2018 was a big year in many ways: government shutdowns, voter turnout during the American midterm elections, and even tax reform. 2018 was a banner year for Greenback, too, and as we reflect on these extraordinary successes, we know we have our expat community to thank. So, thank you, expats all over the world – join us for a stroll down memory lane.
Greenback Growth, Giveaways, and Accolades
From two expats’ fledgling idea to one of the fastest growing private companies in America, Greenback’s growth has been remarkable. This year, Greenback was honored for its growth on the Inc. 5000 list, and to celebrate, we hosted a $5,000 tax prep giveaway. It’s no surprise our proliferation has garnered so much attention; in fact, we’ve helped more than 9,300 expats in over 214 countries and filed 28,000 returns.
And, come to think of it, that wasn’t the only giveaway we offered this year. Expats who finished their Federal Tax Returns between November 15th and December 15th were automatically entered to win a $1,000 Hotels.com gift card!
This past year, we continued to be featured in major media outlets for our specialized expertise in expat taxes. Check out this video from CNBC on the hidden costs of being an expat, this CNBC article about Paul Manafort featuring Greenback Co-Founder David McKeegan, this CNBC article about how tax noncompliance can cost you your passport, this Inc. article featuring Greenback Co-Founder Carrie McKeegan on the new 1040 forms, this Accounting Today article about our 2018 expat survey findings, or this International Investment article about how the tax reform could affect expats.
Speaking of our survey, the Greenback 2018 Expat Survey uncovered some of our most interesting results to date. Last year, we surveyed expats about more than just their tax-related feelings; we also covered issues like healthcare, gun control, immigration reform, and citizenship renunciation. These results definitively showed that expats feel neglected by the government and poorly represented. The survey also asked whether expats were planning on voting in the 2018 midterms and if they needed more information on how to vote – and the answer to both was a resounding, “Yes!” So, Greenback took action.
First, we created an expat-specific guide to voting, but we went a step further by partnering with the Overseas Vote Foundation to create a way for expats to register to vote, right on the Greenback website!
An Amazingly Easy Experience
If you were a Greenback customer in 2018, then you were among the first to experience the Greenback Tax Companion – an online system we designed to specifically make the filing of expat taxes an amazingly easy experience. Say “goodbye!” to long questionnaires each tax season, as the Tax Companion remembers your information year-after-year. Smart enough to adapt to ask pertinent questions and request relevant documents, and safe enough to store personal information because it was built with best-in-class enterprise-level data security and privacy, the same that most banks use.
And when we say amazingly easy, we mean it. The Tax Companion will even store tax info with those same security measures for six years at no added cost – which is now the new IRS audit regulation. Everything our customers need is stored for safekeeping and quick reference.
New Expat Tax Resources
Each year, Greenback tries to provide the most relevant, up-to-the-minute tax resources for expats (for free!) on our website. This year, our brilliant tax experts and expat specialist accountants hosted free webinars about the top expat questions and the new tax bill, a crash course on expat taxes in 2018, expat tax-related facts and fiction, and how to get caught up on taxes penalty-free. Each webinar had a live Q&A session where expats could receive free advice on their specific situations, and all of the webinars were recorded and can be watched on-demand, it bears repeating, for FREE!
In addition to educational webinars, Greenback accountants also compile comprehensive guides to the many components of expat taxes. From real estate investment to living in the UK, we offer free guides on just about everything! In fact, we were one of the first to put forward a guide to the tax reform, because we are dedicated to getting expats the timely information they need in order to eliminate the anxiety from filing expat taxes.
2019 and Beyond
2018 wasn’t an anomaly – you can expect the same ardor and enthusiasm from the Greenback team in 2019. More free guides, more free webinars, and more expat advocacy are certainly on their way.
Greenback Can Help You Become Compliant
Of all the services and products we offer, helping expats become tax compliant is our specialty – and for a reason. We search the world over to find the best accountants to make sure your expat tax process is painless. So, get started with Greenback today!
