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August 2015
Visa News
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ENTERTAINMENT
Jennylyn Mercado on Dennis Trillo,
being named FHM’s sexiest - page 7
VOL. 3 ISSUE 38
VIEW US ONLINE: WWW.FILAMPOST.COM
he Liberal Party hasn’t
given up on courting Senator Grace Poe to run alongside Interior Secretary Mar
Roxas as vice president even
if the neophyte lawmaker has
emerged as the frontrunner in
pre-election popularity polls
for presidentiables, House
Speaker Feliciano Belmonte
Jr. said Tuesday.
“I think it’s (Roxas-Poe tandem) is possible,” Belmonte
said in a text message.
The Speaker, who is a vice
chairperson of the Liberal
Party, said Roxas and Poe will
become the tandem to beat if
ever they decide to run together under the administration
banner.
“That will be a formidable
T
The Liberal Party hasn’t given up on courting Senator Grace Poe to run
alongside Interior Secretary Mar Roxas as vice president even if the neophyte lawmaker has emerged as the frontrunner in pre-election popularity polls for presidentiables, House Speaker Feliciano Belmonte Jr. said
Tuesday.
US lawyer for PH
expert in maritime
boundary cases
T
he lawyer leading the Philippine
team in its fierce legal
battle against China
belongs to a select
group of elite lawyers
with extensive experience in representing
sovereign states before the International
Tribunal on the Law
of the Sea (Itlos) in
Hamburg, Germany,
according to Chambers Global, which
ranks law firms and
lawyers across the
world.
Paul Reichler of the
Boston-based
law
firm Foley Hoag has
specialized for more
than 25 years in land
FREE
LP not giving up on
Mar-Poe tandem
and maritime boundary disputes, the law
firm said on its website.
Reichler works with
four other lawyers
from the United States
and the United Kingdom, in arguing the
country’s case before
the UN arbitral tribunal in The Hague, The
Netherlands.
During the first two
days of arguments, the
legal team presented
arguments as to why
the five-member arbitral panel at the Permanent Court of Arbitration headquartered
in
(Cont. on Page 6 )
JULY 15, 2015 - JULY 21, 2015
and winning team,” he said.
Belmonte’s remarks came
after a day after he told the
Philippine Daily Inquirer that
Poe’s victory as president will
be “unstoppable” unless Roxas
does something to shore up
his dismal survey ratings.
“All his (President Aquino’s)
candidates, particularly Mar,
are qualified and give effective,
honest government that will
make a difference. But Mar
should prove his winnability,
by a dramatic increase in ratings… Otherwise, Grace will
be another P-Noy, unstoppable,” Belmonte told the newspaper.
Since last year, Roxas has
lagged behind
(Cont. on Page 2 )
Duterte gives self
‘very good’ rating
M
ANILA, Philippines –
Davao City Mayor Rodrigo “Rody” Duterte continued
to deny running for presidency
and rated himself “very good”
against possible presidential rivals during his taped TV guesting aired Sunday night.
The mayor did not escape
TV host Vice Ganda’s political
questions regarding his plans
for presidential election in
2016.
Duterte repeatedly denied
having plans of running which
prompted the host to ask instead for his views on possible
presidential candidates Sen.
Grace Poe, Vice President Jejomar “Jojo” Binay, and Interior
Secretary Mar Roxas.
While Vice Ganda enumerated
the possible presidential candidates, Duterte kept replying
“good.”
Vice Ganda asked Duterte
who among
(Cont. on Page 6 )
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PAGE 2
July 15, 2015 - July 21, 2015
NEWS ROUND-UP
Hernando Iriberri is new AFP chief
Lieutenant General Hernando Iriberri assumed
office as the 46th Chief of
Staff of the Armed Forces
of the Philippines on Friday.
Iriberri replaced outgoing
AFP chief Gen. Gregorio
Catapang who will reach
the retirement age of 56 on
Saturday.
President Benigno Aquino
III led the change of command ceremony at the
Tejeros Hall at Camp Aguinaldo.
The ceremony was held
indoors due to bad
weather.
Iriberri is a member of the Philippine
Military Academy
Class of 1983. He
was named as the
Army Commanding
General in February
2014 before he was
designated as the
new AFP chief.
