Teacup Café XLII

[Mari]

*flops down in a lounge chair* Please, someone get me a strong tea. >_<

[Earniel]

Originally Posted by Alcuin

There’s nothing like suffering defeat in war.

Heh, you're telling that to a Belgian. What nation didn't defeat us and lorded over us for a while in, oh, lets say the last 10 centuries? I can name at least five just from the top of my head.

Originally Posted by Mari

*flops down in a lounge chair* Please, someone get me a strong tea. >_<

I'll join you. >_< *puts on the kettle* Bloody taxes. Whyyy do they constantly make so many changes to the form and I don't even own anything to declare so why is it taking me the best part of the day to get it in order?


Heh, I first wrote cattle instead of kettle. To my taxes-addled brain that suddenly sound sooo funny.

[Acalewia]

Originally Posted by Eärniel

Heh, I first wrote cattle instead of kettle. To my taxes-addled brain that suddenly sound sooo funny.

That actually is pretty funny lol

[Mari]

*drags herself out of the chair to pour herself and Earn a cuppa*
I still had a tax man to do it for me this year (came with the mortgage advise), but next year I'm supposed to have all the fun myself.

The play I was in had its final show last Friday. Thankfully. It was a sort of fun, yet it was not. Very exhausting.

[Alcuin]

Is it tax season in Belgium?

[Earniel]

Originally Posted by Acalewia

That actually is pretty funny lol

Heh, just imagine if I was far enough gone to try and fill up a cow with water and put it on a hot stove... I doubt it would have appreciated that, though...

Originally Posted by Mari

*drags herself out of the chair to pour herself and Earn a cuppa*
I still had a tax man to do it for me this year (came with the mortgage advise), but next year I'm supposed to have all the fun myself.

Thanks! *sips tea*

Do yours get more complicated every year too?

When you get certain politicians on TV proudly declaring it's a good thing that people can't make head or tails of the tax return papers because they'll either make mistakes and thus can be fined, or will declare more just to be on the safe side and either way means more money for the state, it's little wonder one's tax system is a mess.

The play I was in had its final show last Friday. Thankfully. It was a sort of fun, yet it was not. Very exhausting.

Oooh. Big part?

Originally Posted by Alcuin

Is it tax season in Belgium?

Oh yes.

[Acalewia]

Originally Posted by Eärniel

Heh, just imagine if I was far enough gone to try and fill up a cow with water and put it on a hot stove... I doubt it would have appreciated that, though...

Thanks for that mental lmao

Thanks! *sips tea*

Do yours get more complicated every year too?

When you get certain politicians on TV proudly declaring it's a good thing that people can't make head or tails of the tax return papers because they'll either make mistakes and thus can be fined, or will declare more just to be on the safe side and either way means more money for the state, it's little wonder one's tax system is a mess.

And I thought ours were complicated... At least you're not fined for not having health insurance (I'm not btw)

[Alcuin]

Originally Posted by Eärniel

Oh yes.

Do you have to fill out FATCA forms for the US, too?

[Acalewia]

Originally Posted by Alcuin

Do you have to fill out FATCA forms the too?

I have never heard about that until now. As I don't have any overseas accounts, no... I can barely keep up with the checking and savings accounts I have. This is also why I pay someone else to file my taxes. I'm really not smart enough to do them myself

[Alcuin]

Originally Posted by Acalewia

I have never heard about that until now. As I don't have any overseas accounts...

No, no, not us Americans. We’re taxed on everything everywhere all the time; the Treasury monitors all electronic transfers and cash deposits and withdrawals to be sure no one is cheating the taxman.

Now everyone else the world has to comply with FATCA, too, or the US issues extradition warrants for them. The case of the Kentish bell ringers was quite the rage in England some time back.

I was wondering if any ’Mooters outside the US had run into it yet.

Originally Posted by Acalewia

...I pay someone else to file my taxes. I'm really not smart enough to do them myself

I also pay someone else to do them: they are extraordinarily complex. But it sounds as if Belgium’s is, too.

[Earniel]

Originally Posted by Acalewia

Thanks for that mental lmao

We aim to please.

And I thought ours were complicated... At least you're not fined for not having health insurance (I'm not btw)

Hm, pretty sure I would too. Health insurance is mandatory over here, (my region even has two of them) but with our social security system it doesn't cost a metaphorical arm and leg to get it.

