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If you’re an American citizen who’s residing and working in another country, you may not be aware of exactly how to file your taxes. You may not even realize that the US government and the IRS essentially require that you file your taxes, even if you’re outside of the country. Although it is a different process, it is certainly a better choice than not filing at all because it is relatively easy and you can avoid severe IRS issues.

Numerous people think that by working abroad, they are exempted from filing and paying their taxes. This is not true, however. Regardless of where you are residing, you’re obliged to file your tax returns as an American citizen to steer clear of IRS problems.

The 2 types of tax forms that citizens working and who are living in another nation may be made to fill out when filing taxes are IRS Form 2555, the Foreign Earned Income form, or Form 2555-EZ. To be able to fully qualify and be able to utilize either of these two forms, the taxpayer has to be a citizen of the United States of America, or even a resident of the United States, but living in a foreign country.

You’ll have to file your tax return on April 15 of each year like everyone else. American citizens living overseas, though, are automatically offered a 2-month extension. This would offer you more time to correctly file the right forms and pay outstanding tax debts. To use this two-month extension, you will have to attach a statement to confirm that you qualify for it.

Among the issues that some people who have recently moved to another country is that they did not bring all of their tax information with them, or they moved before they could get all of their W-2 forms from their employers and they were actually sent to the old address in the United States. It is your duty to get those documents. It should be accomplished, regardless if that requires getting your company to send a new copy or getting a good friend to find your mail. Another option is having the official copies sent through the regular mail while electronic copies are sent to you through email. This will allow you to complete your tax returns in a timely manner and avoid an IRS problem.

You have a few options in how to file your tax return if your spouse isn’t an American citizen. Filing as Married Filing Separately is an option. This means that you, as a taxpayer, would only report your own income that you’ve made for that year. However, you can file under the Head of Household status if you have children and provide more than half of each child’s support. Finally, there’s a third option where you can actually elect to declare your spouse as a resident alien. This would be done for tax reasons, so you would actually be filing as Married Filing Jointly.

There are many differences and slight factors when it comes to filing taxes while you’re working and living in another country. To avoid an IRS problem, consulting a professional tax preparer is advised.

Darrin T. Mish is a Nationally recognized Attorney whose practice focuses on representing clients across the United States with IRS Problems. He is AV rated by Martindale-Hubbel and is a member of the American Society of IRS Problem Solvers and the Tax Freedom Institute. He has been honored by a listing in Martindale-Hubbel’s Bar Register of Preeminent Lawyers. His passion is providing IRS help to taxpayers with both individual and payroll tax problems. He teaches attorneys, CPAs and Enrolled Agents in the finer aspects of IRS representation all around the United States. He can be reached at his website at http://www.getIRShelp.com