He will retire on
April 22, 2016. With
a report from Nestor
Corrales/IDL
Duterte dodges questions on
Quiboloy re Caraga poisoning
DAVAO CITY – Mayor Rodrigo Duterte returns to the city.
declined to comment
But Duterte agreed that
on the reported inthe alleged involvement
volvement of followof the pastor’s men in the
ers of televangelist
incident should be invesApollo Quiboloy in
tigated.
the mass food poiPolice in Caraga, where
soning, mostly of stunearly 2,000 people –
dents, in the Caraga
mainly children – sufRegion.
fered vomiting, nausea
Duterte, who has
and abdominal pains afbeen very open about
ter ingesting durian and
his “good friendship”
mangosteen candies, said
with Quiboloy, leader
the tainted products were
of the Kingdom of Jesold by Quiboloy’s folsus Christ based here,
lowers.
said he could not
Supt. Martin Gamba,
speak for the latter.
spokesperson of the
“He can speak for
Caraga police, said sevhimself when he DAVAO City Mayor Rodrigo Duterte says ‘good eral persons were arrested
comes back,” he said. friend’ Pastor Apollo Quiboloy can respond to in the towns of Cagwait,
Quiboloy is cur- reports that his followers were involved in Tago and Tagbina and in
rently in the US and the sale of candies that poisoned 2,000 the city of Tandag in puris expected to issue students in Mindanao.
suit of vendors responsia statement when he
ble for selling the candies.
Google Maps removes Chinese name
on Scarborough Shoal
MANILA, Philippines – Google has quietly removed the Chinese name for a South
China Sea shoal bitterly disputed by Beijing and Manila from its maps service, following an outcry from Filipinos.
The Google Maps website on Tuesday referred to the rich fishing ground — a subject of a case lodged by the Philippines at
an international arbitration tribunal — by
its international name, Scarborough Shoal.
The service had earlier labelled the shoal
as part of China’s Zhongsha island chain,
prompting an online campaign demanding
that the Internet giant stop identifying the
outcrop as part of Chinese territory.
“We’ve updated Google Maps to fix the issue. We understand that geographic names
can raise deep emotions which is why we
worked quickly once this was brought to
our attention,” Google’s office in Manila
said in a statement.
Scarborough Shoal lies 220 kilometres
(140 miles) off the main Philippine island
of Luzon and 650 kilometres from Hainan island, the nearest major Chinese land
mass.
China has controlled the shoal since 2012,
following a brief standoff with the Philippines.
Since then, the Philippines has accused
the Chinese coast guard of harassing Filipino fishermen at the shoal, including robbing them of their catch at gunpoint earlier
this year.
Campaigns website Change.org began a
petition last week to get Google Maps to
drop the Chinese name of the shoal on its
site. The petition drew close to 2,000 supporters.
“China’s sweeping claim of (the) South
China Sea under their nine-dash line purportedly historical boundary is illegal and
is creating tension among nations,” the petition read.
“Google maps showing this is part of
Zhongsha island chain gives credence to
what is plainly a territory grab that peace
loving nations should stand against.”
Last week, a United Nations-backed tribunal at The Hague starte d hearing a Philippine petition to declare illegal China’s
maritime claims in the South China Sea
that overlap those of the Philippines.
FIL-AM POST
Lawmakers told: Fake rice abound,
smuggling persists
The Makabayan Bloc
in the House of
Representatives on Monday sought an inquiry into the proliferation of fake rice
and rampant smuggling of the staple grains
even as the Senate resumed its hearing on
the same issues that a lawmaker described
as the dangers of the Aquino administration’s rice importation policy.
Party-list Rep. Neri Colmenares of Bayan
Muna also questioned the alleged plan of
the National Food Authority to bring in
100,000 metric tons of rice from Vietnam.
“We believe that it would be better for our
agriculture particularly our local farmers if
we allocate the budget for these rice imports to our local peasants.
Why the Vietnamese or Thai farmers have
to be the one to benefit from our funds that
are supposed to be given to our local farmers?” said Colmenares, the House deputy
minority leader.
With the impending move to import rice,
Colmenares warned the country will again
be reeling from the “sabotaging economic
effects” of unchecked overpriced rice importation as the NFA has again decided to
import rice for the July-September buffer
stock.
“President Aquino should explain in his
next SONA whatever happened to his
promise of rice self-sufficiency during his
term,” Colmenares said.
At the Senate, the committee chaired by
Senator Cynthia Villar was informed about
the continuing smuggling of rice worth
P21 billion.
Rosendo So, president of the Samahang
Industriya ng Agrikultura, told the Senate
panel that around 720,000 metric tons of
smuggled rice came in last year based on a
report of the United Nations.
P424B pork in 2015 budget–Lacson
Lump-sum or discretionary funds, which unconstitutional parts of the Disbursement
are prone to corruption, can still be found Acceleration Program (DAP), pooled funds
in the national budget for this year, accord- from savings of agencies that financed projing to former Sen. Panfilo Lacson.
ects outside the approved national budget.
Lacson has placed the lump-sum approLump-sum funds included the President’s
priations at P424 billion, an amount that Social Fund, Special Purpose Funds and
could still go up.
