U.S. TAX HELP FOR AMERICANS ABROAD
U.S. expat taxes.
Work directly with Chip.
Get clear help with your U.S. filing needs, wherever you live. Send a brief inquiry and we'll discuss the service, timing, and likely cost before you decide to work together.
Discuss fit, process, and pricing directly with Chip. Document review and personalized tax analysis are scoped separately.
Chip Moreno · PTIN holder · Authorized IRS e-file Provider · Based in Ecuador
Directly with Chip, from your first question through filing.
SERVICES
What I prepare
Annual U.S. Returns for Americans Abroad
Federal income-tax preparation involving foreign residence, foreign-earned income, foreign taxes, and international filing considerations.
Learn moreFBAR and Form 8938
Foreign financial-account and asset reporting when applicable to the engagement.
Learn moreStreamlined Foreign Offshore Filings
For qualifying taxpayers addressing prior filing failures through the IRS Streamlined Foreign Offshore Procedures.
Learn moreComplex Expat Returns
For filings involving additional schedules, foreign entities or assets, multiple income sources, or other facts requiring an individually defined scope.
Learn moreNot sure where to start? Tell me what is happening, and I'll review the next step with you.
HOW FILEABROAD IS DIFFERENT
One preparer, from first review through filing.
FileAbroad is deliberately small.
I review the initial facts myself. If I accept the engagement, I prepare the return and communicate with you directly throughout the process. If I need more information, I ask you for it. Before anything is filed, you review the return with me.
I run FileAbroad while living abroad myself, currently in Ecuador.
THE PROCESS
Start with a conversation or a brief intake
- 1
Find the right fit.
Share your filing needs, years involved, timing, and readiness for paid help through a brief intake.
- 2
Confirm the scope and price.
I review your situation and explain the written preparation scope. A paid assessment is optional when actual review is needed.
- 3
Move forward when ready.
Accept the engagement to begin preparation, or take time to decide. Secure document collection follows acceptance.
A DELIBERATE FIT
Sometimes you shouldn't hire me.
If your return is straightforward and you're comfortable applying the international rules yourself, tax software may be enough.
If you need tax litigation, legal advice, audit representation, or a multidisciplinary engagement, you may need a larger firm or another specialist.
FileAbroad is designed for Americans abroad who want direct access to the person preparing their U.S. return.
You may still be a FileAbroad fit if you currently live in the United States. The relevant question is not only where you live today; it is whether your U.S. filing or reporting problem involves foreign accounts, assets, inheritance, gifts, property, entities, prior years abroad, or a return from living abroad. FileAbroad does not take ordinary domestic-only returns.
EXPAT TAX GUIDES
Understand the rules before you file.
Start with the rules that most often determine how an American abroad needs to file.
Foreign Earned Income Exclusion
Who qualifies, how the Physical Presence and Bona Fide Residence tests differ, and what the FEIE does — and doesn't — exclude.
Read the guideFEIE vs. Foreign Tax Credit
Why the better approach depends on your income, foreign taxes, and longer-term situation.
Read the guideFBAR
Which accounts can trigger reporting, how the aggregate threshold works, and what information is reported.
Read the guideStreamlined Foreign Offshore Procedures
Who the procedures are intended for, what must be filed, and why non-willfulness matters.
Read the guideFiling updates
Occasional U.S. tax updates from FileAbroad. Unsubscribe anytime.
ABOUT FILEABROAD
I'm Chip Moreno.
I'm an American living in Ecuador and the founder of FileAbroad.
I built the practice specifically around U.S. taxpayers living outside the United States. I personally review each prospective engagement and work directly with accepted clients through preparation and filing.
FileAbroad is an Authorized IRS e-file Provider, and I hold a current PTIN as a paid U.S. tax return preparer.
BEFORE YOU START
Questions about filing U.S. taxes abroad
These are the questions I most often need to resolve before determining the filing scope.
Do I really need to file U.S. taxes if I live abroad?
Yes. U.S. citizens and resident aliens generally remain subject to U.S. tax on worldwide income while abroad. Filing thresholds depend on your tax year and facts, and exclusions or credits do not necessarily remove the filing requirement. FBAR and other information reports are separate. Passport restrictions can apply in cases involving seriously delinquent federal tax debt; missing one return does not automatically trigger them.
What is the Foreign Earned Income Exclusion (FEIE)?
The Foreign Earned Income Exclusion allows qualifying U.S. citizens and residents living abroad to exclude a significant amount of their foreign earnings from U.S. taxation. For tax year 2025 (filed in 2026), this exclusion is up to $130,000. To qualify, you must meet either the Bona Fide Residence test or the Physical Presence test.
What is the FBAR and who needs to file it?
FBAR (FinCEN Form 114) reports Foreign Bank and Financial Accounts. You must file if you have a financial interest in or signature authority over foreign accounts whose combined value exceeded $10,000 at any time during the calendar year. The deadline is April 15, with an automatic extension to October 15.
What happens if I haven't filed U.S. taxes in several years?
There are IRS procedures that may apply, including Streamlined procedures for eligible taxpayers. FileAbroad begins with scope screening and does not determine willfulness; uncertain intent, prior IRS contact, or legal exposure requires an appropriate attorney or credentialed-representative referral.
Can I avoid double taxation on my income?
The FEIE, Foreign Tax Credit, housing provisions, totalization agreements, and some treaty provisions may reduce overlapping taxes, but eligibility and results depend on your facts. FileAbroad does not promise a tax result and refers treaty-based positions when appropriate. Foreign-country legal, tax, valuation, banking, remittance, title, and local-filing conclusions are outside FileAbroad's scope; confirm those with the relevant foreign authority and a licensed local professional.
Do I still have state tax obligations while living abroad?
It depends on the state’s current residency, domicile, and source-income rules and your facts. FileAbroad can screen whether a return may be in scope; disputed domicile, nexus, or legal-residency questions may require state-specific counsel or a credentialed reviewer.
READY TO START?
Let's see whether FileAbroad is the right fit.
Send a brief inquiry about your filing needs, the process, and likely pricing. I review the broad facts and explain the next step before you decide.
Still researching? Get occasional filing updates.
Start with the intake form to describe your filing needs.