UK / US tax??

[SunshineAlways]

Sorry, I know I keep asking for help on here. We are struggling to find someone to help us with our U.K. and US tax fillings. We're finding it hard to understand all the issues with the treaty and what's a deduction etc.

Does everyone use an advisor? If you have one you like, can you PM me?

We are getting slightly stressed out about it all! We had one paid for by DH's company last year but they weren't good and didn't really help us.

We use a US accountant who has experience with filing US returns for international clients. As a result he knows what to offset, how to declare it, extra forms to fill in etc.

You really need someone who's local to your state as all the state tax laws are different. I'd probably post on a local FB or ex pat group for recommendations

For my UK one, I do my own returns

I do UK tax returns and work with an accountant who does the US returns for clients. UK / US tax treaty is my specialist subject Lol

We've just started using an accountancy firm to help us with tax, having done them on our own for 12 years using Turbo Tax. This year they got complicated because of a UK trust (that isn't treated as a trust in the US), plus filling in FAFSA and CSS Profile forms for college aid, plus my business is making enough money to justify it.

We didn't actually go with anyone who specialises in US/UK taxes but we did look for someone smart enough to read a UK trust document and work out what that means for US taxes, and who specialises in working with small businesses. They're not the cheapest but not outrageously expensive.

Do make sure you fill in an FBAR form if you have money in the UK. This is the first year we've had to do one but you can get in big trouble if you don't.

www.irs.gov/businesses/small-businesses-self-employed/report-of-foreign-bank-and-financial-accounts-fbar

I am using a uk based specialist (i live in uk) to regularise my relationship with the irs. It’s not cheap, it’s often complex. Not sure if you are in the U.K. many advisors deal mainly with corporate and/or high net worth individuals. I went to a city firm for initial (free) advice. They recommended cheaper advisors as I am not hnw and am relatively straightforward.

@HoldMyLobster The issue with not using someone who is not familiar with the tax treaty is that they might miss something or be unaware of important changes that affect you

Oh I agree. I think though that this accountancy firm we've got will be the right mix to help us with a small foreign income, dealing with the complexities of running a small business in the US and working out how to fill in FAFSA forms when some of your children's savings are held abroad in someone else's name.

@HoldMyLobster sounds good