As almost everyone knows today, most US citizens and green card holders are required to file an annual tax return on their worldwide income, whether or not any tax is owed (see page 7 of the 1040 Instruction booklet for the minimum filing thresholds). No one likes paying taxes but the law is the law (until it is changed!), and overseas Americans are often unaware of their tax obligations or confused about how to comply.
While FAWCO joined AARO in protesting to the IRS regarding the closing of their last offices abroad, we must applaud their virtual outreach efforts to provide assistance to international taxpayers in other ways.
One of these is an International Individual Taxpayer Assistance (IITA) program which has, to date, released six videos covering basic questions that most overseas Americans ask themselves at one time or another:
- International Taxpayers – Introduction to the International Taxpayers Web page
- Filing requirements
- The Individual Taxpayer Identification Number (ITIN)
- The Foreign Earned Income Exclusion
- Filing Status if married to a Nonresident Alien
- The Foreign Tax Credit
While these do not take the place of an actual IRS agent to whom you can speak, they are clear and helpful, and are specifically designed for the overseas population. So far, they do not appear to have been viewed by many people, and we encourage our readers to share this information with others!
Two other helpful resourses are the dedicated website for international individual taxpayers, and the international index of tax topics.