Originally Posted by Alcuin

Do you have to fill out FATCA forms for the US, too?

By the looks of it, I'm pretty sure I would only fall under FATCA if I was a US citizen, or possibly if I had an income from the USA.

My Belgian tax form does require information about foreign accounts and property, and were any of them in the USA, I'm pretty sure the Belgian tax services would happily pass on that information to the USA, as per agreement, after taking their cut, naturally.

The part on information of foreign assets has been a sticky point for years here. They've been fiddling with the phrasing for years and some times that has led to your own tax form being possibly erronous when it demands to know information about other people's assets that you simply might not know. Yeah, sure, let me go and ask all family members whether they have foreign accounts and if they'd be so kind to give me the account number and financial entity so I can put all that on MY tax file so I can be in order? Can you imagine getting a phone from the tax office demanding why you haven't put your dad's foreign account on your own tax file? (It didn't come that far in reality since the politicians quickly engaged in backpaddling. But that's what you get when officials are so eager to know where people keep their money that they don't think their phrasing through.)

But there is a (reasonably) good side since the complexity of our tax system also comes from a good deal of tax reduction opportunities and their regulations. Still, Belgium is one of the most heavily taxed countries in Europe.

[Varnafindë]

In Norway we get a pre-filled form saying, 'This is what we know about you: Your employer reported that you earned this much, your bank reported that your account contains this much and that your mortgage is so much, we know that your property is worth this much, so this amount is what we're planning to tax you. If you're fine with that, you needn't do anything. If there are any changes you want to make, fill them in.'

People are advised to check this carefully. If there are mistakes in your disfavor, you lose out - and if some taxable income is missing, you could be in trouble.

Edit:
Most of the tax reduction items you have to fill in yourself, they wouldn't necessarily know about those.

[Mari]

We have a similar system to Norway with pre-filled out online forms. It's gotten less complex the last couple of years. It's really only the trick of figuring out what they mean with some sentences. Tax-reducible items have become fewer in return though.

[Acalewia]

Originally Posted by Alcuin

No, no, not us Americans. We’re taxed on everything everywhere all the time; the Treasury monitors all electronic transfers and cash deposits and withdrawals to be sure no one is cheating the taxman.

Okay, I misinterpreted. I thought it was something that affected Americans if they had overseas accounts.

Originally Posted by Eärniel

We aim to please.

Hm, pretty sure I would too. Health insurance is mandatory over here, (my region even has two of them) but with our social security system it doesn't cost a metaphorical arm and leg to get it.

Here you are penalized and fined for not having health insurance. Is it the same there?

[Alcuin]

Originally Posted by Acalewia

Okay, I misinterpreted. I thought it was something that affected Americans if they had overseas accounts.

It’s supposed to be. Unfortunately, it isn’t. It’s affecting citizens of other countries, too.

[Earniel]

Originally Posted by Acalewia

Here you are penalized and fined for not having health insurance. Is it the same there?

You know,I'm not entirely sure. I know health insurance is mandatory here, which most of the time means that if you don't comply, there will be a fine because that's how these things generally work.

But the basic health insurance here is essentially free due to our social security system and I vaguely recall that if you don't take steps to get any health inssurance yourself, you get automatically transferred to one provider.

So I don't think anyone is actually fined or penalised in practise. Only in the way that you end up with a very basic health insurance that doesn't cover all that much and that in the long run you might have better off with one you had picked yourself based on your needs.

[Amael]

Originally Posted by Mari

I would like some rain here. It's forecast for tomorrow, but they're not always correct. Question is: dare I delay watering my plants in the hopes of rain tomorrow? Or will they wither and die if I do that?

We have had more than enough rain here lately. Here's some!

*Sends a torrent of rain @ Mari*

Yes, there's that much rain to be had. o.O

[Mari]

We're having a heat wave now, so all rain is welcome. Last week of school. The week of hardest work every year. *sigh*

[Noble Elf Lord]

...

<_<

>_>

Is the tax-talk over already? You scared me away with it

I got new glasses, The Greatest Show On Earth physical edition, surprisingly little allergy and Devil May Cry 4 Special Edition

[Nerwen]

Hi, all. Just got back from the grocery store to get the Fixin's for out Independence Day blowout. Attalus is getting his smoker set up to smoke the ribs.

Susie