your case Iraqi dinars. You may dispose them either converting to USD or by purchasing other assets.
As the assets is disposed - the gain is recognized for tax purposes.The tax break is only possible for assets held in the tax deferred account - such as 401k, IRA, etc. However my understanding is that you are holding Iraqi dinars outside any tax deferred account - correct?
so if i have 5 million dinars and they re val to $4 that is 20 million usd dollars.if i keep that 20 million in a non interest bearing account til a year passes ,as i have purchased during the first 4 months of 2012, if it stays in that non interest bearing account for a year,then as i use it,then i can pay the 15% vs 38%
That is correct. I provided above reference to IRS publication which clear states that the gain of more than $200 is reported as a capital gain.Not as a regular income.Also your taxable gain is calculated as (selling price) - (purchase price).That means - you will be taxed only on the gain.
i have been told when this converts there will be a short period to convert.now im asking if i convert but keep it in a non interest bearing account until a year has passed can it qualify for long term cap gain lowering my obligation thanks
According to the IRS - the gain will be a CAPITAL GAIN.To qualify for the LONG term capital gain - you should held the asset more than a year.If the assets is disposed within a year - the gain will be SHORT term capital gain - and will be taxed at your regular tax rates.
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