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What Non-u.S. Athletes, Entertainers, And Agents Need To Know About U.S. Taxes And How To Reduce Them

By Robert S. Fink and Wilda Lin
NYSBA Entertainment, Arts and Sports Law Journal
Summer 2013 Edition, Vol. 24, No. 2
June 01, 2013

Boxing fans who were looking forward to Manny Pacquaio’ s fifth fight against Juan Manuel Marquez did not see it live in Las Vegas. The reason? Taxes. The Fili­pino boxer-actor-singer-politician reportedly refused to submit to recent U.S. federal income tax increases, which would drain millions of dollars from his take-home pay.1 He may have also been aware that foreign athletes and entertainers performing in the United States receive a great deal of attention from a most unwanted source: the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). Unfortunately for these individuals, the IRS has created an Issue Management Team that is “focused on improving U.S. income report­ing and tax payment compliance by foreign athletes and entertainers who work in the United States.”

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