Carly So I just got done filing my US taxes and I wanted to talk about it because I didn’t know how ANY of it worked so I thought you might be interested to know.
I actually lived in the US for half of the year last year so I still had a W-2. Usually, I would go on TurboTax and file myself but after having gotten married last year and all the stress and confusion that caused, I kinda just wanted someone ELSE to do it.
I also had NO idea how UK taxes worked because I thought I was gunna have to figure that out too.
So, first, I went to a British friend who had just gotten her license as an accountant here in the UK and was like “dude, I have no idea where to start” and she was like “not with me” (just kidding). She told me her firm didn’t do US taxes and sent me to another UK based firm that did, on recommendation of her bosses. That firm she sent me to, ya’ll…they wanted £1,200!!! I was like, uh sorry what? No thanks. I’d rather tax fraud. Girl, bye.
I did a few Google searches and hit a couple more dead ends before giving up and deciding to just do my taxes myself again (lol). After I put in all my stuff as usual, it was telling me I owed like $600 or something crazy! I was about two seconds from turning over my rent payment to homegirl’s firm but, before I did, I came across MyExpatTaxes on Instagram (quite possibly the most valuable thing I’ve gotten from Insta). I quickly consulted my expat sites for credibility and decided it was worth not having to pay the £1200.
I am by no means sponsored to post this but MyExpatTaxes picked me up while I was in my darkest hour and I feel like that deserves a shout out. Although I am certainly not against a future partnership. Hit me up.
Basically, I went through their online portal (very similar to TaxAct or TurboTax) and gave them everything they needed to commit identity theft, and bam! About an hour and £150 later, I was done!
I got a personal email detailing their recommendations for my return and they took care of everything! They made sure I wasn’t double taxed and I am now actually expecting my normal return!! Honestly, so pumped with how simple it was and can’t wait to do it again next year.
Because yes, even though next year I will have not worked at all in the US, I will still have to file US taxes. The US is the only country that makes their expats do that and it’s trash.
Anyway, so here I am thinking I was going to have to do this again for the UK right? But when I asked my husband about it, the most beautiful words he has ever said came out of his mouth—”they do them for you”. OMG!!! USA!!! WHO EVEN ARE WE?! You mean it was an option for the IRS to do them and they said “nah, we’ll let them figure it out.” I really just feel like HMRC has a MUCH easier time keeping everything in order by doing it themselves. And, most importantly, I DON’T HAVE TO DO IT! I didn’t understand why Americans gave up their US citizenship here, but now I do. I totally get it now. Sorry US people, the UK wins on this one.
LONG LIVE THE QUEEN!!
