03/26/2020
The Coronavirus, or COVID-19, outbreak is currently wreaking havoc around the world, with many countries introducing a total lockdown. Governments around the world are also taking unprecedented measures to help mitigate the economic fallout. As part of these measures, the US government has announced a 90 day tax filing extension this year, so tax day […]
03/23/2020
American tax rules require all US citizens and green card holders, including expats, to file US taxes on their global income. It’s unusual for expats to have to file: most countries just require residents to file, or just tax income arising in the country. As a result, American expats often have to file two tax […]
03/19/2020
Coronavirus, or COVID-19 to give it its official name, is an infectious illness that originated in China in late 2019 and has since spread across the world, causing widespread disruption. As governments struggle to contain and mitigate for the outbreak, we look at what coronavirus means for US expats filing taxes in 2020. 1 – […]
03/12/2020
Over nine million Americans reside abroad, a greater number than the residents of all but ten US states. Due to a quirk in America’s tax system dating back to the Civil War, American expats are still subject to US income tax filing requirements on their worldwide income. US income tax filing from abroad is different […]
03/05/2020
American expats are required to file a US tax return, reporting their global income, even if they file foreign taxes too. When they file, expats can claim either the Foreign Earned Income Exclusion, or the Foreign Tax Credit, to reduce their US income tax bill, most often to zero. The Foreign Tax Credit lets expats […]
02/27/2020
The question is simple, the answer less so. As so often with tax questions, the devil is in the detail. The US introduced a citizenship based tax system during the Civil War, and it’s never been repealed. This means that the US taxes based on citizenship, so all US citizens have to pay US taxes […]
02/24/2020
Of the over 9 million Americans living overseas, many still aren’t aware that they have to file US taxes, despite living abroad, and reporting their worldwide income. The IRS has several amnesty programs available for these expats, depending on their circumstances. Two of the most important of these are the Voluntary Disclosure Practice, and the […]
02/20/2020
The majority of Americans use tax software to file their US taxes. In the light of this, it’s strange that the IRS has been changing Form 1040 over the last couple of years, as very few people use it. Instead, the majority either employ a tax preparer, who uses software, or input their information into […]
02/17/2020
A consequence of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act in 2017 was the introduction of IRS Form 8992: Global Intangible Low Taxed Income (GILTI). While its purpose was to discourage multinational corporations, like Apple,1 from evading US taxes, this legislation inadvertently impacted American expat small business owners worldwide. For US business owners operating as Controlled […]
02/13/2020
Americans who move abroad have to continue filing US taxes on their global income. This is because the US taxes all US citizens (and green card holders), wherever they live – including abroad. Most other countries only tax their residents on their worldwide income, or only tax income arising within the country, regardless where the […]