# US Streamlined Tax Questionnaire



## canook4

Unsure of how to answer some of the questions...for ex: #4. If you are submitting an amended form.... I am not submitting an amended form so would I just leave this blank or put N/A?

#17. Do you have a treaty-based position for your country of residence that reduces your US tax liability? I tried Googling to find out if there is such a treaty between Canada & US but there was so much information and I never did come to a conclusion... so should I just answer "I have no idea"?

#9. Did you know you were a US citizen? YES
#9a. Did you disclose this to your tax professional? NO

Will this cause a red flag? I knew I was a US citizen but didn't think I needed to tell anyone because I was filing Can taxes and didn't know I had to file US taxes. I don't even think my tax professional would of known either.

Thanks,
Karen


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## BBCWatcher

#4: Either way.
#17: I'd answer something like, "Not with this filing, no."
#9/#9a: I'm always amused when I read "red flag" questions. What raises a red flag at the IRS is lying and getting caught. Just answer the questions truthfully to the best of your ability, then sleep well. If the IRS asks follow-up questions they ask, but there's nothing you can do about that. It's neither productive nor conducive to your mental health to worry about that which you do not control.


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## Bevdeforges

As long as the back tax forms you're filing don't show much (if anything) in the way of taxes due, you shouldn't need to overthink your responses on that questionnaire.



> for ex: #4. If you are submitting an amended form.... I am not submitting an amended form so would I just leave this blank or put N/A?


You can probably just leave it blank - if you aren't including a 1040X form, they can probably figure out that the response is "n/a." But if you write in n/a you'll eliminate any chance for misunderstanding.



> #17. Do you have a treaty-based position for your country of residence that reduces your US tax liability? I tried Googling to find out if there is such a treaty between Canada & US but there was so much information and I never did come to a conclusion... so should I just answer "I have no idea"?


If you have filled out the forms with no knowledge of whether or not there is a treaty between the US and Canada, then the answer is obviously "no."



> #9. Did you know you were a US citizen? YES
> #9a. Did you disclose this to your tax professional? NO
> 
> Will this cause a red flag? I knew I was a US citizen but didn't think I needed to tell anyone because I was filing Can taxes and didn't know I had to file US taxes. I don't even think my tax professional would of known either.


Your answer as it stands should be just fine. If anyone should ever ask you WHY you didn't disclose it to you tax professional, the answer is "s/he never asked me the question."

Despite all the publicity I gather there has been in Canada about the US filing requirement, you are far from the first (or last) American living overseas who didn't realize they were supposed to file. It's great that you're getting yourself up to date and "street legal." Just don't get freaked out by the process. The IRS is far more likely to spend time and effort running down those who actually owe taxes (and back taxes) than to bother with those who just need to update their filing history.
Cheers,
Bev


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## canook4

Thanks for your responses  
The streamlined instructions #7 requests a statement about my Canadian RRSP. Are there any threads that you know of on this forum that would have a sample statement? I am struggling with the wording.

I thought I had also read somewhere that I was to make a statement for each FBAR ...I can't seem to find that information now though. It had something to do with explaining why I had not sent them in.

Thanks again


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## Bevdeforges

There have been a number of threads discussing RRSPs and their reporting for US tax purposes, but I don't remember anything about a sample statement for the IRS questionnaire. Perhaps one of our Canadian regulars can help out here....
Cheers,
Bev


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## lrathgeb

*streamlined questionnaire*

hi, I am an american living in Switzerland since 1981. I just became aware that I have to file tax forms. I never earned enough to have to pay any taxes. But i have decided to do the Streamlined Compliance Filing. 

I have a question to the Questionnaire. Question 7 asks if you have a retirement plan which I do. We have a government plan which is like Social Security (Pillar 1), a pension plan from work where I pay half and the company pays half (Pillar 2) and a private plan with the bank where I can not take any money out until I retire (Pillar 3). Regarding the second part of question 7, I have no idea if the earnings from the Retirement plans are non taxable under the Treaty between USA and Switzerland. Can someone help me with this? Or can I just write in that I do not know the answer to that question? What do they actually mean when they say earnings from the retirement plans?

