Expert US tax & investment strategy for Americans in Spain.

Many clients engage us 6 to 18 months before their planned move, which is often the most valuable point to intervene. Pre-move decisions (residency timing relative to the US tax year, Roth IRA conversion strategy, recommendations for leaving your state of residence, and restructuring retirement accounts away from PFIC-exposed positions) are significantly more tax-efficient when addressed before you become a Spanish tax resident. See our cross-border optimization page for what pre-move planning covers. We do not advise on state taxes; we work with partners who can advise on this, and you should confirm your state position with a state tax professional. More detail: Five Financial Mistakes Americans Make Before Moving to Spain. To see how the timeline works month by month, start with our 12 month financial checklist.

For American expats the three disciplines are tightly interdependent: your investment allocation affects how much foreign passive income you declare in Spain, your Roth conversion amount affects your IRPF bracket, and your estate plan has different succession tax implications under Spanish and US law. We coordinate all three inside a single engagement, which is how you avoid the most common expat problem: good advice from two separate advisors that conflicts when combined.

After the initial plan, Sailor clients meet with me three times a year and Settler and Founder clients four times a year, with additional meetings triggered by life events such as a property purchase, an inheritance, a job change, a change in residency status, or a new Spanish tax law. The review session is not a portfolio performance call. It is a structured planning meeting against your financial plan, updated for anything that has changed in your life, the tax code, or your goals. You receive a written summary of agreed actions after each meeting.

Coming into compliance is one of the most common first steps for new clients. The IRS Streamlined Foreign Offshore Procedures allow expats with non-willful non-compliance to file three years of amended Form 1040 returns and six years of FBARs (FinCEN 114) without the standard failure-to-file or FBAR penalties. Victor Gersten's Enrolled Agent credentials give him full representation rights before the IRS throughout this process. Contact us to discuss your situation confidentially before deciding how to proceed. More detail: US Federal Tax Issues for Americans Living Abroad and Modelo 720.

Our best-fit client is a US citizen or green card holder who is living in Spain or planning to move there, with meaningful financial complexity: significant US retirement assets, self-employment income, a property transaction, or investment portfolios that need restructuring away from PFIC exposure. We work with both working-age professionals and retirees. We are not the right fit for clients seeking purely US-based investment management without cross-border tax coordination, or for those with no connection to Spain. More detail: the four situations we most often work with.

Rather than an asset threshold, each ongoing package has a minimum annual fee: $10,000 a year for Sailor, $15,000 a year for Settler (which, at 1.00% on managed assets, is reached organically at about $1,500,000) and $20,000 a year for Founder, which is wealth management for business owners. These minimums apply to agreements signed on or after October 1, 2026; clients who signed earlier keep the terms of their existing agreement. We do not enforce a rigid asset threshold because some clients with modest portfolios have complex cross-border tax situations that justify the engagement. See our pricing page for the full fee schedule. Fees are negotiable and may vary based on complexity, scope of services and client circumstances, and lower fees for comparable services may be available from other sources.