Decision will be entered under
BUCH,
Mr. Gerencser, a U.S. citizen, worked as a NATO contractor in Heidelberg, Germany, during 2010 and 2011. The parties stipulated that he was subject to the Protocol2016 Tax Ct. Memo LEXIS 149">*151 on the Status of International Military Headquarters Set Up Pursuant to the North Atlantic Treaty.6 Under article 7, paragraph 2 of this agreement, amounts paid for service as personnel of an Allied Headquarters are exempt from German tax.
To obtain an explanation of his tax situation, Mr. Gerencser wrote a letter dated May 6, 2009, to the Commissioner; he did not receive a response. After speaking with a colleague, Mr. Gerencser came to the understanding that he could owe a retroactive German income tax once his contract with NATO expired *154 because Germany would retroactively treat him as a German resident who was subject to German tax.
Mr. Gerencser filed Forms 1040, U.S. Individual Income Tax Return, for 2010 and 2011. For 2010 he reported $120,530 in NATO wages and claimed a foreign earned income and housing exclusion of $120,460 and a foreign tax credit of $26,716. He also reported U.S. military pension income, taxable interest, dividends, rental income, and a capital loss from securities transactions for that year. Similarly, for 2011 he reported $119,673 in2016 Tax Ct. Memo LEXIS 149">*152 NATO wages and claimed a foreign earned income and housing exclusion of $117,436 and a foreign tax credit of $35,229. In addition, he reported U.S. military pension income, taxable interest, dividends, rental income, and a capital gain from securities transactions.
On November 15, 2013, the Commissioner issued to Mr. Gerencser a notice of deficiency for taxable years 2010 and 2011. The Commissioner determined the following deficiencies in tax and accuracy-related penalties:
Penalty | ||
2010 | $31,823 | $6,365 |
2011 | 33,787 | 6,757 |
Among other adjustments, the Commissioner determined that Mr. Gerencser was not entitled to a foreign tax credit on his NATO wages because he had claimed *155 those wages were exempt under the foreign earned income exclusion. The Commissioner also determined that Mr. Gerencser had an additional capital gain for 2010 of $15,351 and was not entitled to $1,460 in itemized deductions for 2010.
When Mr. Gerencser received this notice of deficiency, he had a case pending before our Court involving his 2009 taxable year.7 On February 20, 2014, the Court entered a stipulated decision pursuant to an agreement of the parties that Mr. Gerencser did not owe any additional2016 Tax Ct. Memo LEXIS 149">*153 tax or penalties for 2009.
Mr. Gerencser timely filed his petition while residing in Germany, and trial was held in Las Vegas, Nevada. The parties have agreed that he is not liable for tax on the unreported capital gain for 2010 and that he is entitled to the disallowed itemized deductions for 2010. The parties further stipulated that he "is not entitled to claim a foreign tax credit with respect [to] his wages from NATO for taxable years 2010 and 2011." Mr. Gerencser has not paid any German income taxes for the 2010 or 2011 taxable year as to either his NATO or his non-NATO income.
We must decide whether Mr. Gerencser is entitled to foreign tax credits or treaty benefits related to his non-NATO income. To do so, we apply the foreign tax credit rules under the Code and the Treaty.
The Commissioner's determinations in the notice of deficiency are generally presumed correct, and taxpayers bear the burden of proving otherwise.8 Allowing foreign tax credits is an act of legislative grace, and taxpayers must prove that they have met all the conditions to be entitled to any credit.9 In limited situations the burden may shift to the Commissioner under2016 Tax Ct. Memo LEXIS 149">*154
Mr. Gerencser is not entitled to a foreign tax credit on his NATO wages for the years in issue because he has already excluded them from income using the foreign earned income and housing cost exclusion of
Mr. Gerencser is not entitled to a foreign tax credit relating to his non-NATO income because he has not paid any foreign tax. For 2010 and 2011 he reported U.S. military pension income, taxable interest, dividends, rental income, and capital losses from securities transactions, but he has not paid any German income taxes for 2010 or 2011. Even if Mr. Gerencser had elected a credit for accrued foreign tax credits, he cannot receive the benefit of accrued foreign taxes because he did not pay any taxes within two years after the close of the 2010 or 2011 tax year.18 Accordingly, he is not entitled to any foreign tax credits on his other income streams at this time.
