yes there is.
Code, revenue procedures, regulations, letter rulings | Internal Revenue Service
If you are able to get an opinion from the IRS, please share here. I looked briefly at the IRS site and noticed this. It may be a different procedure for IRA questions. For the time being, we are also holding off on the SDIRA due to risk.
| SECTION 4. ON WHAT ISSUES MUST WRITTEN ADVICE BE REQUESTED UNDER DIFFERENT PROCEDURES? | 12 |
|---|---|
| .01 Issues involving alcohol, tobacco, and firearms taxes | 12 |
| .02 Certain issues involving qualified retirement plans, individual retirement accounts (IRAs), and exempt organizations |
Wow, thanks portugalwanderer! I will meet with an attorney next week and report back here for anyone interested. My goal will be to get them to submit the question.It doesn’t appear a regular guy like myself is allowed.Attorney or CPA can get it done though.
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I’ve asked two attorneys that were referred to me to comment on this and neither replied. I asked a rep at IRAFinancial if they had anything in writing from IRS and got a “we would never want you to do something you are not comfortable with but they’ve done this successfully for 7 years”. And last but not least, I hit up one of the founders at IRAFinancial that has a video saying you can’t benefit from SDIRA. I asked him why they market GV with SDIRA if that is the case and if it is OK why they don’t have something in writing from the IRS after doing this for 7 years. No reply.
0-4. I am convinced I dodged a bullet by not following through with trying to get a GV with an SDIRA.
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Any of them could ask for an opinion letter from the IRS, but they don’t want to do that. I wonder why?
Exactly! Unfortunately, it requires a CPA or tax attorney and I am neither so I can’t ask. Doesn’t really matter, we seem to know the answer.
I am working with IRA Financial on SD-IRA, and they asked me to create a separate checkbook IRA trust account, for any documents with AIMA, I will sign as a trustee, below is from IRA Financial when I asked them why do I need to set up a trust account:
Portuguese Golden Visa funds require proof that you are the beneficial owner of the investment for AIMA.
Custodian letters are not enough. AIMA wants investor-specific documents:
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Affidavits
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KYC/AML forms
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Source-of-funds declarations
All of these typically require your personal signature.
If you sign these documents as the IRA owner, the IRS treats it as a prohibited transaction under IRC §4975 because you’re tying your IRA to a personal immigration benefit.
Cases like Ellis v. Commissioner make it clear: personal benefit = IRA disqualification.
Without a trust, you’re forced to sign personally.
That creates a direct IRS conflict.
With a trust:
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You sign as trustee, not as yourself
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There is clear separation between you (person) and the IRA (entity)
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This satisfies both IRS arm’s-length rules and AIMA’s ownership-verification requirements
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This is the standard and accepted structure for cross-border SDIRA investments
The IRS doesn’t give a step-by-step “use a trust” rule, but the combination of:
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§4975(c)(1)(D)/(E)
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§408(a)
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IRS Pub 590-A/B
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Swanson v. Commissioner …all point to the same requirement: no personal involvement, no personal signatures.
AIMA’s process makes personal involvement unavoidable unless the investment is held through a trust.
" * You sign as trustee, not as yourself
- There is clear separation between you (person) and the IRA (entity)"
You are the trustee but there is a clear separation? The trustee of your own IRA.
“Swanson v. Commissioner …all point to the same requirement: no personal involvement, no personal signatures.”
Being the trustee is not personal involvement?
I know a lot of people consider this SDIRA idea a gray area and I was one of them in the past until …
I recognized none of the companies that pitch this thing, including IRA Financial, have taken a few minutes to ask the IRS for a ruling.IRA Financial has been doing SDIRA for the GV for 7 years they say - why not get a definitive answer? Why the need for this trustee hack if the thing is legit in the first place? Because of AIMA? I’m not buying it.
I would LOVE for the SDIRA for GV to be legit. I have spent a few thousand already to go this route before the red flags starting popping up.
This lady scares me, not as a person but what she is saying here …
This could be very simple and clear with a statement from the IRS but no one is asking them to give such a thing. Why not?
From IRA Financial site …
The IRS has restricted certain transactions between the IRA and a disqualified person. The rationale behind these rules was a congressional assumption that certain transactions between certain parties are inherently suspicious and should be disallowed. Under Code Section 4975(e)(2), a “disqualified person” means:
A) A fiduciary (e.g., the IRA holder, participant, or person having authority over making IRA investments)
B) A person providing services to the plan (e.g., *
the trustee
- or custodian)