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International Reporting

Income earned abroad still has a U.S. filing obligation

FBAR and foreign asset reporting, returns for Americans working overseas, filings for foreign nationals, and U.S. reporting for companies with entities in other countries.

The United States taxes its citizens and residents on worldwide income, which surprises people every year. An American working in Dubai still files. A foreign national with U.S. income files here too. A company with subsidiaries abroad has U.S. reporting obligations for those entities. And accounts held overseas can trigger disclosure requirements whose penalties dwarf the tax involved.

This is specialty compliance work, and the penalties for getting it wrong are unusually severe. Missing an FBAR is not like missing a deduction. We handle the reporting, coordinate the foreign tax credits so the same income is not taxed twice, and bring people who have fallen behind back into compliance in the order that protects them best.

What we handle

i.
Income reported outside the United StatesForeign wages, business income and investment income brought correctly onto the U.S. return, with foreign tax credits applied.
ii.
Americans working abroadU.S. returns for citizens and residents living overseas, including foreign earned income exclusion and housing calculations.
iii.
Foreign national tax returnsFilings for nonresidents and new arrivals with U.S. income, property or business interests.
iv.
Foreign entities of U.S. companiesU.S. reporting for companies whose subsidiaries or affiliates operate in other countries.
v.
FBAR and foreign asset reportingFinCEN 114 and related foreign account and asset disclosures, prepared and filed on schedule.
vi.
Catching up on missed yearsDelinquent foreign filings addressed through the appropriate procedures, in the sequence that limits exposure.
The Value of One Firm

The reporting penalties in this area are among the harshest in the tax code, and most of them apply whether or not any tax was owed. Getting the filings right is the entire point.

Questions

Asked and answered

I live abroad and pay tax there. Do I still file in the U.S.?
If you are a U.S. citizen or resident, almost certainly yes. Filing does not necessarily mean paying twice; the foreign earned income exclusion and foreign tax credits usually prevent that. But the return itself is still required, and the exclusions have to be claimed properly to apply.
What is an FBAR and do I need one?
It is a disclosure of foreign financial accounts, filed with FinCEN rather than the IRS. If your foreign accounts together passed $10,000 at any point during the year, even for a day, the filing is generally required. It reports the accounts, not income, and the penalties for skipping it are severe.
I have not filed for several years abroad. How bad is it?
Better than you fear, if you come forward before the government does. There are established procedures for taxpayers who were genuinely unaware of the requirements. The important thing is addressing it deliberately and in the right order rather than quietly filing one year and hoping.
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