What made you want to do the work you do? Please share the full story.
My experience with international tax issues began after I met several creators who were being taxed multiple times based on the country from which they earned their income and the multiple places where they lived while working. One creator lost over $30,000 because he didn’t understand the “foreign earned income exclusion” and accepted bad advice from his CPA. Another creator lost money due to an international double taxation on his LLC because his CPA was unaware of how to structure a foreign-owned LLC for US tax purposes. Recognizing that the way in which these creators made money and how traditional accounting firms operate is highly different, I saw an opportunity to create an accounting firm that makes cross-border creator income the “norm”, not the exception.
As a result, I started BizBud, which provides monthly bookkeeping, ongoing tax planning, and filing instructions for every jurisdiction where creators work or earn. It is important that creators avoid potential losses that could amount to thousands of dollars due to a missed form or an incorrect filing. Unfortunately, because so many creators have no one to help them understand this complex process, many end up being treated poorly by CPAs. Helping to prevent this from happening to them is why I do what I do.
How is AI changing your business? What changes are you making to adapt?
AI is revolutionizing our bookkeeping business by taking care of the administrative parts of bookkeeping (transaction categorization, extracting data from platform payout statements, identifying missing documents). By doing this, AI decreases the number of manual entries into bookkeeping systems and allows teams to focus their time on the more intricate cross-border work requiring a human being (FBAR, FEIE, Tax Treaty Analysis and structure for Foreign Owned US LLCs). This shift does not mean advisors are being replaced; it means advisors can now concentrate on developing strategic business plans without the burden of low-value tasks.
To adapt to the new reality, we are utilizing AI to assist with the collection of documents and the preparation of monthly financial statements. While we are incorporating AI into the processes we have in place to facilitate document collection and monthly reports, we are also establishing strict human review protocols to verify every tax position is accurate. Additionally, we are teaching our team members to recognize errors generated by AI; verify figures against source documentation; and utilize AI to assist in producing first drafts, rather than providing final answers. This approach allows us to continue to provide quality services to an increasing number of client creators while meeting deadlines.
What are the 3 things you like best about your work and why?
My favourite aspect of cross-border tax is the puzzle. It is an exciting union of law, numbers, and client education, which keeps it interesting. Each creator has their own combination of platforms, countries, and entity types, so I cannot use a template. Instead, I need to listen to them and perform the necessary research to arrive at the best answer while explaining it in simple terms. The reward for me is when a client finally understands their tax situation and makes a more informed decision.
What are your greatest 3 skills and how have they helped you succeed?
The number one thing that I am the best at is being able to communicate complex tax rules into simple terms so that both creators and digital nomads understand what they need to file, when they need to file it, and why it is important for them to have that information. Due to this ability, I have been able to build a great deal of trust very quickly with clients and ease any worries they had while working with me. I have also been able to turn anxious and confused business owners into confident ones, and this has also allowed me to train our staff better, since I can break down FBAR, FEIE, and treaty rules into simplified steps that anyone can follow.
Tell us about a time where you saw a surprising outcome that you did not expect.
The most unexpected outcome for me was with YouTube influencer’s case, where we were able to recover $28,000 in missed deductions and rectify their unfiled returns. When I first started the process, I thought they’d have a bunch of mistakes to fix up and maybe get a little money back as they hadn’t kept track of anything related to their business because they had not created a bookkeeping system and were late on filing their returns. However, when we conducted a more rigorous analysis, it became clear that there were not only years’ worth of improperly reported income but also expenses that had not even been included in the final calculation. This case taught me that the true benefit to providing specialized services in the area of taxation is more than just timely filing of the returns, it is helping clients identify opportunities and risks related to their business that they did not realize were there before.
What is the biggest challenge you face each day and how do you handle it?
Each day I have to manage immediate demands for my clients through message boxes mixed with the need to maintain a robust concentration while performing cross-border tax work. For example, while completing a thorough review of a complicated US Limited Liability Company application filed on behalf of a foreign person, I might receive a message from a creator who has just received payment from a client, needs assistance with an FBAR deadline, or needs help completing a treaty form. If I allow each individual message to dictate how I spend my workday, I will most likely experience decreased attention to detail and a higher chance of making errors as I will not be able to devote time to reviewing my work.
