Economics Finance

The great Boomer migration is underway. What am I talking about? The Boomer migration refers to all the Baby Boomers that are starting to retire. Part and parcel to retirement is the payment of social security benefits. The money is not huge, but it can help out. The question for most Boomers is whether they have to pay taxes on it.

For years and years, you’ve been paying into social security with every paycheck. The government thanks you for doing so! While saving for your retirement, you also gave the federal government a pool of money to borrow from to pay for other things. Alas, that is a subject for another article. Now that you are retiring, it is time to reap the benefit of all those payments. Continue reading ‘Retirement Primer – Do You Have to Pay Taxes on Social Security Benefits?’ »

United States citizens, who are living and earning outside the country, do not have to pay taxes on all or part of their income to the government. These citizens are entitled to an exclusion of up to $91,400 per annum, and are further entitled to exclude the amount that they spend for housing under the “Foreign Housing Deduction” along with the amount spent on meals.

To be eligible for these deductions, one must spend at least one whole calendar year abroad. This holds true even if the citizen returns to the United States for a short time. He can also go to other places for short visits, and still retain his eligibility to these deductions. A citizen can claim the normal tax exclusion of all other foreign earners if he is self-employed and working abroad. However, he is expected to pay self employment tax to the government. Continue reading ‘Foreign Earned Income and IRS’ »