Did you know that American citizens living and working abroad have to annually file taxes with the U.S. government, as well as in the country where they reside? The U.S. is, in fact, one of only two countries in the world - the other being Eritrea (...I know, right?!?) - with citizenship, rather than residence based, tax law.The forms are not simple, either. Due to tax treaties, most of us do not make enough money to actually pay taxes, but we are still required to file reams of paperwork telling the government that we don't owe them anything and they don't owe us anything. In my opinion, it is complete nonsense, especially since the rest of the world (sorry, Eritrea) doesn't find it necessary to burden their citizens like that.
One member of the Yanks Down Under forum was especially fed up, and created this petition to the White House about changing the code through the White House's public petition program.
If you are a U.S. citizen who agrees that the tax filing requirement puts an undue burden on citizens living abroad, I hope you'll consider signing and sharing this petition. I've signed it, and would love to see it pick up some support from the expat community, as well as all those who value the sanity of your countrymen living abroad!
Hi C,
ReplyDeleteDo you do your own US taxes? This is our first year here and I'm not sure how to do it. I always completed our taxes using Turbo Tax when we lived in the states, but not sure how to begin here. Can you steer me in the right direction?
Hi Yvette,
DeleteI have only been here for one year filing as a non-tax resident, and did my own. Even though my financial situation is quite simple, and I always did my own taxes at home, I still found them daunting. I know a lot of expats do hire accountants, and I'm starting to think it's worth the money. You have to make sure to get someone who has a specialty in U.S. taxes, not just any accountant here.
Not sure if you are on Yanks Down Under at all, but there's a wealth of great information there, which is the best place I can direct you. There is information about the forms you need to file, as well as some recommendations of accountants others have used. I think this page should be available, whether or not you have an account. Start here, and good luck! ... http://yanksdownunder.net/forum/4007735/