Please note a newer post was published on this topic in March 2020. 美国国税局对美国人的定义是什么?

下面的讨论主要针对个人, 然而, 实体, 比如公司, 合作伙伴关系, and 信托基金 are also 美国人s and have worldwide tax and reporting obligations as well, 包括 FBAR或Fincen表格114.

我们一直在讨论这个问题, 无论你是一个投资顾问, 家庭办公室, 基金经理, 受托人, 企业创始人, 等. or an individual, there is a lot of confusion who falls within the United States tax net.  And there are consequences to both sides for a failure to understand.

The United States imposes its Income Tax on US PERSONS based on the person’s worldwide income.  It does not matter where you live – if you are a US PERSON or have a US PERSON in your investment structure, 你(或他们)要缴纳美国所得税.

If you owe US Income Tax and do not pay the tax when due you are also liable for substantial penalties for ‘failure to pay’ the tax as well as for the ‘late payment’ of the tax and for ‘interest’ on the late payment.

如果这还不够的话, the US requires a substantial number of ‘information’ reports…these include reports on the 美国人s financial accounts and interest in non-US corporations, 合伙和信托.  Failure to file these informational reports can also result in sizeable penalties. 例如, failure to report an interest in a non-US trust can result in a penalty of more than $10,每年一份报告.

国税局会怎么找到我?

The 国税局 now has many ways of finding people outside the US who are not filing their tax returns.  躲藏不是一个选择.  They have whistle blower programs and have initiated new Voluntary Disclosure programs since 2009 where many people have come forward.  正如之前在这个博客上报道的那样, by learning from this data, the 国税局 has been able to find others without their knowledge.  But the biggest global initiative by far is the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (新法)于2010年被美国通过.  从2014年开始, this law requires foreign financial institutions like your local bank, 股票经纪人, 对冲基金, 养老基金, 保险公司, 信托基金, 等. to report directly to the 国税局 all their clients who are US PERSONS. The penalties for the institutions that do not cooperate are punitive.

什么是美国人?

• 所有美国公民.  An individual is a citizen if that person was born in the United States or if the individual has been naturalized as a US citizen.
• 你也可以成为美国公民, even if born outside the United States if one or both of your parents are US citizens.
• 你是美国的“纳税居民”.  You can become a tax resident under two rules: 1) The ‘实质存在试验’.   This is a ‘day count test and based on the number of days you are in the US over a three year period and 2) The ‘绿卡’ test.  A person who has obtained a ‘绿卡’ has been granted the right to lawful permanent residence in the United States.

The rules relating to US citizenship at birth outside the US are complex. 你可能想去当地看看 美国大使馆 or contact a qualified immigration lawyer to understand your specific circumstances.

One point to consider though is that if you are born a US citizen you are a citizen. Having your birth registered or obtaining a US passport is not a prerequisite – you are a citizen and will remain a US citizen and subject to US tax unless you renounce your citizenship.  这里有一些澳门官方老葡京 移居国外 这些要求.

绿卡持有者和纳税居民

比如美国公民, 绿卡 holders and tax residents (through visas or otherwise) are subject to US income tax on their global income.

Importantly for Green card holders – “Your tax responsibilities as a 绿卡 holder do not change if you are absent from the US for any period of time. Your income tax filing requirement and possible obligation to pay US taxes continue until you either surrender your 绿卡 or there has been a final administrative or judicial determination that your 绿卡 has been revoked or abandoned. 因此，即使 美国公民及移民服务局 (USCIS) no longer recognizes the validity of your 绿卡 because you have been absent from the United States for a certain period of time or the 绿卡 is more than ten years old, you must continue to file tax returns until there has been a final determination that is not subject to appeal that your 绿卡 has been revoked or abandoned.”

The above point on 绿卡 holders cannot be emphasized enough.  Many foreign nationals come to the US to work for a time period or have children who initially come over for education.  他们经常获得绿卡.  If they leave, they usually don’t think to officially surrender their 绿卡s.  That leaves them still in the 国税局’ sights and therefore in the tax net.

通过我们的 美国扩张实践, we see founders or staff members who start commuting back and forth to the US to promote or start their business, 没有意识到, they often cross the threshold of residency (实质存在试验).  Residency means you are taxed on worldwide income and have reporting obligations.  没有适当的计划, inadvertently subjecting your worldwide assets and income to the US tax system may have serious consequences.

概述:

• 出生在美国
• 在美国以外出生，父母为美国人
• 归化的公民
• 绿卡持有者
• 税收居民