# Question about taxes and filing as a US expat.



## vanisingh96 (Mar 5, 2021)

Hey all. I've learned a lot from this subreddit and was wondering if you all might be able to help me with something and let me know if I'm on the right track.
I'm a US citizen living abroad in Korea. I've spent a fair amount of time researching the IRS website, reading Publication 54 (Tax Guide for US Citizens Living Abroad), and doing other research. A few questions-
I arrived in Korea August 1st of 2014 and work here as an English teacher. From my understanding, I automatically recieve a 2 month extension for filing my taxes since I am living abroad. However, in order exclude my foreign earnings from US taxes I must fulfill the physical residency test (must live abroad for 330 days). So as the automatic extension will only take me through June 15 (which would be less than 330 days in Korea) I will need to file an additional extension with Form 2350 (Application of extension to file US income tax return) so that the requirement of 330 days will be fulfilled. Does this sound correct?
Now my other question concerns the forms that I have to file with the IRS. It is my understanding that I have to file form 1040 as I normally would, which reports the income that I earned in the United States in 2014 before I went abroad. I also have to file form 2555 or 2555EZ, Foreign Income exclusion. Are there other forms that I need to file?
One other question. I filed form 8802 and paid the $85 (application for US residency certification) but never received the subsequent form 6166 certifying my US residency, as the IRS claimed I didn't sign the form. Anyway, would I need form 6166 for anything? I know that form would allow me to be exempt from Korean taxes, but as Korean taxes are fairly small and the headache in dealing with the IRS is fairly large, I decided not worry about that.
That's all I can think of for now. If anyone has gone through this process or can point me to any helpful resources that would be great, because there is nothing more confusing for me than this stuff. Thank you!


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## Crawford (Jan 23, 2011)

Why not post this in the Expat Tax forum on this site?

More likely to get answers from folks who know something about this subject


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## Bevdeforges (Nov 16, 2007)

Are you trying to back file to 2014? If you want to get square with the IRS, there is the Streamline Compliance procedure, which means you would only have to file current year (2020) plus 3 years in arrears (2019, 2018 and 2017). Start here: Streamlined Filing Compliance Procedures | Internal Revenue Service


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## 255 (Sep 8, 2018)

vanishingh96 -- Your questions: 

1. "So as the automatic extension will only take me through June 15 (which would be less than 330 days in Korea) I will need to file an additional extension with Form 2350 (Application of extension to file US income tax return) so that the requirement of 330 days will be fulfilled. Does this sound correct?" Yes, that sounds correct.

2. "I have to file form 1040 as I normally would, which reports the income that I earned in the United States in 2014 before I went abroad. I also have to file form 2555 or 2555EZ, Foreign Income exclusion. Are there other forms that I need to file?" You use IRS form 2555 to exclude foreign earned income from your U.S. income tax obligation. I do not know your entire income tax situation, but typically you'll need to file various schedules: perhaps 1, 2, 3, A, B. D, or E.
If you pay Korean tax on any income that wasn't excluded, you can also utilize IRS for 1116 2020 Form 1116 (irs.gov) to take a tax credit for taxes paid to Korea.

3. "Anyway, would I need form 6166 for anything?" I never heard of IRS form 8802 or IRS form 6166 until your post (I've never needed IRS form 6166 while living in multiple foreign countries (but, I've never been tax resident in Korea.) After reviewing the form, it appears to be helpful, only if the Korean Tax Agency requires it, for you to take advantage of some kind of treaty provision. Perhaps, you can check locally, if this form does you any good.

4. "If anyone has gone through this process or can point me to any helpful resources that would be great, because there is nothing more confusing for me than this stuff." Again, I've never been tax resident in Korea, but probably ask any of your peers how to file local taxes. Your U.S. income tax obligations are exactly the same, as always. In your case, utilization of IRS form 2555, will probably eliminate any taxes owed (so basically, just a paper drill.) Be sure you file for 2020, to codify your stimulus payments (line 30 of the 2020 version of IRS form 1040,) after completing the "Recovery Rebate Worksheet" on page 58 of the 2020 IRS 1040 and 1040-SR Instructions. You might also want to familiarize yourself with the "United States -- Korea Income Tax Convention" KOREAWEB.PDF (irs.gov) and the "Social Security Totalization Agreement with Korea" International Programs - Totalization Agreement with Korea (ssa.gov) Cheers, 255

P.S. Your entire post appears to refer to "present" day circumstances, except your reference to arriving in Korea, August 1, 2014. If you are indeed back filing taxes -- start with Bev's post. I suspect, as an English Teacher, your back filings, again, will just be a paperwork drill, and you wouldn't actually owe any taxes. The old forms are archived on the IRS web-site, so you should be able to complete them yourself, if that is the case.


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