Discover all the tax services we offer
Get an instance service estimate
Comprehensive guides on everything you need to know from planning your expat journey to filing your expat taxes with ease.
Our Country Guides will help you understand the ins and out of your specific U.S. expat tax requirements.
Access up-to-date articles, breaking news, deadline information and in-depth case studies on US expat taxes.
Get the answers to all your questions and browse Greenback’s most frequently asked customer questions.
Sign up for one of our live webinars hosted by our expert accountant team or watch one on-demand today.
Subscribe to our monthly newsletter to get money-saving tips, expat tax news, and exclusive promos.
Learn how our straightforward pricing, easy process, and an expert team makes us uniquely qualified to simplify the hassle of expat tax filing.
We’ve assembled a team only the most experienced, knowledgeable, and friendly CPAs and IRS Enrolled Agents our clients can trust.
Read our client testimonials to get a feel for the Greenback experience straight from the expats we’ve worked with.
We’re featured in many reliable news sources thanks to our reputation as experts on US taxes abroad.
Whatever your expat tax needs, wheverver in the world, we’d love to hear from you.
Blog
Along with our survey advisory board – made up of Expat Network, Where Americans Are Welcome, Expat Everyday Support Center, FAWCO and World of Expats – we surveyed close to 1,800 US expats living and working abroad with various incomes and professions. The intent of the survey was to gather insights and opinions representative of US expats in an effort to advocate for the interests of all Americans living abroad.
Survey highlights:
Out of nearly 1,800 respondents, over 73% said they plan to vote in the upcoming election. Assuming this is representative of the entire expat population, this is nearly 6.4 million voters! That is a significant number of potential votes that have been largely ignored by US politicians – and this group could have a real, material impact on the outcome of the election.
In contrast, just 8% of last year’s survey respondents who didn’t vote in the last election chose not to because they didn’t feel the candidates represented their interests. This year, the number increased to a whopping 26%! This goes to show that those who didn’t vote in the prior election may have been more inclined to vote this year if a candidate actively addressed their concerns.
“This is a strong, opinionated group whose voice has a significant opportunity to be heard in the upcoming Presidential election – so government leaders should be taking the time to acknowledge and advocate for their needs and interests,” said David McKeegan, Co-founder of Greenback Expat Tax Services.
We know that American expats have been renouncing their citizenship in record numbers as of late. Interestingly, the number of survey respondents who said they were seriously considering renouncing their citizenship was down 4% from last year, at a total of 22%. The number of expats who wouldn’t consider renunciation remained flat year-over-year, at 29%. However, the number of expats who wouldn’t rule out renunciation increased by nearly 5%, to 42%.
Additionally, the number of US expats who’ve chosen to renounce their citizenship increased 20% year-over-year in 2015. In fact, 64% of those surveyed said they may choose to renounce their citizenship, and 37% cite the burden of Federal tax obligations as the reason, up 7% over last year.
Over 83% of US expats surveyed feel their interests are not well represented by the US government – with only 7% of those living abroad feeling that they are fairly represented. Surprisingly, both of these numbers are slightly decreased from last year (3% and 1%, respectively), which is interesting, as not much has changed over the past year in terms of government representation of US expats.
“US Expats are frustrated that they are not well represented by their government, while being required to file tax forms and pay taxes,” said Norman Viss of Expat Everyday Support Center. “It’s time the US government pays attention to the concerns of these 6.4 million voters, who are globally located, interested and active in global issues, and want to be a positive influence for US interests around the world, because they will be voting!”
Over 45% of US expats haven’t heard of the Streamlined Filing Procedures, a program put in place by the IRS to help US taxpayers get caught up on their US taxes without late filing or FBAR penalties. This number is actually up 4% this year.
On January 1, 2016, an unprecedented law with new consequences was implemented for late tax filers – the US State Department can now revoke an expat’s passport if they are behind on US taxes and owe more than $50,000 to the IRS. This is big and potentially scary news for all expats. After all, the penalty for willfully failing to report foreign bank accounts starts at $10,000 – so if you have 5 accounts you failed to report, you could hit the $50,000 total in a single year and lose your passport!
As you know, FATCA is a major US initiative to uncover US taxpayers hiding money overseas in an attempt to avoid American taxes. FATCA requires individual to report their offshore assets if they exceed certain thresholds. Over 32% of survey respondents said they are affected by FATCA and must file Form 8938, while 41% said they are not affected. Interestingly, though, when asked if they would support an initiative to repeal FATCA, nearly 54% said yes. Also, 44% of expats surveyed said they would like to see the US government address the repeal of FATCA on behalf of all Americans living abroad. FATCA is clearly a hot topic among US expats, though the government has yet to address their concerns.
While many interesting insights came out of this year’s survey, the potential effect US expats could have on the upcoming election are the most impactful. This large, underrepresented group of Americans living abroad who have consistently been disappointed with the US government could have a huge impact on the outcome of the election!
Also, the data shows yet again that renouncing citizenship is a very desirable option for many expats when faced with the burden of Federal tax obligations, and only a small percentage of Americans abroad feel their interests are fairly represented by the US government. Many US expats show a preference toward residence-based taxation, rather than citizenship-based taxation, which is an avenue the government could pursue in an attempt to relieve the burden and frustration of filing US taxes for all expats.
“This year’s survey yet again reinforces the fact that renouncing citizenship is considered a very desirable option for many expats when faced with burdensome tax obligations, and only a small percentage of Americans abroad feel their interests are fairly represented by the US government,” stated McKeegan.
Greenback can help! Contact us today and our expat-expert CPAs and IRS Enrolled Agents can help you navigate the complicated nature of US expat taxes.