Malampaya Fund, the People’s Initiative
The former senator said he and his team against Pork Barrel said last year.
discovered lump-sum appropriations in the
The group’s proposed Pork Barrel Abonational budget while they were review- lition Act sought to prohibit the inclusion
ing the 2015 General Appropriations Act of pork barrel or lump-sum funds in the
(GAA).
budget, except calamity and intelligence or
“To date… we have already discovered confidential funds. It also sought to require
a total of P424 billion worth of lump-sum line-item appropriations for all proposed
appropriations, a.k.a.
budgets.
discretionary
funds,
The bill proparked in the budget
posed to abolish
of just 11 of the 21 mathe
President’s
jor line agencies of the
Social Fund and
national government.
require all unHold your breath. It is
spent, unobligated
still counting,” Lacson
and
unreleased
said in a speech before
funds to revert to
the Philippine Institute
the general fund
of Certified Public Acby the end of the
countants at the Interfiscal year.
continental Hotel in
Missing budget
Makati City.
codes
“As professional acLacson said his
countants serving the
team looked into
interest of the public, I
the appropriations
may speak on your be- Former Sen. Panfilo “Ping” Lacson.
of the agencies in
half when I frown upon
the 2015 budget
discretionary funds as
when they were
these are prone to misuse and corruption,” analyzing the new coding system, or the
Lacson said.
United Accounts Code Structure (UACS),
He said the government lost P10 billion in the government financial processes.
in the scam allegedly perpetuated by Janet
In a random analysis of the coding system
Lim-Napoles with the connivance of law- of the National Irrigation Administration
makers in misusing their pork barrel fund, (NIA), the team found missing codes, the
or the Priority Development Assistance former senator said.
Fund (PDAF).
“To our surprise, such ‘missing codes’
were utilized to insert some projects durUnconstitutional
ing the budget deliberations in the House of
Amid protests nationwide for the scrap- Representatives,” he said.
ping of PDAF and other corruption-prone
Lacson said his team discovered a lump
lump-sum budget items, the Supreme Court sum of P11.3 billion in the NIA budget.
declared the PDAF unconstitutional in NoCurious about the discovery, Lacson said
vember 2013.
his group looked into the appropriations of
In July last year, the high court declared other agencies.
many parties. [Speaker Belmonte] is a
(Cont. from page 1...LP NOT GIVING UP) leader of the LP… Hindi gagawin ni
Speaker na, ‘Poe ako.’ He has to lead the
Poe and Vice President Jejomar Binay in
popularity polls conducted by survey firms House together,” Kit said.
Like the younger Belmonte, Eastern Sainvolving possible presidential contenders.
mar Rep. Ben Evardone said the Speaker’s
statement was only a message for Roxas to
Work harder
In the Speaker’s defense, his nephew, Que- work harder.
“The Speaker’s statement is a challenge
zon City Rep. Jose Christopher “Kit” Belmonte, clarified the LP executive’s state- for Sec. Mar. However, I sincerely believe
ment was not a veiled statement of support he’s (Roxas) a winnable candidate,” he said.
Roxas still top pick
for Poe’s possible run for the presidency.
For his part, LP vice chair for political afThe younger Belmonte said his uncle only
wanted to prod both Roxas and the LP to fairs Caloocan City Rep. Edgar Erice bework double time to improve his popularity lieves Belmonte’s statement only means he
among voters so that his chances of winning believes in Roxas’ qualifications as President Aquino’s potential successor.
the elections will also increase.
“It’s good that the Speaker believes Mar
“Kung gusto mong maging Presidente si
is
the most qualified to be president. That’s
Secretary Mar, magtrabaho kayo. Personal
opinion ko yun. Hindi niya ibig sabihin, why it’s important to gain the necessary
wala nang mangyayari kay Mar. At this experience so she can continue the ‘Daang
point, kung walang nagtatrabaho at this Matuwid’ after 2022,” he said.
Asked about the status of LP’s efforts to
point, unstoppable talaga si Poe…” Kit said.
The Speaker’s nephew said it is far-fetched convince Poe to become Roxas’ running
for the senior Belmonte to come out in open mate, Erice said: “Let’s leave that to Pres.
support of Poe’s possible presidential bid Aquino. Anyway, they’re still talking.”
Iloilo Rep. Neil Tupas, a long-time LP
since aside from being a ranking member
of the LP, he also leads the House major- member, maintained that Roxas remains the
ity coalition composed of various political administration’s presumptive presidential
candidate even if he has yet to declare his
parties.
“The House is a coalition, it’s run by so political plans.
IMMIGRATION
FIL-AM POST
PAGE 3
July 15, 2015 - July 21, 2015
August 2015 Visa News
he priority dates for most Family Based
T
Preferences moved forward by at least
one weeks in the August 2015 Visa Bulletin released by the US State Department.
However, the First and Third Preference
categories did not move from July 2015.
