Greenback Expat Tax Services

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Greenback Expat Tax Services

We make US expat taxes simple—no hassle, no surprises. Why Choose Greenback? Expertise. You work one-on-one with an expert CPA or IRS Enrolled Agent. Experience.

Trusted by Americans in 190+ countries.

💻 Expert tax prep for US expats
🌎 Serving the global US community Greenback makes life better for Americans living abroad and aims to take away the anxiety and hassle of helping US expats become and stay compliant with their US taxes while overseas. Greenback understands that filing US taxes while living abroad can be daunting and Greenback was founded on the belief that it doesn’t have to be this way. Greenback is proud of helping people navigate a ridiculously complex system in a way that makes sense for their individual situation. While it may sound impossible, Greenback makes the process of filing US expat taxes a hassle-free one — a necessary step as part of an expat’s amazing adventure abroad. Our team works with expats 100% of the time and is highly specialized in expat tax preparation. Flat-fee pricing. With our transparent pricing, you always know what you’ll pay for the services you need—no surprise fees at the end! We have clients in 155+ countries and have prepared thousands of tax returns for US expats. Security. We use 256-bit encryption (the same as most banks use) to ensure your private information stays private! Simplified tax prep. We make it easy to work with us! We share documents online, communicate via email/Skype/phone and never ask you to do any of the financial calculations — that’s our job! Find out why thousands of US expats trust Greenback to prepare their US expat tax return. You won’t be disappointed.

10/30/2026

On this eve of Halloween, entrepreneurs and self-employed expats might wonder where the line sits between personal celebration and deductible business expenses.

The IRS permits deductions for ordinary and necessary expenses under Section 162, but personal living costs rare non-deductible. While branded treats given to clients or charitable donations to registered non-profits can qualify, items like personal costumes or casual holiday parties face strict statutory limits. For digital nomads and cross-border business owners, keeping clear receipts, documenting business purposes, and separating promotional costs from personal spending ensures your Schedule C stays compliant.

Understanding these boundaries allows you to maximize legitimate business deductions without second-guessing your filings.

10/29/2026

Filing season feels far away, but the choices you make before December 31 shape your next U.S. return. Check whether tax is being paid in during the year, start a folder for records and account balances, and look at your retirement savings options.
Expats have extra rules. Foreign employers usually do not withhold U.S. tax, gifts to most foreign charities are generally not deductible, and income you exclude under the Foreign Earned Income Exclusion generally does not count toward IRA contributions. A tax professional can help you sort out which apply.
Swipe for the year-end planning ideas.

10/28/2026

Raising a child in the U.S. now averages $303,418 from infancy to age 18, according to a 2026 LendingTree estimate, and childcare is often the biggest line item. If those numbers feel heavy, you are far from alone. In a Credit Karma survey, 68% of adults said raising children feels financially out of reach right now.

For expat families, U.S. tax credits such as the Child Tax Credit and the Child and Dependent Care Credit may help, and each has its own eligibility rules. How you use the Foreign Earned Income Exclusion can also affect which credits you can claim. A tax professional can help you sort out which apply.
Swipe for the numbers and the credits to check.

10/27/2026

Creating content from abroad? For U.S. tax purposes, brand partnerships, sponsored posts, ad revenue, and even free products or a sponsored trip count as income. You report all of it, whether or not a brand or payment app sends you a 1099.
Business expenses directly related to your work, such as software, a laptop, website costs, and advertising, may be deductible. Living abroad adds its own rules, including how the Foreign Earned Income Exclusion works alongside self-employment tax. A tax professional can help you sort out which apply.
Swipe for what counts as income, how reporting works, and what to track.

10/26/2026

Most Americans abroad have met this problem from the other direction: the foreign bank that turns down a U.S. applicant, the European broker that quietly closes its doors to U.S. clients. This time the pressure runs the other way, toward the U.S. bank, and the trigger is simply where you get your mail.

From January 11, 2027, a U.S. bank needs a locally licensed EU branch to keep serving customers who live in the European Union. It can build one, rely on a narrow exception for products you sought out yourself, or stop serving EU-based customers. No major U.S. bank has published its policy yet, and nothing in the directive requires an account to close.

Call your bank and ask where it stands. Write down the date on every account and loan. And if a balance does end up moving to a bank in the EU, know what that adds: FBAR once your foreign accounts together top $10,000 at any point in the year, possibly Form 8938, and interest that becomes foreign-source income.

Have you heard anything from your bank yet? Tell us in the comments.

Link in bio for the full breakdown.

10/23/2026

Italy is the most popular study abroad destination for American students. In 2023 to 2024, 45,067 of 298,180 students, or 15.1%, chose it, ahead of Spain and the U.K. Between the Roman Forum, Florence's Renaissance art, and weekend flights around Europe, it is easy to see why.
For students and parents, the paperwork goes beyond the visa. U.S. citizens generally keep their U.S. filing requirements while abroad, and a local bank account, a part-time job, or a scholarship can each add a rule worth checking. A tax professional can help you sort out which apply.
Swipe for the numbers and the tax basics.

10/22/2026

Heritage travel is gaining momentum, with more Black Americans planning trips around ancestry and history in places like Ghana, Tanzania, South Africa, and Nigeria. Standing inside Cape Coast Castle or on Robben Island can make history feel personal in a way books rarely do.
A visit of a couple of weeks generally leaves your U.S. taxes as they are. If the trip becomes a longer stay, remote work, or a new bank account, a few rules are worth checking early: the Foreign Earned Income Exclusion, the Foreign Tax Credit, and FBAR reporting. Each has eligibility requirements, and a tax professional can help you sort out which apply.
Swipe for the places drawing heritage travelers, and the tax basics for a longer stay.

10/21/2026

Over the years, people have told the IRS that taxes are voluntary, that the IRS is not a real agency, that Texas is not part of the U.S., and that they are not legally a "person." None of those arguments held up in court. One actor who sent the IRS a string of them instead of filing returns from 1999 to 2004 served three years in prison.

If you are an expat, the honest options are more useful than any clever theory. The Foreign Earned Income Exclusion and the Foreign Tax Credit are both part of U.S. tax law, and each has eligibility rules. A tax professional can help you find the right fit.
Swipe for the most creative excuses on record.

10/17/2026

On this day in 1931, Al Capone was convicted of tax evasion and later sentenced to 11 years in federal prison. Federal agents had chased his bootlegging for years. The tax charges were the ones that stuck.

Capone's case involved willful evasion, and most expat tax stress looks nothing like that. It usually starts with a missed form, a foreign account nobody told you to report, or a return you assumed you did not need to file while living abroad. Situations like these are often fixable, and options such as the Streamlined Filing Compliance Procedures may be available when the missed filings were non-willful.

Which foreign tax rule confuses you most? Ask Greenback in the comments.

10/13/2026

Military spouse working remotely from overseas? The Military Spouses Residency Relief Act (MSRRA) may let you keep your servicemember's state of residence for tax purposes, even if your employer is based in another state.

Say a spouse stationed in Germany works remotely for an East Coast company that withholds that state's income tax. If she qualifies under MSRRA, updated payroll paperwork may stop that withholding.

Stationed abroad and unsure which state taxes your income? Ask Greenback your questions.

Address

2885 Sanford Avenue SW, #14877
Grandville, MI
49418

Website

http://www.greenbacktaxservices.com/, https://linktr.ee/greenbacktax

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