IRS USA - STREAMLINED FILING COMPLIANCE PROCEDURES

Why should U.S. Citizens and Resident Aliens who failed to file U.S. income tax returns and information returns utilize the IRS Streamlined Filing Compliance Procedures?

Most Americans living in foreign countries are under the impression that they don't need to file taxes in the U.S. as they are living in a foreign country and pay income taxes in that country. But this is not true.

Generally, the internal revenue service imposes hefty penalties and interest for the failure to file U.S. income tax and information returns. But they acknowledge the fact that people would sometimes miss filing their tax returns because of negligence, inadvertence, or mistake or conduct that is the result of a good faith misunderstanding of the requirements of the law. So, the IRS has come up with a solution to help those taxpayers who failed to file US taxes because of their lack of knowledge.

In Protected content , the IRS introduced a tax amnesty program called Streamlined Filing procedures. As per this filing program, taxpayers who meet certain eligibility requirements criteria can file their past-due tax returns without paying any penalties. Taxpayers do not need to file all the tax returns that they failed to file in the past. Instead, they need to file the tax returns including all required information tax returns for the last three years and 6 years of FBARs for which the due date has already passed and pay all tax. This way, U.S taxpayers can come into U.S. tax compliance.

After a taxpayer has completed the streamlined procedures, he or she will be expected to comply with U.S. law for all future years and file returns according to regular filing procedures.

Taxpayers also need to certify that their failure to file income tax returns and information tax returns was due to non-willful conduct on their part. Non-willful conduct is conduct that is due to negligence, inadvertence, or mistake or conduct that is the result of a good faith misunderstanding of the requirements of the law.

Taxpayers who are under a criminal investigation by the IRS or whose tax returns are under a civil examination by the IRS are not eligible to use the streamlined filing procedures.

Taxpayers can file amended or delinquent returns under the streamlined filing procedures. The streamlined procedures are available to both U.S. individual taxpayers residing outside the United States and U.S. individual taxpayers residing in the United States. Returns submitted under the streamlined procedures will be processed like any other tax returns submitted to the IRS. Receipt of the returns will not be acknowledged by the IRS.

The streamlined procedures are an excellent way of getting into the U.S. tax compliance. It will save U.S. taxpayers from being subject to the unpleasant ramifications of failure to pay U.S. income taxes. Failure to file US tax returns can lead to the following situations that one would like to avoid.

Protected content Charges and Late Payment and Filing Penalties
Protected content Social Security Benefits
Protected content Obtaining Loans
Protected content and Enforcement Actions
Protected content or Denial of U.S. Passport
Protected content at the time of renunciation of U.S. Citizenship

If you would like to know more about the streamlined filing procedures, please feel free to reach out to us at Protected content