US Tax News

It was recently reported by Bloomberg that Suzan LeVine, the US Ambassador to Switzerland, has sent a letter to the CEOs of the country’s 266 banks asking them to offer banking services to the 20,000 US expats living in Switzerland. UBS and Credit Suisse, two of the country’s biggest banks, have already put in place […]

Many Americans living abroad aren’t aware that they have US tax filing requirements. As expats, they assume that they don’t have to file a US federal (or State) return, or pay US taxes. Expats who assume this are mistaken though, and may soon face IRS audits and fines if they don’t meet their US legal […]

All US taxpayers living overseas have to file a federal income tax return each year if they earn over $10,000, or just $400 of self-employment income, regardless of where they live or where their income is generated. They may also have to pay US income tax on their foreign earned income, depending on their circumstances. […]

Most US expats are aware that the IRS is interested in Americans living abroad, and many have heard whispers about FATCA and FBAR, however millions are still unsure about their legal obligations. Worse still, rather like the person at the end in a game of Chinese whispers, many have heard incorrect information via word of […]

Tax is a topic that American expats would be naive to ignore. The IRS, considering expats something of a rich seam to be tapped, is ever more enthusiastic and efficient at tracking their foreign financial affairs so as to check them against their tax returns, and with penalties for not filing harsh, it makes sense […]

Our Bright!Tax IRS Insights series lifts up the hood to reveal the inner workings of the IRS engine. Today we’ll be looking at the best strategies for responding to an IRS audit letter. As described in our previous IRS Insights article, the IRS can access a vast amount of information about US taxpayers living abroad, […]

Our new Bright!Tax IRS Insights series allows you to look deep into the workings of the IRS machine. Today we’ll be looking at how the IRS decides which Americans living abroad to audit. The IRS aims to ensure that all revenue due is collected, and the fuel that enables it to do this is big-data. […]

Forbes, CNN, and The Washington Times were among press outlets recently reporting that record numbers of Americans renounced their US citizenship in 2015. This was also the case in 2014, as we reported on this platform at the time. But the increase on what was then a record 3415 Americans renouncing citizenship in 2014 jumped over 25% to […]

Since the FATCA law was passed in 2010, US expats are obliged to declare their foreign earnings and assets, along with their foreign bank accounts. So how should you set about choosing your expat tax preparer? Firstly, go with a specialist. Expat taxes can be convoluted sometimes, especially if there are several years’ worth to […]

Nina E. Olson, the IRS’s National Taxpayer Advocate, has slammed her employer in her latest report to congress for failing to adequately compensate American taxpayers living abroad for the closure of overseas tax assistance offices at a time when expat tax requirements are getting more burdensome and complex by the year. She also says that […]