Best E-filing Services for American Expats Filing US Taxes Abroad?
Title: Best E-filing Services for American Expats Filing US Taxes Abroad? 1 I'm heading overseas for work next month and trying to get ahead of the tax situation for next year. Been browsing through the IRS recommended e-filing services on their official site, but I'm hitting a wall with most of them. Seems like a ton of these services either completely fall apart for expats or don't properly support Form 1116 for foreign earned income. Really frustrating that something so basic isn't clearly laid out anywhere! Some services look great until you dig into the fine print and see they can't handle foreign addresses or certain international tax situations. For those of you already living abroad, which e-filing service actually works well for your US tax returns? Specifically need something that handles Form 1116 properly and understands the Foreign Earned Income Exclusion. Any recommendations from real experience would be super helpful!
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Vanessa Figueroa
8 Former tax advisor here, and I've helped many expats with their US filing obligations. You're right that many of the popular services have limitations when it comes to international situations. From my experience, TaxSlayer and TaxAct both handle Form 1116 decently. However, if you're looking for the most comprehensive solution, I'd recommend either H&R Block's Expat Tax Services or TurboTax Premier. The Premier version specifically includes Form 1116 support and foreign tax credit guidance. Just be aware that you'll likely need to upgrade from their basic versions. A common mistake I see is expats trying to use free versions only to discover halfway through that they need to upgrade to handle their specific forms. Also, make sure whatever service you choose can handle FBAR filing (FinCEN Form 114) if you have foreign bank accounts totaling over $10,000 at any point during the year.
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Vanessa Figueroa
•15 Thanks for the info! Do these services also handle the Foreign Earned Income Exclusion (Form 2555)? And what about state tax returns? I'll be keeping my home address in California but living in Singapore - not sure if I still need to file CA taxes.
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Vanessa Figueroa
•8 Yes, both TurboTax Premier and H&R Block Expat Tax Services support Form 2555 for the Foreign Earned Income Exclusion. That's typically a must-have for most expats. Regarding California taxes, that's actually a complex situation. California is notoriously aggressive about maintaining tax residency. If you're maintaining a home address there, they'll likely consider you a tax resident even while abroad. Unlike some states that recognize physical presence tests, California looks at domicile factors like where you maintain addresses, voter registration, driver's license, etc. I'd recommend consulting with someone who specializes in California state taxes for expats, as this could significantly impact your tax situation.
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Vanessa Figueroa
12 After three years of filing as an expat in Germany, I finally found taxr.ai (https://taxr.ai) and it's been a game-changer for my situation. I spent so many hours trying to figure out my taxes with other services that would either error out when I entered a foreign address or couldn't properly calculate my foreign tax credit on Form 1116. What I love about taxr.ai is that it was built specifically with international taxpayers in mind. It walked me through all the foreign income reporting requirements and even helped determine if the Foreign Earned Income Exclusion or Foreign Tax Credit would be more beneficial in my situation (turns out I was leaving money on the table in previous years).
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Vanessa Figueroa
•19 Does it handle rental income from US properties while living abroad? That's been my biggest headache with other services. Also, how does it compare price-wise to TurboTax Premier?
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Vanessa Figueroa
•3 I'm skeptical about specialized services since they often charge an arm and a leg. Does it actually save you money compared to just hiring an expat tax specialist directly? And can it handle more complex situations like self-employment income earned while abroad?
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Vanessa Figueroa
•12 It absolutely handles rental income from US properties while living abroad - that's actually one of its strengths. The system walks you through documenting your rental income and expenses while maintaining compliance with both US regulations and any treaty provisions that might apply to your situation. The self-employment question is actually why I initially sought them out. I'm a freelance graphic designer with clients in both the US and Europe, which created a nightmare with self-employment taxes and foreign earned income. The platform guided me through the entire process, including how to properly report self-employment tax when using the Foreign Earned Income Exclusion. It even helped determine when I should use Form 1116 vs. Form 2555 to maximize my tax advantages.
