Hi-

My best friend's mother found some old stocks in a foreign company given to her a few years back and recently sold all of them because the company was bought out. Her mother put all the money in a joint foreign bank account with her. The total is about $2 million U.S. dollars. What the best way to get the money over here since her name is on the account. Also, she's thinking of purchasing a new home and wants money transferred into an escrow account. What are the tax implications of this kind of inheritance? Can she put all the money into an escrow account?

I do not think it is an inheritance, because it sounds like her mother is still alive.

The original stock was a GIFT to your mother. Now the gift is probably NOT taxable to her, but the capital gains on the stock (the difference between what was originally paid for the stock and what the stock sold for) IS taxable.

If her mother then transfers the money to your friend, THAT is a gift to her, and if it exceeds $12,000, a gift tax return is required.

Your friend and her mother need to get professional tax advice immediately. Transferring that amount of money from overseas WILL get noticed and reported to the IRS, who down the road will ask WHERE the money came from.

I agree that you should definitely discuss this with a tax professional. When the numbers are this big, you should not be seeking advice on a bulletin board.