INTERNATIONAL PER DIEM RATES CHANGE FOR TAX PURPOSES

Many foreign per diem rates change effective April 1: The U.S. State Department determines the maximum per diem rates for travel outside the Continental United States (OCONUS), including Alaska, Hawaii, Puerto Rico, the Northern Mariana Islands, and other U.S. possessions. The rates are updated on a monthly basis. Effective April 1, 2007, the maximum per diem rate (includes meals and lodging) has been revised for several localities in Alaska, Australia, Belgium, Burkina, China, Comoros, Ecuador, El Salvador, Finland, France, French Guiana, Germany, Greece, Greenland, The Holy See, Ireland, Italy, Kenya, Kuwait, Luxembourg, Malaysia, Mexico, Monaco, Namibia, Netherlands, Norway, Papua New Guinea, Portugal, Reunion, Romania, Russia, San Marino, Saudi Arabia, Senegal, Seychelles, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, and Sudan. See the U.S. Department of Defense Web site for current OCONUS per diem rates.

AUTOMATIC EXTENSION TO JUNE 15, 2007 FOR EXPATS

Expatriats living and/or working abroad on 4/17/07 (this is the due date for your 2006 tax return) receive an automatic extension from the IRS to file their 2006 Federal return until 6/15/07. However, you must pay any tax that is owed into the IRS by April 17, 2007 to avoid a small 1/2% per month late payment penalty if you chose to pay later. This rule applies for some states and not for others. You need to confirm with the state in which you are filing a return if it has adopted this rule.

You can further extend your federal return to 10/15/07 if you file an extension by June 15th using IRS form no 4868. Remember it is best to file these forms certified mail return receipt or by an approved overnight delivery service method. The IRS does lose and misplace paperwork it receives, but leaves you with the burden of proof to show you filed the missing form.