tax reporting for dummy EXPATS?
February 17, 2017 3:10 PM   Subscribe

There are guides for dummies on US tax reporting. I need THAT but for EXPATS. Know of any?

I'm looking for a step by step guide (book/ebook/ecourse/website/video/webinar) on tax reporting for expats - SPECIFICALLY how to do the Streamlined Foreign Offshore Procedure AND how to regularly file taxes/foreign accounts (FBAR) for after that.

So far I'm not finding any. My searches are coming up with tax accountants/lawyers/agents that would be happy to file for me (can't afford them. so please do not advise me to consult one). I'd love to hear of any DIY tax filing guide for expats out there! Thanks!!!

throwaway email: worried.expat@gmail.com
posted by anonymous to Work & Money (1 answer total) 4 users marked this as a favorite
 
YouTube has a number of videos dedicated to FBAR. Here's one and you can start there. The FBAR itself is pretty easy.

With the Streamlined Foreign Offshore Procedure for US Expats I would be much more careful. I don't want to scare you, but I had a friend who used these without fully understanding some of the rules and ended up in a big bucket of hot water. If you have nothing which makes your case special or complex (no PFICs, no foreign trusts, no substantial support payments from the host government) and it really is straight up simple then you should just be able to use tax preparation software to handle the last 3 years of forms. Things can also get fairly tricky if you're in a country who reports on a cycle different than a calendar year (as I have now in Hong Kong).

I don't know where you are, but in at least one of the countries I lived the Americans Abroad groups regularly organised evenings with tax experts who took your simple questions. You might check with them.
posted by frumiousb at 3:47 PM on February 17, 2017


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