Mostly I was trying to explain US tax law to non-USAians ... but in general you need to lock in your investment in a way that the IRS can tell that you meet the

Mostly I was trying to explain US tax law to non-USAians ... but in general you need to lock in your investment in a way that the IRS can tell that you meet the long term holding requirements (often your broker will do that for you in your 1099 these days if you're dealing in shares)