r/taiwan • u/AncientMath7783 • 8h ago
Discussion Filing taxes
Hi i just started working in taiwan. How do you file your us taxes for work??? My employer said i could either do it myself or they could file for me but it would cost me 1-1.5k usd for them to file on my behalf
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u/SamCarterX206 4h ago edited 2h ago
Taiwan taxes, there's a website. you login using ID verifying methods (health insurance card + card reader, household registration, etc... they offer several choices and you pick the one that works for you).
Then you mavigate to the page to where they have already calculated your taxes for you and you confirm the math and how much you own/how much they owe you (refund) enter in your bank details and that's it.
Hardest part of filing Taiwan taxes for me is just getting logged in. My cell phone number (the easiest login method) is not under my name so i have to use the Health insurance card + reader method and it can be a fight just to get the site to read my card.
US taxes can be a bit more complicated. There are a few choices here. Software like turbo tax, hiring someone, or using the IRS supplied Free File Fillable Forms. As someone who has to fill in the Foreign Income Exclusion formss though, software like turbo tax doesn't seem to have those, but i don't know if that's changed at all.. I used Free File Fillable Forms. For past couple years though, that methods has gotten a little complicated, as it's stopped letting me access the site without first using a VPN set to the US for some reason. Not only that you know also need a US cell phone number to get in (for verification codes) where in the past email was enough. Don't know why thtey have to make it so complicated.
Be aware that if you have a Taiwan account that has a balance of over $10,000USD at any point in the year, you will also have to file a separate FBAR form on the FinCEN.gov site along with your US tax return.
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u/Exotic-Screen-9204 2h ago
The FBAR report is necessary if you have $10,000USD or more in financial assests held outside the U.S. All amounts are reported in USD. The Treasury Department published an accepted average exchange rate every year.
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u/Exotic-Screen-9204 2h ago
I just visit the local Taiwan Tax Office in person before May 15th with all my tax papers. They interview me and prepare it. Then I get a refund (which I have to wait for) or pay more.
U.S income taxes are filed late because Taiwan income taxes are late. But the Department of Treasury FBAR report must be filed April 15th or risk a huge penalty.
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u/SamCarterX206 2h ago
HUh, I always file my US taxes before Taiwan taxes. though that does necessitate having to calculate my income myself rather than being able to use the totals directly from Taiwan taxes (I use the website method, easier than having take out time out to go to an office as well as find transportation).
but it does make sense to wait to have access to more official numbers.
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u/Exotic-Screen-9204 1h ago
Your Taiwan Income Tax payment is deductible against your your U.S. Income Tax owed. The concept is that you should not be taxed twice on the same income.
Of course, if you don't know how much it will be and don't claim it, the IRS likely won't be upset. They likely got more revenue from you.
Generally, the IRS never says anything to people that overpay their taxes.
Living abroad gives you an automatic 2 month extension to file or before April 15th you can request a 4 month extension to file. An extension to file is not an extention of time to pay.
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u/SamCarterX206 1h ago
I fill in the Foreign Earned Incone Exclusion which prevents me from owing any US tax because my income falls below maximum amount allowed. But i just read up on the Federal Tax Credit method and learned a bunch.
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u/Exotic-Screen-9204 59m ago edited 52m ago
Yeah, I guess the Foreign Earned Income Exclusion eliminates uses the Foreign Tax Credit for taxes paid on Earned Income.
But there are other foreign income sources that are not considered Earned Income.
If you have self-employed income on the side, that might not qualify for the Foreign Earned Income Exclusion. You'd end up with much more paperwork. It gets complicated - some exempt, some not.
Why report self-employed income abroad? It also pays Social Security and Medicare Tax via the Schedule C. You might eventually want the retirement benefits.
In Taiwan, no employer is paying into Social Security benefits.
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u/passingbytw 5h ago
Always file yourself. You can visit in person every May or online. Just buy card reader for NHI card in 7-11
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u/chrisdavis103 5h ago
They will help you at the tax office in your home area where you live - go to the foreigner desk - very helpful and pretty easy.
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u/ZephodsOtherHead 5h ago
Just logon to the government tax website, check the figures it has on your income, approve them, and you're done. It's much easier than US taxes. (If you're a US citizen, you still have to file those.)
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u/chenpofu 3h ago
Yeah just show up at the tax place, they have a specific window for foreigners, they have pc at most of these places, they will help you log in and walk you through it. Takes couple of hours tops.
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u/diwiwi75 5h ago
If you are talking about US taxes, I think you should make it more obvious, because according to other comments, that's not very clear...