this post was submitted on 07 Nov 2024
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why: so the government won't be able to use your money for whatever the fuck they're planning for the next 4 years.

as a traveler, none of my money has been funding Israel, for example.

one-step method: you basically fill out one extra tax form called FEIE while you're doing your taxes, write down the dates you were outside of the country, and then since you aren't in the country and are not receiving any services from the US, you don't have to pay income tax up to a certain amount (it's a little over 125k this year).

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[–] voracitude@lemmy.world 142 points 5 days ago (15 children)

But if you earn over the threshold, you're expected to pay taxes to the US government, no matter where you're actually living or working, no matter if you're also paying taxes wherever you currently are. The US is the only country in the world to assert that it has the right to tax its citizens remotely in this manner. It's not normal.

[–] thefactremains@lemmy.world 66 points 5 days ago (2 children)

The US has double taxation treaties with over 60 countries. When you pay taxes somewhere else, you deduct all of that tax from your US taxes above the $125k.

Though I definitely agree the IRS shouldn't need these treaties, because if you're not living there, why should you even need to file?

[–] sunzu2@thebrainbin.org 25 points 5 days ago (1 children)

Because US law says so lol

Y'all just now learning that laws are written for the benefit of the ruling regime, not the peasants.

[–] Aatube@kbin.melroy.org 19 points 5 days ago

There were only “two parties in all States,” Randolph concluded. “The ins and the outs.” The ins construed governmental power broadly for the gain of their own “patronage and wealth,” while the outs tried to limit such power. “But let the outs get in . . . and you will find their Constitutional scruples and arguments vanish like dew before the morning sun.”

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[–] teft@lemmy.world 23 points 5 days ago (18 children)

They also charge you a crazy exit tax if you want to give up citizenship in order to save on taxes. They always get their pound of flesh.

[–] morgan_423@lemmy.world 6 points 3 days ago

Which is absolutely wild to me, considering that all natively born citizens received their citizenship involuntarily at birth.

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[–] Squizzy@lemmy.world 4 points 3 days ago

Add that to the list

Double taxation treaties are very common. What I've been told by US coworkers makes the US stand out is that you still need to file your taxes with the IRS, even when living abroad. No idea if that's actually the case.

I have lived outside my native country for a while and only had to file taxes in my country of residence (neither of which is the US), because there's a DTAA in place between the two.

[–] Varyk@sh.itjust.works 11 points 5 days ago* (last edited 5 days ago)

"over the threshold, you're expected to pay taxes"

sort of, that's the "up to 125k" limit part of the FEIE(readjusted for inflation every year).

you still don't pay taxes on the first 125k.

earning more than 125k is not a problem most people have.

The problem most people have is not knowing that the feie exists in the first place and there are legal, straightforward ways to avoid paying income tax while saving money traveling.

"no matter if you're also paying taxes wherever you currently are..."

this is very iffy and depends on a lot of factors.

again, for most regular people, foreign income tax credits will erase most financial duties to the US.

"The US is the only country in the world..."

nearly.

"It's not normal."

nope, it's definitely weird and it sucks.

but at least there's the FEIE.

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[–] weirdboy@lemm.ee 11 points 3 days ago (1 children)

The exemption only applies to earned income, meaning you cannot apply any of that $125k to stuff like investment returns, dividends, royalties, or rents collected.

[–] Varyk@sh.itjust.works 3 points 3 days ago (2 children)

That's right.

The Foreign Earned Income Exclusion specifically applies to earned income, and does not apply to unearned income.

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[–] 9point6@lemmy.world 43 points 5 days ago (3 children)

I always find it mad as hell that Americans have to pay tax in the US even if they are living and earning elsewhere

Especially given generally Americans are pretty allergic to reasonable taxation

[–] Varyk@sh.itjust.works 13 points 5 days ago (1 children)

yeah it is totally banana stacks, and nobody tells anybody else how to get around that, of course.

since nobody knows the sacred knowledge anyway.

some tax guy, not my tax guy, just a random guy who worked in taxes, offhandedly mentioned it to me like it was no big deal one day and I was like whaaaat?

most of the expats I know just don't pay taxes because they're dumb, or they're paying taxes that they don't need to because nobody told them about the FEIE.

[–] pimeys@lemmy.nauk.io 9 points 4 days ago (13 children)

You still need to file every year. An advisor at least here in Germany can do both countries, but you pay a premium for that.

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[–] nxn@biglemmowski.win 7 points 3 days ago (11 children)

If you were employed by a foreign company that has no presence in the US how exactly would the IRS know whether you've earning more than $125k?

[–] AnxiousOtter@lemmy.world 5 points 3 days ago (1 children)

Because money keeps getting deposited in your bank account every two weeks and you're not reporting any income.

