Who We Help Tax Help for Dual-Status Filers

Tax Help for Self-Employed Expats

You Moved Midyear. We’ll Handle Both Returns.

For anyone whose U.S. tax residency began or ended partway through the year, a resident for part of it and a nonresident for the rest. Filing both returns correctly is the part we take off your plate.
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We Know Both Sides of Your Move Year.

You Arrived in the U.S. Midyear

A green card or work visa (H-1B, L-1) made you a U.S. resident partway through the year.

You are not sure of your residency start date or how to split the year’s income.

You Left the U.S. Midyear

You gave up a green card, a visa, or U.S. citizenship itself, and your final year splits in two.

You cannot tell which income belongs to your resident months and which to your nonresident months.

1040, 1040-NR, or Both?

Your status on December 31 sets the primary form, and the two are filed attached together.

You have heard that a dual-status return often has to be mailed on paper rather than e-filed.

You're Unsure About Filing With a Spouse

You usually cannot file jointly as a dual-status filer, but a spouse election can change that.

Falling behind on a complex year is common, and catching up is simpler than it looks.

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Dual-Status Filing Resources

Greenback maintains a comprehensive library of guides covering nearly every tax topic a dual-status filer faces. Here are the resources our clients reach for most.

How One Tax Year Splits Into Two

Dual status means you were a U.S. resident for part of the year and a nonresident for the rest, usually the year you moved in or out. Our guides to dual-status filing, the substantial presence test, and first-year resident alien filing cover arrivals; for departures, see abandoning a green card, the exit tax, and Form 8854.

When 1040 Is Primary and When 1040-NR Is

The last day of your tax year decides it. A resident on that day files Form 1040 as the primary return, with a statement covering the nonresident part of the year. A nonresident that day files Form 1040-NR, with a statement covering the resident part. Either form can serve as the statement. Read our Form 1040 vs. 1040-NR guide and, on a work visa, whether an H-1B is resident or nonresident.

How Income Splits Across the Two Periods

During your resident period, the U.S. taxes your worldwide income; during your nonresident period, it taxes only U.S.-source income. Getting the dates and sources right is most of the work. Our guide to the mid-year tax year and our resident vs. nonresident scenarios walk through the allocation.

When You Can Elect to File Jointly

 Dual-status filers usually cannot file a joint return, but a spousal election under Section 6013(g) or 6013(h) lets a couple treat the nonresident spouse as a resident for the whole year, opening up joint filing and the standard deduction. See our guides to filing jointly with a foreign spouse, getting an ITIN, and who counts as the primary taxpayer.

What a Dual-Status Filer Can Claim

A dual-status filer generally cannot take the standard deduction unless the spousal election is made, and deductions must connect to U.S. income. Students and business apprentices from India are one treaty exception. The Foreign Tax Credit and treaty benefits can still apply to the nonresident period. Our guides to nonresident alien taxation and U.S. tax treaties explain the treatment.

How to Amend a Move Year You Filed Wrong

Filed as a full-year resident or nonresident when you were a dual-status filer? An amended return on Form 1040-X corrects the return and often produces a refund once the periods are split correctly. Our Form 1040-X guide walks through the amendment process, and our citizenship vs. residency-based taxation guide explains why the mix-up happens.

How One Tax Year Splits Into Two

Dual status means you were a U.S. resident for part of the year and a nonresident for the rest, usually the year you moved in or out. Our guides to dual-status filing, the substantial presence test, and first-year resident alien filing cover arrivals; for departures, see abandoning a green card, the exit tax, and Form 8854.

When 1040 Is Primary and When 1040-NR Is

The last day of your tax year decides it. A resident on that day files Form 1040 as the primary return, with a statement covering the nonresident part of the year. A nonresident that day files Form 1040-NR, with a statement covering the resident part. Either form can serve as the statement. Read our Form 1040 vs. 1040-NR guide and, on a work visa, whether an H-1B is resident or nonresident.

How Income Splits Across the Two Periods

During your resident period, the U.S. taxes your worldwide income; during your nonresident period, it taxes only U.S.-source income. Getting the dates and sources right is most of the work. Our guide to the mid-year tax year and our resident vs. nonresident scenarios walk through the allocation.

When You Can Elect to File Jointly

 Dual-status filers usually cannot file a joint return, but a spousal election under Section 6013(g) or 6013(h) lets a couple treat the nonresident spouse as a resident for the whole year, opening up joint filing and the standard deduction. See our guides to filing jointly with a foreign spouse, getting an ITIN, and who counts as the primary taxpayer.

What a Dual-Status Filer Can Claim

A dual-status filer generally cannot take the standard deduction unless the spousal election is made, and deductions must connect to U.S. income. Students and business apprentices from India are one treaty exception. The Foreign Tax Credit and treaty benefits can still apply to the nonresident period. Our guides to nonresident alien taxation and U.S. tax treaties explain the treatment.

How to Amend a Move Year You Filed Wrong

Filed as a full-year resident or nonresident when you were a dual-status filer? An amended return on Form 1040-X corrects the return and often produces a refund once the periods are split correctly. Our Form 1040-X guide walks through the amendment process, and our citizenship vs. residency-based taxation guide explains why the mix-up happens.

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What Dual-Status Filers Say About Working With Us

Rated 4.8/5 by filers who got their residency year filed right.

