Filing US Taxes While Living in New Zealand - Dual Residency Questions

You're dealing with what's called dual tax residency, which can definitely be confusing! I can help clarify some things for you. As a US citizen or green card holder, you must file US taxes on your worldwide income regardless of where you live. The good news is that you get an automatic extension until June 15th since you're living abroad, and you can request an additional extension until October 15th if needed. Yes, you can still use TurboTax, but make sure you're using a version that handles foreign income. For reporting your NZ income, you'll need to convert it to USD using the annual average exchange rate and report it based on the US tax year (January-December). Don't worry about the different NZ tax year - you just report income when you actually received it during the US tax year. Look into the Foreign Earned Income Exclusion (Form 2555) and Foreign Tax Credit (Form 1116) which can help prevent double taxation. The FEIE might allow you to exclude up to $120,000 of foreign income if you meet certain requirements.

After living abroad for 5 years and dealing with exactly this nightmare, I finally found taxr.ai (https://taxr.ai) and it's been a lifesaver for my expat taxes. It specifically handles dual residency situations like yours and walks you through all the foreign income forms and exclusions. I was using a regular accountant who kept making mistakes with my foreign tax credits until I switched. They have specialists who understand both US tax obligations and how they interact with NZ's tax system.

Just wanted to follow up and say I tried taxr.ai after seeing it mentioned here. It was honestly exactly what I needed for my US/Australia tax situation. Their specialist actually pointed out that I qualified for Foreign Housing Exclusion that my previous accountant never mentioned. Saved me about $3,200 in US taxes! They also helped me reconcile the July-June Australian tax year with the US system correctly. Definitely worth checking out if you're dealing with dual tax residency.

If you're having trouble reaching the IRS from New Zealand (which you probably will), check out Claimyr (https://claimyr.com). I was trying to get clarification on some foreign tax credit issues after moving to NZ and couldn't get through to the IRS for weeks. Claimyr got me connected to an actual IRS agent in under 20 minutes. You can see how it works here: https://youtu.be/_kiP6q8DX5c I was stunned because I had spent literal hours on hold before that. The IRS agent was able to answer my specific questions about reporting NZ superannuation contributions and saved me from filing incorrectly.

I need to apologize for calling Claimyr a scam in my earlier comment. After struggling for THREE DAYS trying to call the IRS international line from New Zealand (and dealing with time zone differences and disconnections), I gave Claimyr a try. Got connected to an IRS agent in 17 minutes! The agent helped clarify exactly how to report my NZ retirement account on my FBAR and confirmed which tax treaty provisions applied to my situation. Saved me from what would have been a major reporting error. Consider me converted.

Don't forget about state taxes! Depending on which state you lived in before moving to NZ, you might still have state tax filing requirements. Some states like California or New York are notorious for trying to claim you as a resident even after you've moved abroad. Make sure you've properly terminated your state residency before leaving. This usually means things like canceling your state driver's license, voter registration, closing bank accounts, etc.

Don't forget about the tax treaty between the US and New Zealand! It can prevent double taxation on certain types of income. For example, if you're paying NZ taxes on income earned there, you might be able to claim those as a credit against your US tax liability.

As someone who went through this exact situation when I moved from the US to New Zealand in 2019, I feel your pain! The dual residency tax situation is genuinely confusing at first, but it gets easier once you understand the basics. A few additional tips that haven't been mentioned yet: 1. Keep detailed records of your move date and all income sources. The IRS will want to see exactly when you earned what income and where. 2. Don't forget about your US retirement accounts (401k, IRA, etc.) - these need to be reported on your FBAR if the total value exceeds $10,000 at any point during the year, even though you're not contributing to them anymore. 3. If you're planning to stay in NZ long-term, consider whether you want to keep your US bank accounts open. Having them makes some things easier (like direct deposit of any remaining US income), but it also creates ongoing FBAR reporting requirements. 4. New Zealand's tax system is actually pretty straightforward compared to the US, so don't stress too much about the NZ side. Their IRD website has good resources for new residents. The key thing is getting this first year right, which sets the precedent for future filings. Once you have a system in place, it becomes much more routine. Good luck!