Most US taxpayers (citizens and resident aliens or greencard holders) living and working in Hong Kong or overseas are required to file US taxes if they meet certain minimum income levels. For tax year 2017, if you file as single, then you must file a tax return if your gross income is $10,400 USD or more (no matter where you live). The US is one of the few countries around the world that taxes individuals on their worldwide income. Even with the US filing requirements, you (living overseas) are allowed some benefits that taxpayers living in the US are not allowed. Here are three benefits taxpayers living abroad should know:

 

1. Foreign Earned Income Exclusion and Housing Exclusion      

For 2017, the US government allows qualifying taxpayers to exclude up to $102,100 USD of their salary from US taxes. If your income is more than $102,100 USD, you may also be able to claim deductions for foreign housing costs paid and foreign taxes paid.


2. Automatic Filing Extension     

If you are living abroad on April 15th, the US allows you an automatic two month extension to file your taxes extending the deadline to June 15th. Even with the automatic extension, you are still required to pay all your taxes (if any) before April 15th or penalties and interest will be accrued for unpaid amounts.

3. No Withholding Taken Out of Pay

If you are employed by a foreign employer, the foreign employer usually will not withhold any amounts from each payment you receive. This will allow you to have more control of the money you earn, but also require you to be more responsible with managing your cash flow…especially if you need to pay foreign taxes and US taxes.

For certain taxpayers living abroad, they may need to make quarterly estimated tax payments throughout the tax year. This process may be necessary as most foreign employers do not withhold any US taxes from employees’ paychecks.

Important reminder about FBAR (Foreign Bank Account Report)
Beginning in calendar year 2017, FBAR’s filed in 2018, the revised deadline is April 15th. Previously the deadline was June 30th.

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If you have additional questions or want to speak with a US tax expert, please contact us for more information.

 

Important Notice

The information contained herein serves as a guideline and is only provided for general informational purposes. It should not be considered as offering any tax advice. Since tax laws are complex, you should consult your tax advisor on specific issues related to your tax situation.

在香港或海外生活和工作的大多數美國納稅人（公民和居民外國人或綠卡持有人）如果符合某些最低收入水平，則必須提交美國稅。對於2017年的納稅年度，如果您以個人形式提交，若您的總收入為$ 10,400美元或更多（無論你住在哪裡），您必須提交納稅申報單。美國是世界上為個人對其全球收入徵稅的少數幾個國家之一。即使你有美國繳稅責任，你（居住在海外）也可以享受一些福利，居住在美國的納稅人不能享有的。在國外生活的納稅人應該知道以下三個好處：

1.外國所得收入排除和住房排除

在2017年，美國政府允許資格納稅人從美國稅收中扣除高達102,100美元的工資。如果您的收入超過102,100美元，您也可以申請扣除已支付的外國住房費用和已支付的外國稅款。

2.自動延期報稅

如果您在4月15日住在國外，美國允許您自動延期兩個月，將提交稅表的限期延至6月15日。即使使用自動延期，您仍然需要在4月15日之前支付您的所有稅款（如果有），否則將產生未付款項的罰金和利息。

3.沒有預扣稅

如果您受僱於外國雇主，外國雇主通常不會從您收到的每筆付款中扣除任何金額。這將令你更方便管理你所賺取的金錢，但也要求你更負責任地管理你的現金周轉……特別是如果你需要支付外國稅和美國稅。
對於居住在國外的某些納稅人，他們可能需要在整個納稅年度按季度納稅。這個過程可能是必要的，因為大多數外國雇主不從僱員的工資中扣除任何美國稅。

有關FBAR的重要提醒（外國銀行帳戶報告）
從2017年開始, 提交2018年FBAR的稅務到期日由以往的截止日期6月30日修訂為4月15日。

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如果您有其他問題或想要與美國稅務專家交談，請與我們聯繫以獲取更多信息。

重要的提醒
本文所包含的信息僅供參考, 並不視為提供任何稅務建議。由於稅法複雜，您應該諮詢您的稅務顧問查詢有關您的稅務情況。