Taxes for Immigration Status Changes, Made Clear

Your tax residency is separate from your immigration status. For tax purposes, you're generally a U.S. resident if you hold a green card at any point in the year, or if you meet the substantial presence test: at least 31 days in the U.S. this year and 183 days over three years, counting all of this year's days, one third of last year's and one sixth of the year before. Some visa holders, like many F and J students, can exclude certain days. Your status decides whether you file Form 1040 or Form 1040-NR.

An ITIN is a tax ID number the IRS issues to people who need to file or be listed on a U.S. return but can't get a Social Security number, such as some spouses, dependents and foreign investors. You apply on Form W-7, usually with your tax return and original or certified identity documents. An ITIN is only for tax reporting. It doesn't grant work authorization or change your immigration status in any way.

If you became a U.S. tax resident partway through a year, or stopped being one, you usually file a dual status return for that year. You're taxed as a resident for one part of the year and as a nonresident for the other, and certain deductions, credits and filing statuses are restricted. Some married couples can choose to be treated as residents for the full year instead. The year you arrive or leave is the one people most often get wrong.

If you're a U.S. person and the combined balance of your foreign financial accounts went over $10,000 at any time during the year, you generally must file an FBAR, FinCEN Form 114, separate from your tax return. Higher balances may also require Form 8938 under FATCA. That includes accounts back home you opened long before you moved. If you missed past years, there are IRS procedures for catching up, and we can look at which one fits your facts.

Yes. Many newcomers fall behind simply because no one explained the rules. We pull your IRS transcripts, work out your residency status for each year, and prepare the missing returns, whether 1040, 1040-NR or dual status. Filing late can affect penalties, refunds and payment options, so we sequence the returns with any balance in mind. If you owe, our tax resolution work covers installment agreements and penalty relief.

Often, yes. First Time Abate relief is available if your recent record is otherwise clean, and reasonable cause may apply when you had a genuine reason, including in some cases a real misunderstanding of a complex rule after relying on bad information. Neither is automatic. We look at your history, choose the strongest basis and prepare a written request with supporting documents.

Yes. We work with U.S. citizens and green card holders living abroad, foreign nationals with U.S. income, and families with assets in more than one country. That can involve the foreign earned income exclusion, foreign tax credits, treaty positions, FBAR and FATCA reporting, and U.S. returns for people who live overseas. One point to be clear about: we handle the tax side only. We don't prepare visa, green card or citizenship applications.

It depends on how many years are involved, how many countries, and whether there's an IRS balance or notice. A single first year dual status return is a smaller job than several unfiled years plus missed FBARs. We review your situation first and give you a defined scope before any work begins.