# Non US resident/citizen with rentals income



## tanin (Mar 16, 2015)

Hello,
My father is French and he has a house in the US. The house is rented and he gets a monthly rent.
Which tax form does he have to file?

Thanks in advance


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## Bevdeforges (Nov 16, 2007)

It can depend on how much rental income he gets from the house. 

Start here: Taxation of Nonresident Aliens for the basics on how and whether he needs to file a return. If he has a rental agent handling the day to day stuff for him, the agent should be sending him some sort of report regarding the fiscal status of the property.
Cheers,
Bev


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## tanin (Mar 16, 2015)

Thank you.

Also, I heard that it is possible to deduct the price of the house from the taxes over a period of few years. How is this done?


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## BBCWatcher (Dec 28, 2012)

If he's required to file in these circumstances he'd file IRS Form 1040NR (or 1040NR-EZ, if eligible).

I'm not sure what you're referring to concerning deducting the price of the house. Could you be referring to the mortgage interest deduction? Or the calculation of capital gains when the home is sold in the future? Or property tax? Or depreciation?


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## Bevdeforges (Nov 16, 2007)

That's called "depreciation" - and is a standard "expense" incurred on rental property. This should give you an idea Tax Topics - Topic 414 Rental Income and Expenses both about depreciation and other rental expenses. But if your father has a rental agent handling the property, they may already be doing this for him.

The one caution here is that, for buildings, you normally have to spread the depreciation over 20 or 30 years. 
Cheers,
Bev


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## tanin (Mar 16, 2015)

He has an apartment in a building.
He has a rental agent, but they told him to take an accountant for this. The accountants they gave him take between 500-2000 usd for filling this form, so I thought I'd try to help him and fill it myself.


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## Bevdeforges (Nov 16, 2007)

Yeah, for a single rental apartment, that seems a bit steep for accounting help. (Though the fee paid to the accounts is deductible as a "business expense" against the revenue.) Still, the agent should be able to give you a preliminary accounting on the apartment - revenue taken in, property taxes paid, any repairs or other expenses of the rental. It shouldn't be all that difficult.

Still, check the publication on non-resident filings. They have some tricky rules in there.
Cheers,
Bev


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## tanin (Mar 16, 2015)

Bevdeforges said:


> Still, check the publication on non-resident filings. They have some tricky rules in there.
> Cheers,
> Bev


May I have a link?

Thanks again


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## Bevdeforges (Nov 16, 2007)

It's covered in the link I gave you upthread - the one on Taxation of Nonresident Aliens. 
Cheers,
Bev


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## tanin (Mar 16, 2015)

Many thanks.

Last questions:
1. Do you have to file the form to both the IRS and the state?
2. If my father put the appartement under LLC, does he also needs to fill a 1065 form?
3. Does he need a K1 also?


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## Bevdeforges (Nov 16, 2007)

As best as I can tell:

1. Your father shouldn't have to file a state return (completely different form from the IRS form) unless he is resident in that state. However, there may be business filings to the state, depending on how the rental property is set up.

2. Depends on the term of the LLC and the state's laws on business entities.

3. Isn't a K1 a partnership form? If the property is set up as a partnership, then the partnership needs to file a K1.
Cheers,
Bev


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## BBCWatcher (Dec 28, 2012)

Bevdeforges said:


> Your father shouldn't have to file a state return (completely different form from the IRS form) unless he is resident in that state. However, there may be business filings to the state, depending on how the rental property is set up.


Well.... I think it'd be safer to say that each state varies. Some might require filing a non-resident state tax return.

Which state is it?


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## tanin (Mar 16, 2015)

BBCWatcher said:


> Which state is it?



Florida.


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## tanin (Mar 16, 2015)

P.s. the asset is valued at around 350k $, does he also need to file an 8938?


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## BBCWatcher (Dec 28, 2012)

Florida does not have a personal income tax. As Bev mentioned, there might be a business income tax filing with the state depending on the business's structure. See here (Florida Department of Revenue) for more information.

There's no need to file IRS Form 8938 for real estate holdings.


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