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Vanessa Figueroa
3 Just wanted to update after trying taxr.ai based on the recommendation here. I was initially skeptical, but I'm genuinely impressed with how it handled my complex situation. As someone who has both W-2 income from a US employer and freelance income while living in Japan, previous services always left me confused. The system actually caught that I had been filing Form 1116 incorrectly for two years, potentially saving me from an audit. It also showed me how to properly allocate my income between foreign and US sources, which apparently I'd been doing wrong. The interface is surprisingly straightforward for handling such complicated tax situations. Definitely worth checking out if you're an expat dealing with US tax obligations.
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Vanessa Figueroa
7 After spending HOURS trying to reach the IRS international taxpayer line with questions about my expat return, I finally discovered Claimyr (https://claimyr.com). They have this service that basically calls the IRS for you and then connects you once an actual human agent is on the line! You can see how it works here: https://youtu.be/_kiP6q8DX5c Living in Thailand, trying to time calls to the IRS during their business hours was a nightmare, and I'd often wait on hold for an hour only to get disconnected. Using Claimyr, I got connected to an IRS agent who specializes in international tax issues within 25 minutes (while I just went about my day until my phone rang).
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Vanessa Figueroa
•18 Wait, how does this actually work? They just... call the IRS for you? Doesn't the IRS need to verify your identity before discussing your tax situation? I'm confused how a third party can help with this.
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Vanessa Figueroa
•3 Sorry, but this sounds too good to be true. The IRS wait times are ridiculous by design - there's no way some service has magically solved this problem. What's the catch here? I've spent literally days of my life on hold with the IRS over the past few years.
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Vanessa Figueroa
•7 It works by using their system to navigate the IRS phone tree and wait on hold for you. When an actual IRS agent picks up, you get a call connecting you directly to that agent. So you're the one talking to the IRS, not a third party - Claimyr just handles the hold time for you. The identity verification happens when you're connected with the agent. You still need to provide all your personal information directly to the IRS agent once connected. Claimyr doesn't store any of your tax details or speak on your behalf - they just solve the hold time problem.
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Vanessa Figueroa
3 I have to publicly admit I was completely wrong about Claimyr. After posting my skeptical comment, I decided to try it anyway because I was desperate to resolve an issue with my FBAR filing. I figured it would be a waste of time, but whatever. Guys, it actually worked exactly as described. I put in my number, went about my day, and about 40 minutes later my phone rang with an IRS international tax specialist on the line. Saved me hours of being on hold during the middle of the night here in Australia. I got my question about reporting foreign pension accounts answered in about 10 minutes once connected. Totally worth it just for the sanity factor alone.
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Vanessa Figueroa
22 Here's my experience as an expat in Japan for 7 years: Skip the mainstream services and find an accountant who specializes in expat taxes. Seriously. The money you'll save in the long run from proper filing and maximum deductions/credits will offset the cost. I tried doing it myself the first 2 years using various e-filing services and made expensive mistakes each time. Lost out on thousands in Foreign Housing Exclusion deductions I didn't know I qualified for, and incorrectly reported my Japanese retirement accounts which could have triggered penalties.
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Vanessa Figueroa
•14 That's probably good advice long-term, but accountants specializing in expat taxes charge $500+ where I'm at in London. For someone with a relatively straightforward situation (just employment income), isn't that overkill?
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Vanessa Figueroa
•22 For a truly simple situation with just employment income, you might be able to manage with a good e-filing service. But in my experience, expat tax situations rarely stay simple. Did you open a local bank account? You might need to file FBAR. Does your company offer a pension? That has specific reporting requirements. Planning to stay long-term? The tax treaty implications change. Even "simple" expat returns have complexities that the average e-filing service struggles with. I've seen people pay $500 for an accountant who then saved them $2,000+ in taxes they would have overpaid. But ultimately it's a personal choice based on your comfort level and situation complexity.
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Vanessa Figueroa
5 Has anyone tried MyExpatTaxes? Their website claims to specialize in US taxes for expats, but I can't find many reviews from actual users.
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Vanessa Figueroa
•11 I used MyExpatTaxes last year while in Germany. It was pretty decent - definitely designed for expats and handled Form 1116 and Form 2555 well. The interface is simpler than TurboTax but has all the expat-specific features. Cost me about $149 for federal, which isn't cheap but less than an accountant. They also have good expat-specific support if you get stuck.
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