This page provides a general summary of federal income tax responsibilities, procedures, and rights related to residents of the United States, and corresponding links to more detailed information. Residency under U.S. tax law The taxation of an individual who is not a U.S. citizen or U.S. national is dependent on the residency status of such individual. In general, U.S. tax residents are taxed in the same manner as U.S. citizens on their worldwide income, while nonresidents are generally taxed on U.S. source income and income effectively connected with U.S. trade or business. An immigrant who obtains a green card is treated as a lawful permanent resident and is considered a U.S. tax resident for U.S. income tax purposes. For assistance in determining whether you are a U.S. tax resident or nonresident please refer to determining alien tax status. In general, when you initially obtain a green card, your residency starting date is the first day in the calendar year on which you are present in the United States as a lawful permanent resident (the date on which the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) officially approved your petition to become an immigrant). If you received a green card abroad, then the residency starting date is the first day of physical presence in the United States after you received the green card. For more information, please refer to residency starting and ending dates. For tax years in which you are both a U.S. tax resident and nonresident, please refer to taxation of dual-status aliens. Taxation of U.S. tax resident If you are a U.S. tax resident or U.S. citizen, the rules for filing income, estate, and gift tax returns and paying estimated tax are generally the same whether you are in the United States or abroad. Your worldwide income is subject to U.S. income tax, regardless of where you reside. For details regarding tax responsibilities for U.S. tax residents, please refer to taxation of U.S. resident aliens and Publication 519, U.S. Tax Guide for Aliens. For details regarding tax responsibilities for U.S. tax residents and U.S. citizens who work or live abroad or who have income earned in a foreign country, please refer to taxpayers living abroad and Publication 54, Tax Guide for U.S. Citizens and Resident Aliens Abroad. An individual with income from Guam, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI), American Samoa, the U.S. Virgin Islands or Puerto Rico will probably have to file a tax return with the tax department of one of these territories. It is possible the individual may have to file two annual tax returns: one with the territory's tax department and the other with the U.S. Internal Revenue Service. For more information, see individuals living or working in U.S. territories/possessions. Additional filing requirements, including foreign asset reporting Federal law requires U.S. tax residents and U.S. citizens to report any worldwide income, including income from foreign trusts and foreign bank and securities accounts. In most cases, affected taxpayers need to complete and attach Schedule B to their tax return. Part III of Schedule B asks about the existence of foreign accounts, such as bank and securities accounts, and usually requires an individual to report the country in which each account is located. A U.S. person, including a U.S. citizen, U.S. tax resident, domestic corporation, partnership, limited liability company, trust and estate, must also report certain foreign financial accounts, such as bank accounts, brokerage accounts and mutual funds, to the Treasury department by filing a report of Foreign Bank and Financial Accounts (FBAR) on FinCEN Form 114. For more information about the FBAR filing requirement, see report of Foreign Bank and Financial Accounts (FBAR). In addition, certain taxpayers may also have to complete and attach to their tax return Form 8938, Statement of Foreign Financial Assets. Generally, U.S. tax residents, U.S. citizens, and certain nonresident must report specified foreign financial assets on this form if the aggregate value of those assets exceeds certain thresholds. Please refer to the instructions for Form 8938 for details. U.S. persons may also have the following additional filing requirements: Form 3520, Annual Return to Report Transactions with Foreign Trusts and Receipt of Certain Foreign Gifts Form 3520-A, Annual Information Return of Foreign Trust with a U.S. Owner Form 5471, Information Return of U.S. Persons with Respect to Certain Foreign Corporations Form 8621, Information Return by a Shareholder of a Passive Foreign Investment Company or Qualified Electing Fund Form 8858, Information Return of U.S. Persons With Respect to Foreign Disregarded Entities (FDEs) and Foreign Branches (FBs) Form 8865, Return of U.S. Persons with Respect to Certain Foreign Partnerships Form 926, Return by a U.S. Transferor of Property to a Foreign Corporation Contacts Please refer to let us help you for common online tools and resources, as well as IRS telephone numbers per type of assistance needed. Related Tax information for individuals International individuals Publication 17, Your Federal Income Tax (for individuals) Publication 54, Tax Guide for U.S. Citizens and Resident Aliens Abroad Publication 519, U.S. Tax Guide for Aliens Expatriation tax Notice 2009-85, Guidance for Expatriates Under Section 877A The taxation of foreign pension and annuity distributions Nonresident aliens Taxpayer bill of rights Contact my local office internationally