Also regarding the Fbar's - My husband is Swiss and we have some joint accounts. Can I send the forms (efiling) without putting anything in the boxes which ask for a SS number or ITIN?

Thanks so much


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## Bevdeforges

The retirement plans can be tricky. The actual text of the tax treaties are available in English here: United States Income Tax Treaties - A to Z

On the FBAR, you need to report the accounts where you have joint ownership - but you can just indicate NRA (non-resident alien) in the box that asks for an SS number or ITIN.
Cheers,
Bev


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## BBCWatcher

Bevdeforges said:


> ...but you can just indicate NRA (non-resident alien) in the box that asks for an SS number or ITIN.


...unless that individual has an SSN or ITIN, or is legally required to have one, in which case you'd provide the number if known. It doesn't sound like that's the case, but there you go.


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## lrathgeb

Thank you for your response. My husband just told me that he does have a SS Nr. He worked for 2 years in the States when he was very young. He does not have a green card and is not a citizen, so do I have to put his SS Nr. on the FBAR's or can I leave this space blank? What is the best thing to do, he does not really want me to use his SS Nr. Would the IRS react in anyway when I would give his SS Nr?

Regarding the tax Treaty with Switzerland, as far as I understand the pension and social security plans are not taxable, but they are difficult reading.


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## Bevdeforges

There are differing positions on the SSN issue. I would say that, if your husband is not subject to US taxation, I'd go the NRA route. But there are those who insist that anyone with a SSN or ITIN must use that on any and all forms that ask for it.

Just a side note on the ITINs: I see that ITINs are now being issued only for a fixed term, and so must be "renewed" every few years. So, once a person's ITIN expires, you wouldn't have to use it at all.
Cheers,
Bev


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## BBCWatcher

I'll make it simpler: you are legally required to provide your spouse's correct and complete SSN (or ITIN) _if you know it_. If, _hypothetically_, your spouse refuses to provide you with his SSN, and you don't already know it, then obviously you cannot report what you don't know, and your legal requirement extends no farther.

If at some future point in time your spouse discloses his SSN to you -- notably when/if you file a USCIS petition for him, or when he claims spousal Social Security retirement benefits -- you then know it. More significantly, the U.S. government knows you know it. At that point in time, if/when it comes, you'll be filling in that box with what you know if you intend to comply with your legal requirement.

Make sense?


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## lrathgeb

Thank you both for your quick answers.


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## lrathgeb

I just can not understand the treaty below between the USA and Switzerland in regards to answering question 7a on the Streamlined Questionnaire. (Are earnings from the retirement account non-taxable in the US under the current Treaty provisions?) 

I do not want to answer it incorrectly. Would someone be able to tell me after reading the following if I need to answer Yes or No? I have lived in Switzerland since 1981 and have the Swiss citizenship and never plan on living in the States again, meaning when I retire I will be living in Switzerland.

Thanks so much if someone can help me.

