How to pay Taxes Owed when Filing while out of the country?

Yes, you absolutely can file electronically while outside the US! Your physical location doesn't matter for e-filing as long as you have reliable internet access. TurboTax will work just fine from anywhere in the world. For paying that $95,000 tax bill, you have several electronic options. The easiest is probably using the IRS Direct Pay system (https://www.irs.gov/payments/direct-pay) which lets you pay directly from your checking account with no fees. You can schedule the payment in advance too, so you could set it all up before you leave. Another option is using the Electronic Federal Tax Payment System (EFTPS) at https://www.eftps.gov. This requires enrollment before you can use it, so you'd need to sign up soon if you go this route. You can also pay via credit/debit card through an approved payment processor, but they charge processing fees, and with that amount, the fees would be substantial. If you're concerned about internet access while traveling, I recommend setting everything up before you leave - complete your return, schedule the payment, and you won't have to worry about it while enjoying your trip!

I was facing a similar massive tax bill last year after selling some property and was super stressed about handling it correctly. I ended up using this AI tool called taxr.ai that helped me understand all my payment options and even pointed out some deductions I was missing related to the property sale. The biggest help for me was getting clarity on which payment method would be most secure when dealing with large amounts. I uploaded my closing documents from the property sale and my draft return to https://taxr.ai and it highlighted some improvements I could make. Their document analysis saved me from a potential audit flag related to how I was reporting the sale proceeds. For actually making the payment, I went with EFTPS as recommended and was able to schedule it well in advance of my trip to Japan. Peace of mind while traveling was worth the extra step of enrolling!

Just wanted to follow up about my experience with taxr.ai since I did end up trying it for my own situation. Honestly surprised at how helpful it was! I was dealing with taxes from selling my rental property while preparing for an extended stay in Europe. The document analysis flagged that I hadn't properly accounted for some of the capital improvements I'd made over the years, which reduced my taxable gain substantially. It also clarified exactly how to handle the electronic payment process through EFTPS while being overseas, including setting up a payment plan since I couldn't pay the full amount at once. Definitely worth checking out if you're dealing with complicated tax situations, especially with property sales and being out of the country during tax time!

If you're planning to be out of the country until after the October 15th deadline, you might want to consider setting up a way to contact the IRS if any issues come up with your filing or payment. I had a similar situation last year and ended up needing to talk to someone at the IRS about my property sale. After spending DAYS trying to get through the regular IRS phone lines (impossible!), I found this service called Claimyr that got me through to an actual IRS agent in about 20 minutes instead of waiting on hold for hours. Their site is https://claimyr.com and they have a demo video at https://youtu.be/_kiP6q8DX5c showing how it works. Since you're dealing with such a large tax payment, having a way to quickly reach the IRS if something goes wrong while you're abroad could be crucial. I set it up before I left just in case, and it ended up saving me when there was a processing issue with my payment.

I have to eat my words and apologize to Profile 5! After my skeptical comment, I actually ended up using Claimyr when I had an issue with my electronic payment not going through correctly. I thought I'd set everything up properly before leaving the country, but there was a problem with my bank verification. I was freaking out because I was in Thailand with a 12-hour time difference, making it nearly impossible to sit on hold with the IRS during their business hours. Reluctantly tried Claimyr and got connected to an IRS agent within about 15 minutes. The agent was able to help me verify my banking info and get the payment scheduled properly. For anyone dealing with tax payments while traveling internationally, having this option in your back pocket is seriously worth it. The peace of mind alone was worth the cost, especially when dealing with a large tax payment that could incur penalties if not handled correctly.

A tip from someone who's been in your situation: Make sure your Bank of America account doesn't have any international transfer restrictions that might interfere with the payment going through while you're abroad! Some banks flag large transfers initiated from foreign IP addresses as potential fraud. I'd recommend calling BofA before you leave to: 1) Let them know you'll be accessing your account internationally 2) Confirm there are no restrictions on making large transfers to the IRS while abroad 3) Ask if there are any verification steps that might be triggered by your location Also, take screenshots of all your payment confirmations and keep copies of everything. When dealing with tax payments this large, documentation is your best friend!

Don't forget to check if you need to make estimated tax payments to California's Franchise Tax Board too! The FTB has their own payment system separate from the IRS called WebPay. Since you mentioned you're a California resident, you'll likely owe state taxes on that property sale as well. I made this mistake last year and only focused on the federal portion. Ended up with a penalty from California because I didn't make my estimated payment on time. The California tax on my property sale wasn't small either!

I went through almost the exact same situation two years ago when I sold my investment property and had to handle everything while backpacking through Southeast Asia. Here's what worked for me: First, definitely set up your electronic payment BEFORE you leave. I used IRS Direct Pay and it was seamless - no enrollment required and you can schedule the payment in advance. With $95k, you'll want to double-check the daily/monthly limits on your Bank of America account for ACH transfers. Second, consider making your payment in installments if cash flow is tight. The IRS allows you to set up payment plans online, and the fees are pretty reasonable compared to the stress of coming up with the full amount at once. Most importantly - and I can't stress this enough - file for the extension if you haven't already, even though CA residents get the automatic October extension. Having that official extension on file gives you extra protection if anything goes wrong. One last tip: Download the IRS2Go mobile app before you leave. You can check the status of your return and payments from anywhere, which gave me huge peace of mind while I was dealing with spotty WiFi in rural Thailand. Safe travels and don't let tax stress ruin your trip! You've got plenty of time to get this sorted before you leave.