(Courtesy of Jim Burch)
Montreal Gazette
On the heels of comments last week from U.S. Ambassador to Canada David Jacobson, the U.S. Internal Revenue Service quietly posted on its website an update to the information for citizens living abroad.
The fact sheet, which the website lists as last updated on Wednesday, largely confirms what Jacobson said was expected to come from the IRS, stating that no penalties will be imposed on late returns where no tax is due and failure to file required bank account information will also be forgiven for “reasonable cause.”
Read more: http://www.montrealgazette.com/business/eases+stance+citizens+abroad/5840792/story.html#ixzz1gFF9yFBI
IRS Fact Sheet
Here is a link to the IRS Fact Sheet -> http://www.irs.gov/newsroom/article/0,,id=250788,00.html
1. U.S. income tax return filing requirement
As a United States citizen, you must file a federal income tax return for any tax year in which your gross income is equal to or greater than the applicable exemption amount and standard deduction. For information about whether you must file a federal income tax return for a particular tax year, including exemption amounts and standard deductions, see Publication 501 (Exemptions, Standard Deduction, and Filing Information) for that year. Generally, you are required to report your worldwide income on your federal income tax return. This means that you should report all income, regardless of which country is the source of the income. Generally, you only need to file returns going back six years.