Banks hand all of that information over.

[–] nxn@biglemmowski.win 5 points 3 days ago* (last edited 3 days ago) (2 children)

Maybe I'm not understanding what you mean, but if someone works and lives abroad for 330 days of the year they'll likely have a bank account established within that country so that they don't have to deal with all of their daily financial activities being international transactions.

[–] weirdboy@lemm.ee 6 points 3 days ago* (last edited 3 days ago) (1 children)

There is a system whereby foreign banks are obligated to report accounts held by Americans to the US for "anti terrorism" purposes.

And as a us citizen you are also obligated to report all of your foreign accounts in a FBAR filing each year.

[–] nxn@biglemmowski.win 4 points 3 days ago (1 children)

There is a system whereby foreign banks are obligated to report accounts held by Americans to the US for “anti terrorism” purposes.

Could you give me a name, or at least some link to a government website that describes the system you're talking about?

[–] weirdboy@lemm.ee 4 points 3 days ago

https://www.fatf-gafi.org/en/countries/global-network.html

I am sure there are better sources than this, but I am going by what I was told by the bank when I opened an account here in Japan. And maybe it does not only apply to Americans, but I was told at the bank that I had to fill out additional anti-terror related paperwork with US details specifically because of US citizenship.

[–] AnxiousOtter@lemmy.world 2 points 3 days ago (2 children)

Perhaps I'm the one who misread. I took OP's comment as saying working for a foreign company with no presence in the US while living in the US. On a second read, that might not be what they meant.

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[–] Avg@lemm.ee 5 points 3 days ago

Honor system

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[–] tiredofsametab@fedia.io 25 points 4 days ago (2 children)

However, since you don't pay taxes on that money, it can impact which kinds of retirement accounts you can use based in the US, if any. Also, trying to invest as a US citizen outside the US can suck because of all the agreements with US banks. Many Japanese platforms, for instance, won't touch me because of US reporting requirements. I also can't functionally use the tax-advantaged retirement accounts here because many amount to what are called PFICs by the IRS which requires paperwork and are taxed punitively more than wiping out any advantage the retirement accounts would have.

You're also going to have a rough time getting a US investment account if you don't have one already. Then you have to figure out how to have a US phone number because two-factor auth basically requires it for any bank or anything that will touch you.

There are other "fun" things about being a US citizen living abroad.

[–] frank@sopuli.xyz 7 points 4 days ago (3 children)

Do you live abroad? I'm expatting in a few weeks (long planned, not in a pure panic due to Trump) and would love ask a few questions if so!

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[–] Varyk@sh.itjust.works 8 points 4 days ago (1 children)

"However, since you don't pay taxes on that money, it can impact which kinds of retirement accounts you can use, if any"

The math works out in your favor.

wouldn't you rather have that money earning interest now rather than receiving a few hundred later on when you probably don't need it as much?

"Also, trying to invest as a US citizen outside the US can suck because of all the agreements with US banks."

it can suck, and it can also be awesome.

I see you're speaking specifically to Japanese banking standards, which I would agree are one of the more difficult countries for a US citizen to interface with.

but that's a great thing about there being about 200 countries.

Bank somewhere else if you want to.

try Hong Kong or China or Thailand or Portugal or Sweden or you know, a lot of countries.

you don't have to live in the country you bank in.

[–] tiredofsametab@fedia.io 7 points 4 days ago

Yeah, some is specific to Japan, though there will be similar hurdles anywhere the US has an agreement (and that the target country's institutions actually follow it, I suppose).

I have a couple of retirement accounts in the US that I contributed to before (I moved overseas in my early 30s) that I basically can't touch for a number of reasons right now. Just wanted to throw it out there.

[–] Blaze@lemmy.cafe 12 points 4 days ago (9 children)

It might be interesting to crosspost this to !politicaldiscussion@lemmy.world

Also, I know you mean good, but this isn't relevant to probably a high number of Lemmy users who are not US citizens

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[–] frank@sopuli.xyz 9 points 4 days ago (5 children)

Yeah, it goes up faster than inflating each year, it seems. 126,400 per person or 253k for married I believe this year, which is a pretty fair bit especially considering you deduct the taxes you locally pay off the top first, afaik

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[–] Im_old@lemmy.world 10 points 5 days ago (3 children)

Unless you renounce US citizenship of course. I understand it's a bit extreme, but it is a solution

[–] Varyk@sh.itjust.works 9 points 5 days ago* (last edited 5 days ago)

do you mean "another option to avoid paying taxes is renouncing your citizenship?"

in which case, yeah, extreme and still an option.

but the FEIE is way simpler and you can keep the few perks US citizenship still affords its rabble.

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