Pensions and Annuities
1. Subject to the provisions of Article 19 (Government Service and Social Security), pensions
and other similar remuneration beneficially derived by a resident of a Contracting State in
consideration of past employment shall be taxable only in that State.
2. Subject to the provisions of Article 19 (Government Service and Social Security),
annuities derived and beneficially owned by a resident of a Contracting State shall be taxable
only in that State. The term “annuities” as used in this paragraph means a stated sum paid
periodically at stated tines during a specified number of years or for life under an obligation to
make the payments in return for adequate and full consideration (other than services rendered).
ARTICLE 19
Government Service and Social Security
1. a) Salaries, wages and other similar remuneration, other than a pension, paid by a
Contracting State or a political subdivision or a local authority thereof to an individual in
respect of services rendered to that State or subdivision or authority shall be taxable only
in that State.
b) However, such salaries, wages and other similar remuneration shall be taxable
only in the other Contracting State if the services are rendered in that State and the
individual is a resident of that State who:
i) is a national of that State; or
ii) did not become a resident of that State solely for the purpose of
rendering the services.
2. a) Any pension paid by, or out of funds created by, a Contracting State or a
political subdivision or a local authority thereof to an individual in respect of services
rendered to that State or subdivision or authority shall be taxable only in that State.
b) However, such pension shall be taxable only in the other Contracting State if
the individual is a resident of, and a national of, that State.
3. The provisions of Articles 15 (Dependent Personal Services), 16 (Directors’ Fees) and 18
(Pensions and Annuities) shall apply to salaries, wages and other similar remuneration, and to
pensions, in respect of services rendered in connection with a business carried on by a
Contracting State or a political subdivision or a local authority thereof.
4. Notwithstanding paragraph 2, social security payments and other public pensions paid by a
Contracting State to an individual who is a resident of the other Contracting State may be taxed
in that other State. However, such payments may also be taxed in the first Contracting State
according to the laws of that State, but the tax so charged shall not exceed 15 percent of the gross
amount of the payment.


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## Emmylou22

I also have questions about the questionnaire:

I'm a Brit, trying to figure this out for my spouse

#1 "have you resided in the US for any length of time since Jan 2009"

well surely a two week holiday won't count? But strictly speaking that's any length of time. Or is the key word resided ?



#5 "Since January 1, 2006, have you had a financial interest in or signature or other authority over any financial accounts located outside your country of residence? " 

Are they referring to a bank account? We live in Vietnam so is that a question about accounts in a third country? Or here in VN?


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## BBCWatcher

Emmylou22 said:


> #1 "have you resided in the US for any length of time since Jan 2009"
> well surely a two week holiday won't count? But strictly speaking that's any length of time. Or is the key word resided ?


All words must be assumed to have meaning, including the word "resided." Answer on that basis.



> #5 "Since January 1, 2006, have you had a financial interest in or signature or other authority over any financial accounts located outside your country of residence? "
> Are they referring to a bank account? We live in Vietnam so is that a question about accounts in a third country? Or here in VN?


A bank account is one type of financial account. Your country of residence is Vietnam, so this question excludes financial accounts in Vietnam. Although a fair reading of this question, in my view, is that, if your country of residence varied since January 1, 2006, did you have financial accounts outside what was/is your countries of residence? For example, if you resided in the U.K. until March 28, 2008, then Vietnam thereafter, did you have financial accounts in the U.K. or elsewhere except Vietnam after March 28, 2008, or did you have financial accounts in Vietnam or elsewhere except the U.K. on or before March 28, 2008?


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## Bevdeforges

This is a perfect example of one of the big frustrations in dealing with government forms and regulations.

For my part, I would say that "resided in" means someplace you were living, not just visiting. So if you were just on a holiday in the US, that doesn't count. 

For the second question, again, they ask specifically about accounts outside of your country of residence. So if you are living in Vietnam, they don't want to hear about accounts (bank accounts, brokerage accounts, etc.) in Vietnam. If you lived elsewhere (i.e. actually resided in, not just visited) they appear to be interested in any accounts you may have held other than in the country where you were living.
Cheers,
Bev


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## BBCWatcher

Bevdeforges said:


> This is a perfect example of one of the big frustrations in dealing with government forms and regulations.


I've seen many ambiguous, incomprehensible, and grammatically incorrect questions, but these particular questions seem straightforward.


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## Emmylou22

To me, Q1 is very confusing because if you take it to mean that a holiday home counts as residing then surely most expats wouldn't be qualify for the streamlined process.

Anyway, thanks for the input - I'll work on the assumption that a short trip home to visit family doesn't count.


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## Bevdeforges

A "holiday home" isn't considered your residence. Yes, you may own property in the US, but you aren't resident unless you were actually residing there full time, using it as your "center of interests" as the expression goes.
Cheers,
Bev


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## Emmylou22

OK, thanks. I'm having to get my head round a lot of US government terms & concepts as part of this process.

Thank you so much - reading this forum has answered a great many other questions


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