Filing International tax returns

[Poltax75]

Do I need to file late tax returns for a client who is a US Citizen permanently living and working in France as a French citizen?  Income from wages is less than $ 30,000.

Client is 28, has never filed a US tax return. Only paid French Taxes.

Will most likely have income in 2024 from cashing out a COVERDELL account which was not used for education.

[TaxGuyBill]

You need to inform the client that he was required to file tax returns in those prior years, as well as if he had FBAR or FATCA requirements.

Whether or not he hires you to prepare those returns is up to the client.  However, you DO need to know enough about the prior years to determine if anything would be carried over to the current year.

[BobKamman · Accepted solution]

"Income from wages," of course, is not the only income taxed by the US (although it may be the only income taxed by France).  If he wants to continue claiming US citizenship, he must comply with US tax law.  That includes filing tax returns, even if after credits and exclusions he does not owe any tax.  

The exclusion for income earned abroad can be lost if not claimed on a timely return.  Or, he must jump through some complicated hoops to assert it.  See Pub 54 and “When You Can Choose the Exclusion.”