In many cases, yes! If you had US income during the year, then you usually need to file a US tax return. This is often true even if the amount of income was small. The most common types of US income include:
- Rental income from US real estate (even if you ultimately had a loss on the rental)
- US dividends and certain other types of investment income
- Wage or consulting income earned from workdays in the US
- Capital gains on the sale of US property
- Income from a US trade, business, LLC, or partnership
In a few cases, you do not need to file a US return even though you had US income. For example, if your only US income was investment income and US taxes were already withheld at a 30% rate (or different rate based on a tax treaty), then you often do not need to file.
If you’re a foreign national in the US and you do need to file, we can help you prepare your US tax return.