Expat Tax Services for US Citizens Abroad

Yes. US citizens and green card holders must file US tax returns reporting worldwide income regardless of where they live. However, exclusions and credits (FEIE, Foreign Tax Credit) typically eliminate or greatly reduce actual tax owed — especially in high-tax countries. The filing obligation exists even if no tax is owed.

The FEIE allows qualifying expats to exclude a substantial amount of foreign earned income from US federal tax. The limit is set by the IRS and indexed annually for inflation. To qualify, your tax home must be in a foreign country and you must meet either the Physical Presence Test (330 days outside the US) or the Bona Fide Residence Test (established foreign resident). Note that this is a maximum exclusion, not a filing threshold — filing thresholds are tested on your income before the exclusion, so the FEIE can never bring you under them, and it must be claimed on Form 2555. The limit is per qualifying person, so spouses who each qualify file separately. We confirm the current year's figure and apply the exclusion optimally.

FBAR (FinCEN 114) is an annual report of foreign financial accounts with combined value exceeding $10,000 at any point during the year. It's filed separately from your tax return. For non-willful violations the penalty is a maximum, not a minimum — the statutory cap is adjusted for inflation — and since the Supreme Court's decision in Bittner v. United States (2023) that cap applies once per annual report, not per account. No penalty applies at all where the failure was due to reasonable cause and the accounts are properly reported on a delinquent or amended FBAR. Willful violations are far more serious: assessed per account, and capped at the greater of an inflation-adjusted statutory amount or 50% of the account balance. If you've missed prior FBARs, we can often use streamlined procedures to catch up with reduced penalties.

The IRS Streamlined Foreign Offshore Procedures allow qualifying expats who non-willfully failed to file or report foreign accounts to catch up by filing 3 years of returns and 6 years of FBARs, with significantly reduced penalties. This is the preferred path for most non-compliant expats. We guide you through the entire process.

Renunciation is irreversible and triggers an "exit tax" (mark-to-market gains on worldwide assets) if your net worth exceeds $2M or you've had high average annual tax over the prior 5 years. We advise on the full implications before any client considers this path. For many expats, proper planning substantially reduces or eliminates the US tax actually owed — which often makes renunciation unnecessary.