Guides for Americans living abroad

US documents for use abroad

FBI checks, apostilles, state and court records, translation and passports.

• How do you get an FBI background check for use abroad?

  How to request an FBI Identity History Summary for a visa or residence permit, get legible fingerprints, and add the apostille the destination asks for.

• Apostille, authentication, or legalization: which does your document need?

  When a US document needs an apostille, when it needs authentication and embassy legalization instead, and what an e-Apostille really is.

• How do you get a state document apostilled?

  How state apostilles work, using California's official instructions as a worked example: fees, mail and in-person routes, and what gets a request returned.

• How do you prepare birth, marriage, court, and degree records for use abroad?

  Prepare US birth, marriage, divorce, court and education records for a foreign authority: who issues each one, who certifies it, and common mistakes.

• What kind of translation do US documents need for a foreign authority?

  Sworn, certified or court-approved translation of US documents: how to tell what the receiving authority wants and what the translation should cover.

• How do you renew a US passport while living abroad?

  Renew a US passport from abroad: who can renew by mail through an embassy, the DS-82 packet, fees, and why the tracking status can mislead you.

Moving and living abroad

Visa document plans, Schengen days, moving budgets and voting from abroad.

• How do you build a document plan for a visa or residence permit abroad?

  A visa document plan for Americans moving abroad: which facts pick the route, what to record for each document, and the US records most programs ask for.

• How does the Schengen 90/180-day rule work for Americans?

  Count your Schengen days with a free 90/180 calculator. How the rolling window works, why entry and exit days count, and when the rule does not apply.

• How much money do you need to move abroad, and what counts as proof of funds?

  Separate the savings a visa asks you to show from the money you will spend moving abroad: fees, deposits, setup costs and optional professional help.

• How do US citizens vote from abroad?

  Vote from abroad as a US citizen: the Federal Post Card Application, when to send it, how ballots reach you, and the backup write-in ballot.

US taxes while living abroad

Filing, deadlines, the exclusion, the foreign tax credit and foreign-account reports. Information only; licensed partners prepare returns.

• Do you still file US taxes while living abroad?

  US citizens and resident aliens abroad are generally taxed on worldwide income. Learn why filing and owing tax are separate questions, and what to gather.

• When are US taxes due if you live abroad?

  The regular US return date, the automatic June 15 extension for qualifying people abroad, the October 15 extension, and the FBAR due date, with their limits.

• Who qualifies for the foreign earned income exclusion?

  The foreign earned income exclusion needs a foreign tax home, earned income abroad and the bona fide residence or 330-day test. See how the IRS counts days.

• Foreign tax credit or foreign earned income exclusion: how do they compare?

  How the foreign tax credit limit works, why you cannot credit tax on excluded income, carrybacks and carryforwards, and how the credit and exclusion compare.

• FBAR vs. Form 8938: which foreign-account reports apply to you?

  FBAR and Form 8938 are separate reports with different thresholds, filing places and assets. See the abroad thresholds and what each form covers.

• Do self-employed Americans abroad still pay US self-employment tax?

  The foreign earned income exclusion does not reduce US self-employment tax. Learn how totalization agreements and certificates of coverage can change that.

• Which US forms can apply to foreign funds, companies and trusts?

  Foreign mutual funds, ETFs, companies, partnerships, trusts and large gifts can each need their own US information return. Learn what to inventory first.

• How do a foreign spouse and children change your US taxes abroad?

  Electing to treat a nonresident spouse as a US resident, its ITIN and worldwide-income effects, and how the exclusion limits the additional child tax credit.

• Do tax treaties, foreign pensions and state taxes change what you owe abroad?

  Why US tax treaties rarely remove filing for citizens, why foreign pension labels do not set US treatment, and why state tax needs state sources after a move.

• What if you are behind on US tax returns or FBARs while abroad?

  Unfiled returns, unreported accounts and IRS notices are different problems. See which official IRS procedures exist and what to gather before choosing one.

How we write these guides

• The answer comes first, in plain words.
• Every fact links to the government page it came from, with the date we checked it.
• We separate what an official source says from what depends on your situation.
• We never give legal or tax advice. Licensed partners prepare tax returns.