First check which forms were required and whether your US returns reported related income. Late FBARs, delinquent information returns, and Streamlined Domestic have different rules. Streamlined Domestic generally requires any required returns to have been filed for each covered return year, unpaid tax on omitted foreign-financial-asset income, and non-willful conduct. Possible willfulness, IRS contact about the missing forms, or an IRS investigation calls for individual review.
Individuals
List every year a US Form 1040 was required, then get IRS transcripts, notices, and your own records. The IRS normally enforces six years, but every required year remains due; file even if you cannot pay. Each year's bill may include unpaid tax, late-filing, late-payment, and estimated-tax penalties, plus interest. Refund claims generally expire after three years.
Individuals · Self-employed
Giving up US citizenship or ceasing to be a long-term resident for US tax purposes can trigger exit tax if you meet a covered expatriate test. A green card holder first needs at least eight of the last fifteen qualifying tax years; a treaty-residence claim can end that status. Covered expatriates may owe tax on unrealized gains and retirement benefits. Citizens and long-term residents file Form 8854.
Individuals
Check each year's tax residence, treaties, and elections. If Form 1040 was wrong, file Form 1040-X with Form 1040-NR and required Forms 8843 or 8833; pay added tax, which both spouses may owe on a valid joint return. For exempt visa wages, ask the employer to refund Social Security and Medicare tax, then use Form 843 if needed.
Individuals · Self-employed
US citizens and green card holders generally must file when worldwide gross income meets the filing threshold, even with no US-source income or when an exclusion removes the tax. Foreign pay can be taxed, but eligible workers may claim the foreign earned income exclusion or a foreign tax credit. Self-employed workers may still owe US self-employment tax.
Individuals · Self-employed
If you become a US tax resident partway through the year and remain resident at year end, a required return is generally dual-status: Form 1040 with a nonresident-period statement. Find your start date under the green card test, substantial presence, or first-year choice. Report worldwide income after that date, taxable US income before it, and check foreign-account and state filing.
Individuals
File an FBAR (FinCEN Form 114) with FinCEN if the highest balances of foreign accounts you own or can sign on total more than $10,000. Attach Form 8938 to your tax return if your foreign assets pass its higher threshold: unmarried or married filing separately in the US, over $50,000 at year end or $75,000 anytime. You may need both.
Individuals · Self-employed
If you are a US citizen or tax resident, report taxable income from abroad on your US return even if it stays overseas. Report each item by income type, convert it to US dollars, then check whether a treaty changes its tax treatment. A foreign tax credit can reduce US income tax on qualifying foreign-source income, subject to limits.
Individuals
First identify what you legally own. Shares of a foreign fund may be passive foreign investment company (PFIC) stock, requiring Form 8621 for each fund and special tax calculations on distributions or sales. A bank deposit, debt claim, direct holding, or US fund bought abroad follows different rules. The product documents, purchase records, and your US residency date determine the answer.
Individuals
A genuine gift or inheritance from family abroad is generally excluded from US income. If you are a US person and receive more than the reporting threshold from a foreign donor or estate, you generally file Form 3520 even when no income tax is due. Foreign trusts and company payments follow different rules.
Individuals
First identify the owner, insured, and US contract type. A US owner may need FBAR and Form 8938 for foreign cash value; buying before US residency does not erase later duties. Tax may apply to growth or payouts, and the premium payer may owe Form 720 excise tax. Beneficiaries generally exclude qualifying death proceeds but report interest.
Individuals
First confirm tax residency. Generally file dual-status Form 1040-NR if resident part-year and nonresident at year end, Form 1040 if resident at year end, or Form 1040-NR if nonresident all year and required. Green-card and treaty rules or a spouse election can change filing. You owe any balance; your 401(k) may stay, while withdrawals can trigger withholding and early tax.
Individuals
You may file jointly if you are a US citizen or tax resident at year-end, your spouse is a nonresident alien then, and you both elect to treat your spouse as a US resident for income tax. The election brings both spouses' worldwide income onto the return and continues in later years. The choice depends on income, foreign tax, reporting, and later-year effects.
Individuals
US citizens and residents generally report rent and taxable gains from a home abroad on their US return. Foreign rentals have different depreciation rules, while a qualifying main home abroad can use the US home-sale exclusion. Convert each transaction to US dollars, then check whether foreign income tax can reduce the US tax on that income.
Individuals
For US citizens and residents, rental income is generally taxable on Schedule E, but ordinary rent is usually exempt from self-employment tax. You can deduct eligible expenses and depreciation, while improvements usually must be depreciated. Passive-loss rules often prevent rental losses from offsetting wages. Personal use, guest services, and a sale can change the result.
Individuals
First verify required returns and a green card holder's resident or treaty position; consult immigration counsel before changing a nonresident filing. For naturalization, file missing returns and document overdue-tax arrangements. For I-864, the petitioner supplies the most recent tax year's federal return or proves no filing duty; older returns are optional. Support liability begins at immigrant admission or adjustment.
Individuals
If you are a US tax resident and perform your employee work in the US, you owe US income tax on generally US-source wages, even when the employer pays from abroad. First confirm residence and workdays. Foreign withholding on US workdays usually cannot offset US tax; seek a foreign refund and have the employer check US payroll and social security coverage. Make US estimated payments if needed.
Individuals