In the Employment Based Preferences,
the priority date for the Third Preference
(skilled workers and professionals) and
Third Preference Unskilled Workers becomes available for August 2015 from being Unavailable in July 2015. All the other
categories in the Employment-Based Petitions remained current.
ican national in Ciudad
migration benefits only
By Atty. Crispin C. Lozano
Juarez based on petition
but later on had a serious
by US citizen spouse.
relationship with peti6. On April 30, 2015, we received an ap- tioner.
proval from the Immigration Court of I-751 10. On March 30, 2015, we received an apreview based on spousal abuse.
proval from the Immigration Judge for a
7. On April 20, 2015, we received an ap- waiver of misrepresentation involving marproval from USCIS of green card for a cli- riage fraud that happened at the U.S. Em-
Please note that for the month of August
2015, Employment Based Third Preference
visa (professionals and skilled workers) is
available for the Philippine nationals with
approved labor certifications or I-140 petitions with priority dates earlier than June 1,
2004. For Schedule A nurses and physical
therapist, immigrant visa is also available
for August 2015, if they have an approved
I-140 petition with priority dates earlier
than June 1, 2004.
Third Preference visas for Unskilled Workers such as caregivers, nursing assistants
and nannies are available for those Philippine Nationals with approved labor certifications dated earlier than June 1, 2004 for
the month of August 2015.
Note:
This is not a legal advice.
SUCCESS STORIES
1. On June 22, 2015, we received an approval of I-601 waiver for a client who
overstayed in the U.S. for more than ten
years based on hardship to U.S. citizen
spouse.
2. On June 5, 2015, we received an approval from U.S. Embassy Manila for an
I-601A waiver for two clients who first entered the U.S. on a crewman visa.
3. On May 22, 2015, we received an approval of I-751 waiver of joint petition
based on spousal abuse.
4. On May 18, 2015, we received an approval of adjustment of status for a client
based on marriage with big age gap between spouses.
5. On May 6, 2015, we received an approval of PROVISIONAL WAIVER for a Mex-
ent who used three names in her lifetime.
We submitted numerous documents to
prove proper identity.
8. On April 14, 2015, we received approval
of naturalization for a client who has three
DUI and a civil harassment case. The DUI
and civil harassment has all been cleared
before.
9. On April 10, 2015, we received an approval of immigrant visa for a client who
originally confessed marriage is for im-
bassy. The alien subsequently get a green
card from a petition by her mother. She
could not naturalize unless a waiver of misrepresentation is granted. With the waiver
she is now qualified for naturalization.
11. On March 10, 2015, we received an approval from USCIS for an adjustment of
status for SAME SEX MARRIAGE.
12. On February 18, 2015, we received an
approval by USCIS of green card based on
self petition by an abused spouse. Her mi-
OPINION
Mayhem in Makati: LP scuttles
Binay network
A
CTING Makati Mayor Romulo
Peña Jr. scuttled Vice President
Jejomar Binay’s sister cities network
swiftly as soon as he took over City Hall
last week from suspended Mayor Junjun
Binay in a turbulent change of power.
Mayor Binay, son of the embattled Vice
President, vacated his office on Wednesday in compliance with the suspension
order issued by the Office of the Ombudsman in the course of its investigation of the allegedly overpriced Makati
City Science High School building.
This followed a tumultuous two-week
standoff between the national government and the influential Binay family
that has ruled Makati, the country’s financial center, for nearly 29 years since
1986.
In March, the Ombudsman issued a sixmonth suspension order against Mayor
Binay in connection with the Makati City
Hall Building II, which was also under
investigation for alleged overpricing.
Binay then secured a favorable Court
of Appeals ruling to justify his stay, just
hours after Vice Mayor Peña, a non-Binay protégé, was sworn in as acting mayor on March 16, after Binay Jr. received
the suspension order.
The mayor stepped down on July 1 after
he failed to secure a temporary restraining order on the second preventive suspension issued against him by the Ombudsman.
Violence erupted among supporters of
Binay and the police after officials of
the Department of the Interior and Local
Government (DILG) had served the suspension order at City Hall.
Local Government Secretary Mar Roxas blamed the violence on the refusal of
Mayor Binay to heed the Ombudsman
Amando Doronila
order. This prompted Roxas to warn:
“Mayor Binay, you don’t own Makati.”
Roxas also said the DILG was considering filing charges against Vice President
Binay’s security staff who allegedly assaulted police authorities on Monday.
Peña, a member of the ruling Liberal
Party (LP), was sworn in on Tuesday after Binay yielded to the suspension order.
Ombudsman Conchita Carpio Morales
warned that she would not tolerate “mob
rule” after supporters of Vice President
Binay battled police authorities enforcing the suspension order.
Turbulent exit
About 700 riot policemen, armed with
truncheons and shields, descended before
dawn on Makati City Hall, and sealed off
all its entrances. Caught inside were the
Vice President and his son.
Tensions rose as Binay supporters tried
to push their way through the police barricades and started throwing chairs at law
enforcers.
Some employees claimed the police
started the scuffle and pushed the crowd
away from the entrance. Several people
were reportedly injured in the commotion.
