IRS Reminds U.S. Taxpayers Living Abroad of Misc. Filing Due Dates and Filings

In News Release 2017-105, the IRS reminded U.S. taxpayers living abroad:

• The extended due date, if the taxpayer had his or her tax home and abode abroad on the original due date, is June 15. But interest on taxes runs from the original April 18 due date. The extension also applies to military personnel  abroad. When filing the return, the taxpayer must file a statement indicating which of these exceptions to the normal due date apply.
• A taxpayer must still file even if the Foreign Earned Income exclusion or the Foreign Tax credit substantially reduces or eliminates U.S. tax liability. These tax benefits are only available if an eligible taxpayer files a U.S. income tax return.
• Taxpayers abroad who can't meet the June 15 deadline can still get more time to file, but they need to ask for it. Their extension request must be filed by June 15. Automatic extensions give people until Oct. 16, 2017, to file; however, this does not extend the time to pay tax.
• One way to get an extension on Form 4868 is through the Free File link on IRS.gov. To get the extension, taxpayers must estimate their tax liability on this form and pay any amount due.
• Another option for taxpayers is to pay electronically and get an extension of time to file. IRS will automatically process an extension when taxpayers select Form 4868 and they are making a full or partial federal tax payment using Direct Pay, the Electronic Federal Tax Payment System (EFTPS) or a debit or credit card. There is no need to file a separate Form 4868 when making an electronic payment and indicating it is for an extension.
• The annual Report of Foreign Bank and Financial Accounts (FBAR) is now the same as for a federal income tax return. This means that the 2016 FBAR, Form 114, was normally required to be filed electronically with the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) by April 18, 2017. But FinCEN is granting filers missing the original deadline an automatic extension until Oct. 16, 2017 to file the FBAR. Specific extension requests are not required. In the past, the FBAR deadline was June 30 and no extensions were available.

News Release 2017-105