Asset protection may come in many forms, but what if your tax shelter was built by God? That is the claim of an Iowa resident who believes he resides in heaven, the ultimate off-shore asset protection trust. The man’s logic seems to be that heaven is not within the jurisdictional reach of the IRS, and he is therefore owed a refund of previous taxes paid in the amount of $240,000. Of course, the IRS has a rigorous belief system of its own that is quite the contrary. His refund application resulted in a criminal indictment of filing a false claim and the man faces up to 5 years in prison and a $250,000 fine. Maybe the man took Henry Thoreau a little too literally. Thoreau once said, “Heaven is under our feet as well as over our heads.”

Filed under: Current Events, Tax