According to Roxas, the Philippine National Police had copies of the footage
taken by TV networks on the exchange
between Binay and the government men,
who claimed that the Vice President
threatened them and some Binay followers allegedly manhandled some policemen, including a female officer.
In the TV footage, Binay was heard saying, “You have abused the people.” This
episode took place as the Aquino administration was winding down its last year
in office, foreshadowing a turbulent exit
for his government, and emergence of
thuggery by both sides in this transition
to the 2016 presidential election.
In the run-up to the election, the Binay
political clan is fighting tooth and nail to
prevent being crushed by the resources
of the Aquino administration, which is
determined to block the election of Binay for President in 2016. Binay, who defeated Roxas, Mr. Aquino’s running mate
in 2010, has declared that he is running
for President next year.
The election of Binay as Vice President
in 2010 has confronted the Aquino administration with the nightmare of giving him a Cabinet portfolio responsible
for overseas Filipino workers affairs—
something odious like a plague in the
house.
Binay has resigned his Cabinet positions after attacking the administration
for being “uncaring” and “blundering.”
Incompatible
This incompatibility of the political values of the reformist thrust of the “straight
path” platform of the administration and
of the corruption scandals engulfing the
Binay family dynasty in Makati helps
explain why the administration is so obsessed in canceling Binay’s sister cities
scheme, which the government believes
is the key to Binay’s electoral success in
the 2010 election.
Acting Mayor Peña didn’t lose time
in dismantling the more than 600 city
agreements entered into by Makati City
under the Binay administration as the
infrastructure of its patronage network
financed by Makati City.
nor children are now qualified to immigrate
based on this approval.
13. On February 10, 2015, we received an
approval of green card for a client who entered without inspection. We first sought
an advance parole with USCIS so that she
can travel to her country legally and come
back to the U.S.
14. On January 20, 2015, we received an
approval of immigrant visa under the Provisional Waiver program for a seaman client. She successfully arrived to the U.S.
without problem.
15. On January 7, 2015, we received an approval of adjustment of status from USCIS
for a client who entered without inspection
but reentered on a parole visa. Parole visa
became the basis of legal entry to allow for
adjustment of status.
16. On January 5, 2015, we received two
approvals of I-601A waiver under the Provisional Waiver Program.
17. On December 17, 2014, we received an
approval from USCIS of a green card under the Violence against Women Act.
18. On December 16, 2014, we received an
approval of DACA for an alien who has a
final order of removal.
19. On December 11, 2014, we received
an approval of immigrant visa for an alien
who entered the U.S. as a seaman under
Provisional Waiver Program.
20. On October 7, 2014, we received an
approval from the U.S. Embassy in Manila
an immigrant visa for a client who entered
the US without inspection under the Provisional Waiver Program.
21. On September 26, 2014, we received
an approval from the Immigration Court
for waiver of misrepresentation for a client
who entered as single but actually married
at the time of entry to the U.S.
22. On September 9, 2014, we received
an approval from Immigration Court of
adjustment of status for a client who was
previously denied an asylum.
23. On September 8, 2014, we received an
approval from USCIS of Form I-601A provisional waiver for two clients.
Crispin Caday Lozano is an active member
of the State Bar of California, the American
Immigration Lawyers Association and the
National Association of Consumers Bankruptcy Attorneys. He specializes in immigration law and bankruptcy law. ([email protected]/ 1-877-456-9266)
PAGE 4
July 15, 2015 - July 21, 2015
FIL-AM POST
FIL-AM POST
PAGE 5
July 8, 2015 - July 14, 2015
PAGE 6
July 15, 2015 - July 21, 2015
FINANCE CORNER
BANKRUPTCY
TAX Q & A
Estimated penalty for
not filing FBAR
Q.What
is
FBAR?
A.
FBAR
means Report
of
Foreign
Bank and Financial
Account.
by: Alvin C. Maglan, CPA
Q.
Who are
required
to
comply with
FBAR filing?
In order to determine whether or not the
FBAR is required, all of the following
must apply:
A.The filer is a U.S. person;
B.The U.S. person has a financial
account(s);
C.The financial account is in a foreign
country;
D.The U.S. person has a financial interest
in the account or signature or other authority over the foreign financial account; and,
E.The aggregate amount(s) in the
account(s) valued in dollars exceed
$10,000 at any time during the calendar
year.
The purpose of this article to discuss
the likely consequences for not filing an
FBAR, which is, the FBAR penalty.
Moreover, there is no such thing as a late
FBAR Filing Penalty. The only penalties
are for not filing an FBAR form.
Q. How does the FBAR penalty process
goes?
This is usually how FBAR penalties will
be assessed (outside any offshore tax amnesty). You would be selected for an audit
with the IRS. Then the field auditor, once
aware of likely FBAR violations, will split
the audit into two parts. The first part is the
regular audit, which is treated normally. If
you disagree with the figures and the bill,
all of your standard rights of appeal, including tax court, are there.
