US & Philippines tax expert?

[dj3642]

Do you know if H&R block is good at doing USA and philippine taxes for Expats??.. i was reading a book telling me to find a good US international  tax lawyer and also one that is versed on philippines?? any ideas on this?? i have so much to get ready for this move. 

Edited and moved to a new topic, good question.

Edited July 17, 2018 by Old55
New question off topic moved to new topic

[scott h]

9 hours ago, dj3642 said:

H&R block is good at doing USA and philippine taxes for Expats?

DJ, unless you have some very, very complicated situations going on, I would just use the tax prep service you are using now. My wife and I still use the "tax lady" we used for years. We just email all our w2's and bank info to her, she mails back a form to sign, we sign it and send it back and a few weeks later we get our refund . 

If you are not aware, unless any income, such as pensions and investments that generate income in the states are not taxable here in the Philippines, so you shouldn't need a Filipino tax preparer. Been here 6 years and the only PI tax we pay is property tax. 

Having said all that, my one piece of advise is that if you are moving here permanently and if you currently live in a state that has income tax, is to change your home of record to the Philippines that way all you pay is federal income tax. (if it is possible without jeopardizing your pension income naturally)

Hope this helps and that I did not misread what you were asking for.

[Rooster]

11 hours ago, dj3642 said:

Do you know if H&R block is good at doing USA and philippine taxes for Expats??.. i was reading a book telling me to find a good US international  tax lawyer and also one that is versed on philippines?? any ideas on this?? i have so much to get ready for this move. 

Edited and moved to a new topic, good question.

Have you tried TurboTax? (online) 

[dj3642]

DJ, unless you have some very, very complicated situations going on, I would just use the tax prep service you are using now. My wifeand I still use the "tax lady" we used for years. We just email all our w2's and bank info to her, she mails back a form to sign, we sign it and send it back and a few weeks later we get our refund . 

 If you are not aware, unless any income, such as pensions and investments that generate income in the states are not taxable here in the Philippines, so you shouldn't need a Filipino tax preparer. Been here 6 years and the only PI tax we pay is property tax. 

Having said all that, my one piece of advise is that if you are moving here permanently and if you currently live in a state that has income tax, is to change your home of record to the Philippines that way all you pay is federal income tax. (if it is possible without jeopardizing your pension income naturally)

Hope this helps and that I did not misread what you were asking for.

 

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thanks for getting back to me.  and thanks for the info.  i think all i need to do is file a US tax form to let IRS know i am here. i have read on several posts about people keeping a US address for social ssecurity purposes. i dont get it yet but will .. and i know some people had said if you tell the IRS you are permanently living in philippines it can cause issues.  not sure.. but thansk for the helpful info :) i live in Atlanta , Georgia now .. has a state tax. was thinking about using a mail forwarding service in texas. they give you an actual address. so does that mean i woudl have to file texas income tax even though i have no income??

[Mike J]

On 7/18/2018 at 7:29 AM, Rooster said:

Have you tried TurboTax? (online) 

I tried to use TurboTax online when we moved here.  The problem was that TurboTax would not accept the use of a credit card with an IP address in the Philippines.  So you could not pay the TurboTax fees or, of course, any tax that might be owed.  I went instead with TaxAct.com.  I have used it for four years now without issues.

 

14 hours ago, dj3642 said:

even though i have no income??

If you have no income I would thank that the state you claim as resident should not make any difference.   For the federal tax, you could print off the forms using the IRS website and mail them in.  With no income there would, of course, be no tax due.

https://www.irs.gov/forms-instructions

Edited July 19, 2018 by Mike J
Spelling

[OnMyWay]

15 hours ago, dj3642 said:

thanks for getting back to me.  and thanks for the info.  i think all i need to do is file a US tax form to let IRS know i am here. i have read on several posts about people keeping a US address for social ssecurity purposes. i dont get it yet but will .. and i know some people had said if you tell the IRS you are permanently living in philippines it can cause issues.  not sure.. but thansk for the helpful info :) i live in Atlanta , Georgia now .. has a state tax. was thinking about using a mail forwarding service in texas. they give you an actual address. so does that mean i woudl have to file texas income tax even though i have no income??

The IRS and SS don't care if you live in the Philippines.  I file my U.S. tax return with my PH address and have filed for SS here.  If fact, if you want to get your SS sent here, you should file here, through the U.S. Embassy Manila.

The reason for keeping a U.S. mailing address is helpful for other reasons, including banking and investments and voting.  Many U.S. banks and investment firms don't want your business if you live in PH.

Texas is one of 7 states to have no state income tax, so it is a good place to have a mailing address.

[dj3642]

 

7 hours ago, OnMyWay said:

The IRS and SS don't care if you live in the Philippines.  I file my U.S. tax return with my PH address and have filed for SS here.  If fact, if you want to get your SS sent here, you should file here, through the U.S. Embassy Manila.

The reason for keeping a U.S. mailing address is helpful for other reasons, including banking and investments and voting.  Many U.S. banks and investment firms don't want your business if you live in PH.

Texas is one of 7 states to have no state income tax, so it is a good place to have a mailing address.

 

you filed for your SS at the US embassy in manila?? wow thats good to know. thanks. 

[dj3642]

8 hours ago, Mike J said:

I tried to use TurboTax online when we moved here.  The problem was that TurboTax would not accept the use of a credit card with an IP address in the Philippines.  So you could not pay the TurboTax fees or, of course, any tax that might be owed.  I went instead with TaxAct.com.  I have used it for four years now without issues.

 

If you have no income I would thank that the state you claim as resident should not make any difference.   For the federal tax, you could print off the forms using the IRS website and mail them in.  With no income there would, of course, be no tax due.

https://www.irs.gov/forms-instructions

ok thanks :)

[OnMyWay]

11 minutes ago, dj3642 said:

 

 

you filed for your SS at the US embassy in manila?? wow thats good to know. thanks. 

Not exactly.  The Embassy holds "outreaches" in various locations and they usually come to Subic Bay once or twice a year.  For us, it is much easier to go to an outreach than travel to the Embassy in Manila.

I think if it is just you, it is possible file for SS online, but double check that.  I was also filing for my two kids, and kids living here must make a physical appearance, so we did that at the outreach.  Everything has gone smoothly and we should start receiving our SS in November.