Do I need to file if I live outside the U.S.?
The U.S. government requires that every U.S. Person files their taxes on an annual bases on their world-wide income, not just the income they earned in the United States. This includes those U.S. Persons living in the U.S. or the expats.
A U.S. Person is one of these:
- A U.S. citizen
- A green card holder
- A firm organized under the laws of the U.S.
How is filing from outside the U.S. different?
The process of preparing and filing your expat US Taxes taxes is very similar to filing the US Taxes when you reside in US, however the expat’s US Tax Return includes several different forms that such as the IRS Form 2555, Foreign Income Exclusion and FBAR as well as the IRS Form 1116 – (Foreign Tax Credit).
For most of our clients, reporting the forms accurately results in no tax liabilities which means you expect not to pay any taxes at all, you just need to be sure you are filing the expat tax forms correctly.
Can I file my taxes on my own?
Absolutely, however we do not recommend it. Even experienced CPAs in the U.S. have a hard time preparing and filing expat taxes because of all the different exclusions, deductions and country-specific regulations related to the paid foreign taxes.
There are a lot of small details related to filing your income from outside US. To get the best possible tax position and deductions you should use a service that is:
Backed by the knowledge and experience of CPAs and Tax Attorneys.
Has specialized services and experience working on U.S. expat taxation.
I didn’t know and haven’t filed in years! What do I do now?
This is a common issue with U.S. expats, especially those who have not lived in the United States for long. Luckily, the IRS provides several programs to reach a compromise with U.S. persons who are not in compliance.
This is a common issue with U.S. expats, especially those who have not lived in the United States for long. Luckily, the IRS provides several programs such as Streamlined Process (SLP) to comply and avoid all related criminal and financial penalties as U.S. persons reside abroad and did not file US Taxes and FBAR for several years.