The second part is that the IRS auditor
will interview you regarding your willfulness about not filing an FBAR penalty.
The auditor will make a report that will
be forwarded to an IRS attorney. The IRS
attorney will set the penalty amount, typically $10,000 for non-willful violations
and 50% of account value for willful non-
filing. Here’s an example:
Unfiled FBARs for 2010 to 2014
Average Account Balance: $30,000
•FBAR penalty if non-willful: $50,000 (5
violations @ $10,000 per year)
•FBAR penalty if willful: $75,000 (5 violations @ $15,000 per year which is 50%
of $30000 balance of account.)
Q.How does the IRS collects the FBAR
penalty?
Once assessed, none of the typical collection or appeals process is followed. The
Treasury Department actually has to sue
you in order to collect on the FBAR debt.
In one sense, this is bad, because traditional IRS appeals allow for cost-effective negotiations. However, because the government must actually sue you, and typically
the amounts you are being sued for are so
high, the government has a more difficult
job to prove their case. If you want, you
have a right to a jury trial. In tax cases like
these, juries have a hard time following
facts, and that can lead to an unfair result.
The bad news is that FBAR litigation attorneys aren’t exactly cheap. A full FBAR
defense could cost in the hundreds of thousands of dollars in legal fees. Plus the legal
process is a penalty in and of itself. Going
to court and dealing with uncertainly is not
fun at all. That’s why for many people, it
just winds up being easier to enter into the
Offshore Voluntary Disclosure Program
(OVDP) a program that isn’t exactly fair,
but at least creates a known outcome that
can be planned around.
There are about 2 million taxpayers (most
of those expats) who somehow failed to
file an FBAR. The vast majority are not
using the OVDP/OVDI.
If you have inquiries about FBAR you may seek a free
consultation with Atty. Crispin C. Lozano in one of
the offices of Taxsaverspro, Inc. by calling toll free
1-877-456-9266.
Alvin Maglan is a CPA licensed in California. After
working for SyCip, Gorres, Velayo and Company, he
emigrated to California and had varied experiences
as an audit manager of a regional accounting firm,
an internal auditor and controller of Dole, Inc., a fortune 500 company and three decades experiences as a
tax consultant for various individuals, professionals,
small business firms, corporations, partnerships, and
other non-profit entities. You may contact him @510
432 7438 for your tax problems. You may e-mail tax
questions @[email protected].
FIL-AM POST
Are debts forgiven on foreclosed
properties taxable?
T
he general rule is that forgiveness of
debt represents income and is subject
to tax unless exemption applies. The difference between the second mortgage loan
and the value of the property represents income subject to tax in the event of foreclosure. However, if you file bankruptcy, the
income derived as a result of foreclosure is
not taxable.
Question: My house is my primary residence, which was underwater when it was
foreclosed. Am I subject to tax on the difference between loan amount and property
value?
Answer: If the house is your principal residence, any income derived as a result of
foreclosure is not taxable under a special
law passed by Congress. This law will expire December 31, 2012. However, if the
debt is used to buy, build or substantially
improve the home, you may not qualify
for this exemption. A good example is if
the house is refinanced. The difference between the refinanced loan and the value of
the property will be taxable.
Question: What other situation may cancellation of debt is deemed not taxable?
Answer: The other exemption on the taxability of cancelled debt is insolvency.
Any income derived on cancelled debt is
not taxable if a person is insolvent. A person is insolvent if the person’s liability exceeded his assets. In determining assets for
insolvency purposes, a person’s 401k must
be included in the list of properties and everything you own. Liabilities include almost everything you owe.
Question:My second home has been foreclosed and I received a Form 1099c from
the bank for the difference between the
amount I owe and the fair market value of
the house. Should I file for bankruptcy?
Answer: Yes. The best way to resolve
the issue that you made an income on the
forgiven indebtedness is to consult with a
bankruptcy attorney who will evaluate if
you need to file bankruptcy.
I include this as taxable income?
Answer: If you already filed for bankruptcy, you qualify for the exemption but
still you have to report in your income tax
return the amount of forgiven debt that is
exempt from income tax because of your
filing bankruptcy. You should consult with
a bankruptcy attorney to help you report
this matter in your tax return.
Note: This is not a legal advice and you
need to speak to an attorney. The Law Offices of Crispin C. Lozano has 14 years of
experience in bankruptcy cases.
Bankruptcy Basics
1. Bankruptcy will actually improve your
credit within one year because your unsecured debts are discharged. Although the
bankruptcy will be in your records for 10
years, not filing bankruptcy will make your
credit even worse until most your debts are
paid.
2. If you are being sued by your creditors,
most money judgment can be eliminated in
bankruptcy.
3. Collection actions continue and you can
be sued if you are in debt settlement.