Mr. Gerencser argues that because he is a resident of Germany,2016 Tax Ct. Memo LEXIS 149">*157 his income should be exempt from U.S. tax under the Treaty.19 He is wrong. The United *160 States reserves the right to tax its citizens on their worldwide income, regardless of their residence,202016 Tax Ct. Memo LEXIS 149">*158 and Mr. Gerencser is a U.S. citizen. The Treaty reflects this approach in the saving clause: "Except to the extent provided in paragraph 5, this Convention shall not affect the taxation by the United States of its residents (as determined by Article 4 (Residence)) and its citizens."21 We have previously explained that the "United States insists on the inclusion of a 'savings clause' in its tax treaties; the effect of this clause is to reserve the right of the United States to tax its citizens and residents on the basis of the provisions of the Internal Revenue Code without regard to the provisions of the treaty."22 None of *161 the income that Mr. Gerencser had during the years in issue is exempt from the saving clause.23
Although the saving clause does not affect the treaty rules for relief from double taxation found in article 23, this article provides that the United States will allow a credit for income taxes paid to Germany.24 But Mr. Gerencser has not paid any income taxes to Germany.
Mr. Gerencser further argues that the Treaty and the Code are in conflict and that he should be entitled to treaty relief despite not filing treaty-based returns for the years in issue. It is well established that neither2016 Tax Ct. Memo LEXIS 149">*159 a treaty nor a law takes precedence merely by virtue of its status as a treaty or law.25 If there is a conflict between a Code provision and a treaty provision, then the provision that was enacted later in time controls.26 But there first must be an irreconcilable conflict, because "when a treaty and a statute relate to the same subject, courts will always *162 attempt to construe them so as to give effect to both".27 Mr. Gerencser's conflict arguments fail because the saving clause of the Treaty bars him from obtaining relief. There is no conflict between the Code and the Treaty.
As defined in2016 Tax Ct. Memo LEXIS 149">*160 the Code, negligence includes any failure to make a reasonable attempt to comply with the provisions of
The Commissioner satisfied his burden of production because he showed that Mr. Gerencser negligently took foreign tax credits for his NATO wages that he had also claimed were excluded from his gross income by the foreign earned income and housing cost exclusion; a double benefit that is directly and expressly prohibited by the Code.
If a taxpayer takes a return position that would seem "too good to be true" to a reasonable person and fails to make further reasonable inquiries to verify that the return position is correct, then this is a strong indication that the taxpayer is *164 negligent.332016 Tax Ct. Memo LEXIS 149">*162 Taxpayers are "required to take reasonable steps to determine the law and2016 Tax Ct. Memo LEXIS 149">*161 to comply with it"34 and must exercise due care when claiming a deduction.35 Here, a reasonable person would have thought the double benefit of a foreign tax credit and a foreign earned income exclusion on the same income seemed too good to be true, and Mr. Gerencser had a duty to inquire further before taking this position. After hearing about his colleague's predicament, Mr. Gerencser sent a letter to the Commissioner to further inquire but never received a response. Instead of seeking out competent advice from a tax professional, he prepared his returns and explained that he "had to come up with my own way to file those taxes that would cover, so to speak, the waterfront and capture my *165 situation." Because he did not make a reasonable inquiry to determine whether his return position was correct, he was negligent.
Mr. Gerencser did not prove he acted with reasonable cause and in good faith. Although Mr. Gerencser wrote to the Commissioner to ask for guidance, he never received a response. Instead, he believed that he would be taxed at some time in the future by Germany because of the conversations he had with his colleague, who was not a tax professional. He then reported both the foreign income and housing cost exclusion and foreign tax credit for his NATO wages. His position is not reasonable because it would provide him a double benefit. Further, Mr. Gerencser did not show that he had paid or accrued any foreign taxes to entitle him to offset his U.S. tax with foreign tax credits.
Mr. Gerencser appears to argue that the stipulated decision entered in 2014 for his 2009 taxable year should affect the outcome of this proceeding or at least should prove that his position was reasonable. To the extent that he is making a collateral estoppel argument, this argument fails because the previous stipulated decision entered for 2009 was not a2016 Tax Ct. Memo LEXIS 149">*163 conclusive determination on the merits by our Court.36 Moreover, we look at whether the position taken by Mr. Gerencser on his *166 return was negligent. Mr. Gerencser filed his returns for 2010 and 2011 before he commenced his 2009 case and years before he entered into a stipulated decision.
Mr. Gerencser's underpayment of tax was due to his negligence, and he is liable for the
Mr. Gerencser is not entitled to any foreign tax credits because he has not paid2016 Tax Ct. Memo LEXIS 149">*164 or accrued any foreign tax. Accordingly, we sustain the Commissioner's disallowance of the foreign tax credits Mr. Gerencser claimed for 2010 and 2011 and find him liable for the
*167 To reflect the foregoing,
1. Unless otherwise indicated, all section references are to the Internal Revenue Code (Code) in effect for the years in issue, and all Rule references are to the Tax Court Rules of Practice and Procedure. All monetary amounts are rounded to the nearest dollar.↩
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