As a U.S. citizen, no matter what country you live, you have tax duties. IRS requires all U.S. citizens, including expats, to submit standard income taxes. Expats must also file an informational return on their assets for their foreign bank accounts through FinCEN Form 114 or the FBAR (Foreign Bank Account Report). Wages and self-employment […]
Many expats can use the FEIE or the Foreign Earned Income Exclusion as one of the tax money-saving devices. If you want to take advantage of the FEIE, you have to use either the physical presence test or the bona fide residence test. Although many expats consider the bona fide residence test as a natural […]
New tax filing and tax payment guidelines are to be set by the IRS. The revised Internal Revenue Code section 965 can potentially affect US expats. Get to know more about section 965 and how it affects you. What is Section 965 United States shareholders defined under section 951 must pay a transition tax […]
Wherever an expat lives around the world, as a green card holder and a U.S. citizen, he must file the U.S. tax returns. Considering between the U.S. and your local country’s tax returns, you might think that filing one first over the other is essential. In reality, no matter which tax return you file has […]
Each year, between Thanksgiving and New Year, IRS uses the “offseason” to update tax forms. Hence, the e-filing services are shut down each mid-November. Usually, the changes refer to the form design and other aesthetic factors. The recent tax form was not the usual. An evidence of this one is the lengthy “What’s New” section […]
GILTI is a new term many expat taxpayers are getting familiar with. The year 2019 has brought many tax reforms, including the Tax Cut and the Jobs Act. The changes include tax rates modifications and other reforms. There are also changes in child tax credits, standard deduction, deductions for medical, charity, and state and local […]
The purpose of the IRS for the Foreign Tax Credit is to help taxpayers offset the adverse effects of double taxation. The FTC is a money-saving credit. If you want to claim this credit, you need to fill out Form 1116. This two-page form has a 24-page set of instructions from the IRS. The following […]
A group of Americans in France, known as the “accidental Americans,” is taking legal action. The lawsuit is filed against foreign banks which uphold FATCA. The expat subset argues that supporting FATCA is a form of discrimination. Many expats around the world disagree with the citizenship-based American taxes need. Who are the Accidental Americans? Accidental […]
Children may bring us a bright future, but there are expenses related to raising kids. As a consideration to the parents, taxpayers who have children and other dependents, can have several tax benefits. This is part of helping them with the related expenses of child-rearing. The tax reform bill gives several changes which can either […]
As an expat, FinCEN Form 114 or FBAR is one important form when it comes to tax filing. This form is where you report all of your non-US financial accounts including the highest balance for each of your financial accounts during the year. The complexity of this process occurs once you transfer funds between accounts. […]