4. Chapter 7 will eliminate all unsecured
debts. If you are near retirement age, you
must eliminate most of your debts.
5. Bankruptcy will stop foreclosure actions. If your trustee sale date is 10 days
before, you can still file for bankruptcy.
6. If your salary is being garnished, you
have a court case about debts or you are
being harassed by creditors, bankruptcy
can stop garnishment, court cases, harassing creditors and eliminate the debt.
7. Bankruptcy is cheaper, faster and safer
than debt settlement which has no guaranteed success.
8. Preserve your health, eliminate stress
and live a happy life by eliminating your
debts which is the root of all problems.
Question:I filed bankruptcy after my second home was foreclosed and I still got a
Form 1099c for the cancelled debt. Should
Crispin Caday Lozano is an active member
of the State Bar of California, the American Immigration Lawyers Association
and the National Association of Consumers Bankruptcy Attorneys. He specializes
in immigration law and bankruptcy law.
(1-877-456-9266. Email: crispinlozano@
gmail.com)
Vice
Ganda enumerated the potential candidates’
names again and added the mayor’s name
to get his reaction. Duterte again replied
“good” to all but when his name was called
he exclaimed “Very good!”
Due to his answer, Duterte was again
asked if his answer meant he was hinting
at the presidency which he again denied.
The TV host praised Duterte for making Davao City the ninth safest city in the
world and asked him how he did it. The
mayor mentioned his firm rules in disciplining Davaoeños and said he is just fulfilling his duty.
Vice Ganda also raised allegations of
Davao Death Squad asking how many the
mayor has killed, which Duterte refused to
answer.
“If I open my mouth further. I will go to
prison,” Duterte said.
Duterte mentioned he is afraid of criminals only because he is afraid they get
ahead of him. On disciplining the criminals, he firmly said it is part of his duty.
“Trabaho lang. I want my city peaceful
because that’s what I’m paid for,” Duterte
said.
“To enforce the law and make the city liveable. There are things that I have to do because nobody will do it for us,” he added.
The Davao City mayor’s guesting at
Gandang Gabi Vice trended online and its
hashtag #DuterteonGGV ranked first on
Twitter’s Philippines’s trending topics and
second in the worldwide topics. As of writing, it is still in the eighth list of Philippines’s trends.
(Cont. from page 1...DUTERTE)
(Cont. from page 1...US LAWYER)
The Hague had jurisdiction over the Philippines’ case.
The Philippines set the arbitration case
in motion beginning 2013 in the hope of
halting China’s aggressive incursions into
the country’s 370-kilometer exclusive economic zone (EEZ).
Track record
“This is a very important case so we hired
experts on international law with rich experience and proven track record,” Foreign
Affairs Assistant Secretary and spokesperson Charles Jose said when asked why the
government was hiring foreign lawyers to
represent the country in The Hague.
At a press briefing this week, presidential spokesperson Edwin Lacierda said as
much about Reichler and the members of
his legal team.
“These are lawyers who have an international reputation appearing before the tribunal. We can rely on them. They’ve been
with us from the start, since we filed the
case,” Lacierda said.
More than expertise, however, Reichler
is known for representing small countries against powerful ones, including his
homeland, the United States.
In one of his celebrated cases, the American lawyer served as counsel to Nicaragua
in its case at the International Court of Justice (ICJ), questioning the legality of the
US military, logistical and financial aid to
counterrevolutionary forces attempting to
overthrow the Nicaraguan government,
and the mining of Nicaraguan harbors by
US military and intelligence forces.
In 1986, the ICJ ruled in favor of Nicaragua and ordered the US to pay reparations to the Nicaraguan government for
causing damage to its people, property and
economy.
In a more recent case similar to the Philippines’ claims against China, Reichler
served as counsel to Mauritius, an island
nation in the Indian Ocean, in an arbitration case against the United Kingdom.
SHOWBIZ
FIL-AM POST
Aubrey Miles announces FHM Sexiest
Women 2015 victory party is her “last walk”
Sorry, boys, you will no longer see hot
momma Aubrey Miles at the next victory
parties of FHM
Philippines’
100
Sexiest
Women.
On her Instagram account
yesterday, July
12, Aubrey announced that
her appearance
in this year’s
FHM 100 Sexiest
Women
victory party
will be her
“last walk.”
She said, “It
seems like just
the other day,
I heard the
news that I’m
in FHM 100
sexiest, for the
1st time.
“I never
thought
I
would still be
here, but 12
years later and
here we are.
“I’m very
lucky to have Aubrey Miles
spent
time
working closely with the FHM family over
the years.
“The cover shoots, autograph signing,
and the FHM 100 sexiest events have been
some of my favorite memories in my career.
“I thought it would be hard to say that last
night probably be my LAST WALK for
FHM 100 sexiest... And I was
right, it is.”