Trustpilot

“My accountant is a star. She was unfailingly helpful and efficient. My situation is somewhat different from the majority of Greenback clients in that I live in the USA (green card) and am a UK expat, and they managed to navigate through that minefield.”

Barbara and John United States

“My first time working with Greenback after a couple of really bad experiences, filing as a green card holder back in my home country of Italy … My accountant made me feel like I was in great hands for the first time. Clear about pricing and no hidden fees.”

Marina B. Italy

“I had been out of the USA for 6 years, surrendered my Green Card and thought that was it. Then I learned about having to file the last 5 years of returns plus the 8854 … My accountant calmed me down, teased the information out of me, and answered my questions.”

Stephen W. United Kingdom

“Thanks so much to Greenback and my accountant for making this tax season easy and pain-free. This was our first time using Greenback and we will definitely be repeat customers!”

Elizabeth B. Hong Kong
Trustpilot

Services for Dual-Status Filers

Dual-Status Return (Form 1040 and 1040-NR)

USD $875

For filers who were a U.S. tax resident part of the year and a nonresident the rest. We set your residency dates, pick the primary form from your last-day status, split the income, prepare the statement, and file it.

Nonresident Spouse Election Analysis

USD $250+

For married filers unsure whether an election applies, or unsure of their dual-status position. A pre-filing consultation models a separate filing against a Section 6013(g) or 6013(h) joint election.

FBAR Filing for Your Move Year

USD $125+

For dual-status filers whose foreign accounts topped $10,000 combined during the year. We report the accounts you held while a U.S. resident and e-file FinCEN Form 114 for the year you moved.

Streamlined Filing to Catch Up on Missed Years

USD $1,750

If your move year and the years around it went unfiled, the IRS Streamlined Procedures cover three years of returns and six years of FBARs for one flat fee, if you had 330 full days abroad in one of the last three years.

Strategic Consultation for Your Move Year

USD $250+

For filers facing a move year who want clarity before filing. Sit down with an expat tax expert to map which forms your move year needs and the tax impact of each option.

State Tax Return for Your Move Year

USD $185

For movers who owe a state part-year return. We determine which state you owe for your resident months, prepare the part-year return, and coordinate it with your federal dual-status filing.

Dual-Status Filing FAQs

Get answers to the questions movers ask most, from which form is primary to whether you can still file jointly.

Both, usually. In the year your U.S. tax residency starts or ends, you are a dual-status filer: resident for part of the year and nonresident for the rest. Your residency status on the last day of the tax year determines which return is primary.

A resident that day files Form 1040 with a statement covering the nonresident part of the year, and a nonresident files Form 1040-NR with a statement covering the resident part of the year.

The two are combined and filed together, often on paper rather than electronically. For most people, this is a one-time, one-year situation, and the next year is a normal single return.

Yes. Greenback prepares dual-status returns for anyone whose U.S. residency began or ended midyear. That includes arriving on a visa or green card, giving up a green card, and renouncing U.S. citizenship.

We set your residency start and end dates in accordance with IRS rules, including the green card test, the substantial presence test, and any applicable elections. We split your income between the resident and nonresident periods, apply treaty benefits and the Foreign Tax Credit to each, attach the dual-status statement, and file the return for you.

The Dual Status Return package is $875 and covers both forms and every calculation.

 

Sometimes an election changes the picture. If you are married, a spousal election under Section 6013(g) or 6013(h) lets you treat your nonresident spouse as a resident for the whole year, so you can file jointly and claim the standard deduction that dual-status filers are otherwise denied. In some cases of arrival, electing full-year residency avoids dual-status filing altogether.

We calculate the options, distinguish between dual-status filing and an election, and show you which one lowers your total tax before you file.

Yes. If you filed as a full-year resident or a full-year nonresident when you were a dual-status filer, we will prepare an amended return on Form 1040-X to correct it.

Many people do not realize they were dual-status in the year they arrived or left, and correcting it often results in a refund once the resident and nonresident periods, deductions, and treaty benefits are applied properly.

Form 1040-X preparation is a flat $565.

Pricing is flat-fee and published up front. The Dual Status Return package (Form 1040 and Form 1040-NR) is $875 and includes the residency dates, income splitting, the spousal election where it applies, treaty benefits, and filing with the dual-status statement.

FBAR is $125 for up to five accounts, Form 8938 is $120 for up to five accounts plus $65 for each additional five, the Streamlined catch-up package is $1,750 and needs 330 full days outside the U.S. in one of the last three years, which we check before anything is prepared, and consultations start at $250. You see your full cost before any work begins.

 

A dedicated Greenback accountant, a U.S. CPA, or IRS Enrolled Agent experienced with residency transitions, prepares your return from start to finish. It is never outsourced and never automated.

The same professional handles your substantial presence test, income split, spousal election, and treaty positions, ensuring your move-year filing is consistent and correct.

Just get started and tell us when you arrived or left, what visa or status you held, and where your income came from that year. You do not have to work out which forms apply.

Your accountant sets your residency dates, confirms what the year requires, whether that is the dual-status return, a state part-year return, an FBAR, or an amended prior year, and prepares it together at the published flat fee for each piece.

One Move Year, Both Returns, Filed Together.

Work with a CPA who handles dual-status years. We set your residency dates, split the income, apply treaties, and file 1040 and 1040-NR correctly.