Pricing plans. Jan 07, Oct 28, Tax Guide for Norwegian Expats in the U. Tax Guide for Chinese Expats in the U. All articles. How to Obtain a Copy of Past Returns Prior year transcripts - who to call, which forms to fill out, etc. Received IRS Notice? Scary IRS letters? We will help you debunk them and form an action plan to fix any issues.
Short answer: Yes. Long answer: Certainly, but your tax return needs to be optimized. All IRS Financial Planning. Expat Tax Rules. Non-US Citizens. Real Estate. Foreign Business. Family Matters. Tax Saving Strategies.
Mail Bag. Recently Published Recently Published Articles. Foreign Nationals. All Tax Musings. Glossary of Tax Terms Expatriate tax glossary. Commonly used terms explained. Who needs to file, when, and why?
It depends on the country and the plan. Partial Year Exclusion Moving overseas inbound or outbound midyear is not uncommon. All Tax Concepts. But, outside of legal reasons, many taxpayers may also benefit from refunds. Minimum Filing Requirements What are the minimum thresholds that trigger tax filing requirements?
Tax Documents Required Which documents you may require in getting caught up to date on your tax returns. Do Expats File State Taxes? It depends. State taxes are one of the most misunderstood aspects of expat tax.
Common Tax Forms Thousands of tax forms exist, but which select few you really need to understand. All Expat Tax American Educators Abroad TFX has partnerships with many international schools to assist their staff with tax filings. American Contractors Overseas Contractor taxes contain many nuances, especially for potential state tax filing requirements. I recommend that you take them up on that offer and work through the questions.
According to the IRS website, answering these questions should take you no longer than minutes. This is certainly worth your time, especially if it saves the time it would take you to file or if it saves you from having money withheld unnecessarily. If any of the above circumstances apply to you then you should file a federal tax return regardless of your earnings.
If you have confirmed that none of these circumstances apply to you, then you might be able to avoid filing. The next question you need to ask is whether someone else can claim you as a dependent.
For filers age 65 and older, the income numbers are slightly higher for some filing types. See the IRS questionnaire for more information on this. If you are a dependent of another taxpayer , then you follow a different set of rules. Learn more about what qualifies someone as a dependent on this IRS webpage. Dependents who are under 65 and have unearned income i. For example, year-old Danielle is claimed as a dependent by her parents. Since all three of these factors apply, Danielle does not have to file a tax return.
Still confused? And being able to file for free with TurboTax makes it a no brainer. According to TurboTax, simple tax situations can include:. Before you start, get all of your paperwork gathered. To determine if you need to file a return using TurboTax, begin by answer a few questions.
If you already have an Intuit account for Quickbooks or Mint, you can use the same login to have one account for all of their services. TurboTax asked questions based on your response to previous questions. So the steps you experience will be unique to your current situation.
The TurboTax software will walk you through the steps to determine if you need to file a return based on your responses to questions. Possible information to enter will be:.
Deductions are things that can lower your taxable income, while tax credits can reduce the amount of tax due. Here are some examples:. TurboTax helps you through each area of deductions and credits to ensure you get all the tax breaks you qualify for. After completing your personal information, income, tax breaks, and any other tax situations, it will be time to review your federal return. If there are any problems, the software will direct you to the areas that need a second look or additional information to file your return.
Now that your federal return is complete and reviewed, TurboTax gives you the option to pull your federal return information into your state return. The process for completing your state return is the same as your federal. The software takes you step-by-step through your income and tax breaks specific to your state. If you are owed a return, TurboTax will need additional information on how you would like to receive your federal and state refunds.
Here are some situations where that could be the case:. If your employer withheld federal income taxes from your pay or you made estimated tax payments, filing a tax return may allow you to receive some or all of those overpayments back in the form of a tax refund.
Keep in mind, if you regularly file a tax return just to get a refund of the tax your employer withheld, you might want to decrease your withholding. Refundable tax credits are particularly valuable for low-income taxpayers because they can provide a refund beyond what you paid for the year via withholding or estimated tax payments. Refundable credits include:. In effect, the IRS could come after you in a decade or more and claim that you should have filed a return.
The filing requirements outlined above apply to federal income tax returns, but if you live in a state with a state-level income tax, you may also need to file there. Janet Berry-Johnson is a CPA who writes about income taxes, small business accounting, and personal finance. She lives in Omaha, Nebraska, where she enjoys cooking, reading, and spending time outdoors with her husband, son, and their rescue dog, Dexter.
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