Overseas Assets and Your Divorce
When dividing marital assets in a divorce, both spouses must disclose all their assets, including all overseas accounts and property. Even if the person believes the asset is separate and not marital, it must still be disclosed. Failure to do so can lead to criminal charges of asset dissipation, perjury, fraud, or contempt of court, resulting in fines or jail time.
Many Americans hold overseas assets, usually for very legitimate reasons. This is especially true in high-asset marriages. Foreign assets may include foreign bank accounts, additional homes, investment property, or foreign trusts. Some people, however, use overseas accounts or property to shield money from the IRS or even from their own spouses. When deception is intended, it can be more difficult to find the assets, but not impossible.
If you have overseas assets or if you suspect your spouse is hiding assets, you need a divorce team that includes financial experts who know how to properly value, and perhaps find, foreign assets.
Challenges with overseas assets
Overseas assets held in foreign banks do not generally cause a problem, since international banking is fairly transparent. However, some offshore banking jurisdictions are favored by those seeking to hide assets because of their strong privacy protections. You need highly-skilled legal and financial intervention to assess the value of these offshore funds.
When physical property is involved, such as a home or business, it can be difficult to determine the value of the foreign property and may require the cooperation of a local expert to provide fair valuation.
Furthermore, foreign countries have different laws and are not obligated to recognize an American divorce decree to enforce the liquidation and division of foreign property. In these cases, the court will often adjust by awarding a proportionately larger portion of domestic assets to the other spouse.
Finding offshore assets
If you have known foreign assets, collect and preserve all financial records associated with the accounts or property. We will guide you on what documentation is required for divorce disclosure.
If, however, you suspect your spouse of hiding assets in foreign accounts or property, we will engage a forensic accountant to locate the hidden funds. Our legal team can use a variety of legal means to discover hidden assets, including subpoenas, depositions, and court orders.
Red flags a forensic accountant looks for include:
- Unexplained wire transfers
- Frequent cash withdrawals
- The transfer of assets to third parties
- Payments to foreign institutions or international entities
- Digital, electronic, and communication logs — email/text/calls, financial software logs
- Discrepancies between lifestyle and stated income
- Evidence of shell corporations or nominee accounts
Our expert legal and financial team at Karen Ann Ulmer, P.C. can help you properly report your overseas assets and ensure an equitable distribution. If you suspect hidden funds, we will find them in order to ensure your fair share. Request a confidential consultation today by calling (866) 349-4721 so we can get started right away.
