To Be Or Not To Be A US Citizen - Record Number Of US Expats Renouncing Citizenship In 2015

To Be Or Not To Be A US Citizen?- Record Number Of US Expats Renouncing Citizenship In 2015

Figures recently released by the US Treasury have highlighted that a record number of American expatriates chose to renounce their citizenship in the first quarter of 2015.

American expats living outside the US now total over 7.6 million. In the first three months of 2015 alone 1,335 expats chose to give up their passports - nearly 40% of the 3,415 Americans who renounced their citizenship in 2014. This increase can be directly linked to growing tax regulations for Americans living abroad including the implementation of the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA) last year which requires banks to report details of all accounts held by US expats to the US authorities. If banks fail to disclose information, or they mistakenly give the wrong details, they could face massive penalties.

For US expats there is no escape from filing US tax returns. No matter where they reside in the world, Americans earning more than $10,000 per annum are required to file their taxes, even though more often than not they will be required to pay nothing, or only a minimal amount in tax, because of the foreign tax credits they receive.

US tax filing has only been further intensified this year as the IRS and Treasury have been actively enforcing the Foreign Bank Account Report (FBAR), which requires all US citizens regardless of their income to file tax returns if they hold one or more foreign accounts totaling more than $10,000. Failure to do so can result in hefty fines of up to $10,000.

The fear of penalties by the United States has increasingly led many UK banks to restrict the services available to expats to the point that some banks are even refusing to allow US expats to hold accounts rather than have to comply with the exhaustive demands of FATCA. Such restrictions have only served as an added incentive for expats already contemplating renouncement of their U.S. citizenship.

Renouncing citizenship is a very big step however and should not be considered lightly. If you renounce your US citizenship you give up all legal rights of being a US citizen and can only visit the United States for a maximum of 90 days a year. It also does not come cheap; the fee has recently quadrupled from $450 to a costly $2,350. In addition, if you owe money in taxes to the IRS prior to renunciation, this does not disappear, you will still be required to settle your tax bill.

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The Streamlined Process - What is it and How Does it Work?

The Streamlined Process - What is it and How Does it Work?

 The streamline program is a voluntary disclosure procedure for Americans who have not filed their US tax returns, or reported foreign assets from previous tax years.

First offered by the IRS in autumn 2012, the streamlined filing procedure has recently been expanded and modified to accommodate a broader group of U.S. taxpayers. Major changes to the streamlined procedure include: 

• Extension of eligibility to U.S. taxpayers residing in the United States
• Elimination of the $1,500 tax threshold
• Elimination of the risk assessment process associated with the streamlined filing compliance procedure announced in 2012

Criteria for eligibility 

The streamline procedure is available for both American tax payers residing within the United States (Streamlined Domestic Offshore Procedures), and for US expats (Streamlined Foreign Offshore Procedures).

To qualify you will need to prove that you did not file your taxes due to ‘non-willful circumstances’. According to the IRS

“non-willful conduct results from negligence, inadvertence, or mistake that is the result of a good faith misunderstanding of the requirements of the law”.

It does not include those willingly trying to commit tax evasion to avoid paying required taxes.

The Streamlined process

If eligible for the streamlined procedure, an individual must follow specific instructions to ensure their forms will be processed correctly as outlined below:

1. If you’ve never previously filed a US tax return you will need to complete your return using Form 1040 (US Individual Tax Return) with the other necessary completed forms (including forms 3520, 5471 & 8938) for each of the most recent three years of missed US tax returns.
2. If you have previously filed a US tax return you will need to submit a Form 1040X        (Amended US Individual Tax Return) with the necessary corresponding returns for each of the most recent three years of missed US tax returns.
3. For both above situations at the top of the first page of each amended return you should include “Streamlined Foreign Offshore” written in red to ensure your forms are processed correctly under the special streamlined conditions. Failure to write this will result in your taxes not receiving the special processing and you will be required to pay the late fee penalties.
4. You will also need to complete and sign a statement on the certification by U.S. person residing in the US form to confirm you are eligible for the Streamlining process and that your previous negligence to file your taxes correctly was from non-willful conduct and all outstanding FBARs have now been filed.
5. It is important this form is completed, if it isn’t your returns will be processed normally and not under the special streamlining process. If this form is not completed and returned, your returns will be process normally, not under the special streamlining process.
6. Submit payment for any tax and interest due on any of the returns. It is important you pay any outstanding monies in full otherwise a balance notice will be sent to you. You must include your taxpayer identification number on your check.

Things to note….

In order to participate in the streamlined procedure taxpayers require a valid Taxpayer Identification Number (TIN). For U.S. citizens, resident aliens, and certain other individuals their TIN is a valid Social Security Number (SSN).

If you do not have a Social security Number or TIN, submit an application for an TIN along with your required forms.

For individuals who are not eligible for an SSN or TIN their tax returns will not be processed under the streamlined procedures.

Submitting streamlined returns

All paperwork together with any payment must be sent in paper form to the following address:

Internal Revenue Service
3651 South I-H 35
Stop 6063 AUSC
Attn: Streamlined Foreign Offshore
Austin, TX 78741

Tax returns submitted under either the Streamlined Foreign Offshore Procedures or the Streamlined Domestic Offshore Procedures will be processed like any other return submitted to the IRS. Consequently, receipt of tax returns will not be acknowledged by the IRS and the streamlined filing process will not culminate in the signing of a closing agreement with the IRS. 

Future tax returns

Following participation in the Streamlined Process, it is important to file your taxes fore all subsequent years using regular filing procedures in order to avoid any further penalties for neglecting to pay your taxes. 

How we can help 

At Bambridge Tax Services we have an expert team of IRS enrolled agents who are on hand to guide you through each step of completing your taxes and make the whole process as smooth as possible. 

We offer fixed rate fees and free initial  consultations so contact us today to find out how we can help you. 

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Catching Up On US Tax Returns

The US taxes its citizens on their worldwide income, regardless of where they reside. This fact may come as a shock -  it has done to many of the estimated 7.6 million Americans living abroad. The IRS estimates that only half of all US expats are filing the required US tax returns each year - that leaves a lot of outstanding returns! Thankfully, the IRS created a program to get caught up that is ideal for expats who were simply unaware of their filing requirements.

You need to complete the last 3 years of US tax returns and 6 years for foreign bank account reporting (FBAR).

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