To balance these competing demands and provide high-quality service to my clients, I assess each request based on its urgency and importance. I categorize every request using a triage system consisting of “urgent deadline,” “important but not same day,” or “routine.” I assign blocks of time each week to perform detailed cross-border tax work. I utilize my team to respond to routine questions regarding bookkeeping and maintain a review process for any requests that directly impact my client’s position on their filings. By implementing this triage methodology into my daily workflow, I am able to maintain my ability to focus on performing thorough reviews of all filings while still being responsive to all of my clients.
What do you value most and why?
Trust is my number one priority. My clients rely on me to handle their entire financial lives. Their income can come from multiple countries, multiple platforms and multiple entities. If I don’t earn their trust, they will keep information hidden from me, delays on sending documents and not taking my advice. This leads to penalties, double taxation and missed deductions. Without trust there can be no viable tax results.
Building trust is done by explaining complex tax rules to clients in layman’s terms, being transparent about my reliance on research for an answer and not making promises I cannot keep. When a digital nomad or YouTuber understands that we are always honest—even when honesty is uncomfortable—they make better decisions and stay loyal to us for years.
What achievement are you the proudest of and why?
Helping a YouTube creator reclaim $ 28,000 worth of unclaimed deductions and get their tax returns filed was the most fulfilling thing I have accomplished. This client worked with us after being behind on filing as well as not having any bookkeeping software. This one case demonstrated that there is real financial gain and exposure to tax liabilities that these types of businesses (cross-border tax services) can generate that traditional tax practitioners may have overlooked.
This accomplishment has validated the entire BizBud business model by showing that creators require more than just an annual tax preparer. Creators need bookkeeping services available year-round, proactive tax strategy planning, and an accountant who understands how to manage income generated through platforms where they sell products and services, as well as how to deal with the complexities of international taxation. This specific transaction built confidence in our team and provided potential clients with a solid reason to trust that we were experienced in our niche focus.
What is your favorite book and why?
“The Psychology of Money” by Morgan Housel is my favorite book because Morgan Housel teaches the reader that rather than spreadsheets, creating an environment in which you can be financially successful is about understanding emotion and developing a positive attitude through fear and patience. The insights from this book correlate perfectly with the way a lot of creators struggle with tax compliance due to the overwhelm of numbers and the amount of work required to file.
I learned from this book that effective advice about money needs to include addressing the emotions the person has towards their money and not just the rules that apply to them. Additionally, I have taken these insights and applied them to help lead BizBud in a way that focuses on helping clients form calm, stable financial habits instead of scrambling to complete their taxes in April. By focusing on the behavioral side of tax preparation and filing, clients are less likely to panic and are therefore more likely to comply with their tax obligations consistently, and they will also have a better foundation to work with to begin planning for the upcoming year.
What advice would you give to your younger self and why?
The primary advice I would give to my younger self is: “Specialize sooner!” Start focusing on one market instead of trying to be everything to everyone. In my early years, I provided regular accounting services to various small business types that kept my doors open and my cash flow stable, but these activities took away from my development of expertise and delayed the establishment of predictable systems in my practice. Although that breadth felt safe, it didn’t allow me to develop the confidence to be seen as “the expert” in my field.
Had I concentrated on providing services to the creator and digital nomad markets sooner, I would have built my subscription model and created my international checklist and referral program much more rapidly. Finding one customer segment with a significant pain point, and solving it for them consistently is how to create momentum and traction for your business. Specialists compete on value; generalists tend to compete on price.
Who has been your biggest mentor in life (personal or professional) and how have they helped you?
The most significant professional influence on my career has been a senior CPA I worked for when I first began in this field. He instructed me how to break down tax regulation language into simple words so that anyone could comprehend it, along with teaching me how to decline clients who aren’t suitable for services. This individual discouraged me from relying on technical terms and jargon to communicate, he would tell me that if I was not capable of explaining an issue simply to a client, I did not have enough knowledge on the subject.
The exceptional teaching that I received from my mentor has continued to impact how we run and grow BizBud today. The team members will receive training on breaking down complicated and confusing filings such as FBAR’s, FEIE’s, and tax treaty filings into easy-to-use and understandable steps for our customers. In addition to these filings, we will not reach out to customers solely wanting to work with us to complete tax filings at the cheapest possible price. The values of integrity and clarity outweigh the need to work with as many customers as possible, which is something my mentor taught me that has integrated into how we operate and serve the creators and digital nomads.
Just for fun, what is your favorite ice cream flavor?
Ube flavor.