Aubrey
thanked
the
fans who have
been very supportive since
the first year
she was included in the annual
list of sexiest
Pinays.
“I’ll miss all
the
supportive people behind FHM and
of course the
amazing fans.”
She also left a
message to all
the girls who
will be included on the list
in the coming
years: “Enjoy
the experience,
you’re in good
hands.”
Lastly, Aubrey
reiterated, “To all the
fans, thank you
so much for your support throughout the
years and to FHM, I will always carry you
close to my heart.
“Thank you so much, until we meet
again.”
PAGE 7
July 15, 2015 - July 21, 2015
Julia Barretto and James Reid both deny
going out for coffee
First came the rumors, then came the bashing, then, denial.
When rumors about
James Reid and Julia
Barretto going out on
an alleged coffee date
circulated, fans of the
JaDine love team —
that’s James Reid
and Nadine Lustre
for us — didn’t waste
time on bashing both
James and Julia.
Fan boys and girls
will naturally feel
territorial. Rumors had it James and Julia
were sweet and kissy-kissy on that rumored date.
But James was first to deny the reports.
“No,” the young actor was quoted in a Pep.
Jennylyn Mercado on Dennis Trillo,
being named FHM’s sexiest
Daniel Matsunaga kisses Erich
Gonzales at Dreamboys concert
Daniel Matsunaga expressed his love for
Erich Gonzales while they were singing a
duet at the Dreamboys
concert.
The Brazilian-Japanese actor also kissed
his girlfriend when
their song ended, eliciting cheers from the
crowd.
The tandem known
as DanRich performed
Michael Buble’s “Everything” during the
July 11 concert held at
the Music Museum in
San Juan.
In his Instagram account, Daniel also
posted after the con-
cert: “Don’t know how to describe to you
guys the feeling kanina...super nervous
but at the same time the
feeling was overwhelming !!ang saya!!!thank
you so much sa lahat
ng pumunta!!we love
you!!thank you also to our
sponsors and to everybody
behind the concert!!!more
to come!!!thank you also
to my spartan baby for doing our special song “everything” with me...I love
you @erichgg and to @
mateoguidicelli and @
akosijcdeberat u guys were
amazing brothers!!more to
come!!”
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and tablets!
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ph report. “Of course I know her, we did
Hopeless Romantic together. [But] her
number? No, I don’t
have.”
According to a separate Pep.ph report, Julia echoed James’ denial yesterday. “Take
it from here, move on
na tayo and focus na
tayo sa work,” Julia
said.
She admitted the
bashing hurt her a
little. “Aaminin ko,
masakit ang mga nabitawang salita.”
And then she emphasized, again, that no
such date with James Reid ever happened.
Photo: James Reid and Julia Barretto/Instagram
Jennylyn Mercado
MANILA, Philippines – Actress Jennylyn
Mercado said that she was really nervous
during her performance and runway walk
at the FHM 100 Sexiest Event, Saturday,
July 11. (READ: Jennylyn Mercado named
‘FHM PH Sexiest Woman’ for 2015)
“Masyado akong nakafocus doon sa performance kasi kinakabahan ako eh. Wala ako
nakikita,” Jennylyn said of the crowd.
(I was focused on the performance because
I was nervous. I was not seeing anything.)
Jennylyn said she is grateful for those
who have supported and voted for her to
be FHM’s Sexiest woman this year. Actress
Marian Rivera held the title in 2014.
“Pasalamat na lang ako na maraming sumusuporta at nagmamahal [sa akin], kaya
thank you,” she said.
(I want to say thank you because there
are so many who continue to support and
love me.)
Asked if former boyfriend Dennis Trillo
texted her good luck, Jennylyn said yes,
but he was not the only one who wished
her well before the show. The two are
working on a new TV project in GMA
called My Faithful Husband.
“Hindi lang naman siya (Dennis) ang
nag-text sa akin. Madami nagsabing good
luck.”
(He [Dennis] was not the only one who
texted. Many also sent good luck messages.)
With Jennylyn and Dennis working together again, is she ready for the new intrigues on them?
“Sanay naman ako, kasi lagi lahat nang
nakakalove team ko nagiging boyfriend
ko daw eh,” Jennylyn laughed.
(I’m used to it, because all of those I’m
paired with always end up as my boyfriend,
they say.)
Meanwhile, in an interview with Pep, Jennylyn shrugged of the alleged snub of her
other co-artists from GMA who did not appear at the FHM event. GMA 7 actresses
Andrea Torres, Sam Pinto, Solenn Heussaff,
and Max Collins are part of the Top 10.
“Mas naka-focus ako sa sarili ko. Kung
hindi man sila nakarating, siguro naman may
dahilan,” Jennylyn said.
(I was focused on myself. If they did not go
to the event, I guess there is a reason for it.)
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PAGE 8
July 15, 2015 - July 21, 2015
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