NORTHVILLE, MI (Nov. 18, 1999) -- Strolling through the Drip Companies message board this week, I ran across this post by a community member known as zhuxinwe. A resident of China living in the United Arab Emirates, zhuxinwe asked: "Does it make sense to participate in a DRIP plan by a nonresident foreign citizen. What about the difficult issue of dividend interest or other possible disadvantages?"
Excellent question. Considering the growing number of international investors joining the ranks of Fools these days, I'd like to expand upon the terrific responses posted by Bassanio, Hazhad, and tenamaxtli. (Thanks, Fools!)
The U.S. government refers to citizens of other countries that are not residing in the U.S. as "nonresident aliens." Nonresident aliens are free to invest in U.S. companies, including Drips, provided the following:
1) The country of residence has no restrictions on investing outside its borders.
2) The transfer agent (the company that facilitates the Drip) accepts investments from outside the U.S.
One should contact the government of residence regarding any limitations in investing in the U.S. to determine former, and the latter can be resolved with a quick call to the transfer agent or by flipping through Investing Without a Silver Spoon, as well as checking online at the The Moneypaper or Netstock Direct.
Once you have determined that there are no restrictions on investing in the U.S. and the companies you're interested in accept foreign investments, the next stop is IRS Publication 901, U.S. Tax Treaties. This publication will tell you if a tax treaty between the United States and a particular country exists, and whether that agreement offers a reduced rate of, or possibly a complete exemption from, U.S. income tax for residents of that country.
The standard rate of taxation of dividend income (including reinvested dividends) is 30%. Capital gains and losses as well as interest income are exempt from taxation by the U.S.; however, they may be subject to the tax regulations of the resident country. Keep in mind, though, that any treaty supersedes Publication 515.
To simplify withholding, nonresident aliens should file an IRS Form W-8, Certificate of Foreign Status, with each account held. The account will then withhold any taxes and send that money to the IRS. If Form W-8 is not submitted, you will be required to file a tax return with the IRS using Form 1040-NR, U.S. Nonresident Alien Income Tax Return, along with any taxes due.
That covers the nuts and bolts of nonresident aliens investing in the U.S. If you have any specific questions not covered here or in the publications below, you can e-mail the IRS by using this form. It's also advisable to contact your country's tax authority.
dividend adjusted. Dividends have been added to the total return of the index.
• S&P 500 (DCA) =
dollar cost average. Dollar cost averaged version of the S&P that assumes an investment in the S&P 500 on the same date and in the same dollar amount as each Drip trade.
Notes: The Drip Portfolio has been divided into 117.000 shares with an average purchase price of $24.786 per share.
Drip Port launched with $500 on July 28, 1997, adds $100 to invest every month, and the goal is to own $150,000 in stock by August of the year 2017. Due to the slow nature of dollar-cost-averaging and our relatively significant starting costs, we do not expect to seriously challenge the S&P 500 for the first three to five years as we build an investment base. The long-term advantages of dollar-cost-averaging still overcome the short-term disadvantages, however. Final note: our investment in Campbell Soup is frozen due to fees instituted in its investment plan. Click here for a history of all Drip Port transactions.
