FileAbroad

Foreign business sale consultation

Selling a Business Abroad? Map the U.S. Tax Before You Sign or File.

Shares, a partnership interest, and business assets can produce very different U.S. tax results. The analysis starts with the entity’s U.S. classification, who the seller is, what is transferred, basis and prior earnings, payment terms, foreign tax, currency, and filing history—not the local deal label. In a paid consultation, I map those facts, identify the U.S. income and reporting issues that need further work, and define the next practical scope.

Start My Business Sale Intake

The preliminary intake is free. Do not send sensitive tax documents through the public intake form.

30 minutes · Directly with Chip

The consultation

What we'll review

The consultation focuses on the facts that determine what needs further attention.

Entity and seller classification

The legal form, owners, U.S. elections, prior reporting, and transaction chain needed to determine whether the U.S. analysis begins with corporate stock, a partnership interest, a disregarded entity or branch, or assets sold by a separate entity.

Transaction structure and consideration

What is transferred, who the buyer and seller are, signing and closing dates, cash and noncash consideration, assumed liabilities, escrow, earn-outs, seller financing, and other deal terms that can change timing and reporting.

Basis, earnings, and income character

Acquisition and contribution history, stock or outside basis, asset basis, depreciation and amortization, prior inclusions, earnings, and distributions needed to identify capital, ordinary, recapture, Section 1248, PFIC, and partnership questions requiring further work.

Foreign tax, sourcing, and currency

The country and person taxed, tax paid or withheld, source and foreign tax credit questions, transaction currency, exchange-rate records, and later foreign-currency payments—without assuming that foreign tax produces a usable U.S. credit.

Reporting, deadlines, and next scope

Prior and sale-year income returns and international forms, transaction statements, open deadlines or notices, and whether the next step is accepted preparation, separately scoped calculation or research, or referral to a valuation, legal, or foreign-country specialist.

After the call

What you leave with

By the end of the consultation, you should understand the issues that need attention and the next practical step.

  • A transaction map that separates the local deal documents from the U.S. entity and seller analysis.
  • An issue list covering the character, timing, sourcing, foreign-tax, currency, and information-reporting questions that need further work.
  • A records request for ownership, basis, earnings, asset, consideration, foreign-tax, and prior-filing support.
  • A practical next step: accepted preparation, a separately priced calculation or research scope, or referral to the appropriate legal, valuation, or foreign-country professional.

You are not required to hire FileAbroad for preparation after the consultation.

Scope

What the consultation does not include

The consultation is a review and scoping session. It does not include preparation or filing of a tax return, FBAR, information return, amended return, or Streamlined submission.

It also does not create an open-ended support engagement. Additional research, document review, preparation, or follow-up work is included only when it is specifically agreed or purchased.

FileAbroad does not provide legal advice or tax litigation services.

The process

How it works

  1. 1

    Start the intake.

    Tell me the broad facts of your situation without uploading sensitive tax documents through the public form.

  2. 2

    I review the inquiry.

    I personally review the intake to determine whether a FileAbroad consultation appears appropriate.

  3. 3

    Book the consultation.

    If the situation fits, you'll receive the next step for scheduling the 30-minute paid consultation.

  4. 4

    We review the situation together.

    We use the call to identify the relevant filing questions, missing information, and practical next step.

  5. 5

    Preparation is separate.

    If FileAbroad can accept preparation work, the scope and price are confirmed before that work begins.

Before you book

Questions we'll use to map your foreign business sale

What is the business entity’s legal form, where and when was it organized, who owned it during the relevant years, and which U.S. entity elections or Forms 5471, 8865, or 8858 were previously filed?
Who is selling to whom, what family or ownership connections exist between the parties, and what is being transferred—shares or other equity, a partnership or membership interest, selected assets, all operating assets, goodwill, intellectual property, or a combination?
What are the proposed or actual signing and closing dates, sale price and currency, liabilities assumed, and payment terms, including deposits, escrow, earn-outs, installments, notes, or noncash consideration?
How and when was the business or interest acquired or funded, and what records show stock or interest basis, asset basis, depreciation or amortization, earnings, prior U.S. income inclusions, and distributions?
Which countries or U.S. states may tax the transaction, what tax has been paid or withheld, which U.S. returns or information forms were filed for the sale year, and is any deal, filing, or notice deadline approaching?
What should I send before the consultation?

Start with the public intake and describe the broad facts of your situation. Do not send Social Security numbers, tax returns, bank statements, or other sensitive tax documents through the public intake form. If documents are needed later, I will provide secure upload instructions.

Will you tell me exactly what I need to file?

The consultation is designed to identify the filing issues that need attention and the information required to determine the next step. Some questions can be resolved during the call; others may require records, additional research, or preparation work outside the consultation.

Do I have to hire FileAbroad afterward?

No. The consultation stands on its own. If FileAbroad can accept preparation work, you can decide whether to proceed after the scope and price are confirmed.

Can you review documents during the consultation?

Limited document review may be possible when agreed in advance, but the consultation is not a substitute for a full document review or tax-preparation engagement.

Related paths

If this is not the right starting point

Business abroad consultation

Use the ongoing-business path when entity classification, books, and annual Forms 5471, 8865, 8858, or 8992 are the primary problem.

PFIC consultation

Use the PFIC path when foreign-company shareholder history, elections, and Form 8621 consequences are the primary problem.

Foreign tax credit consultation

Review broader Form 1116, creditability, category, and carryover questions after the sale transaction has been mapped.

State tax termination consultation

Review former-state residence, domicile, and continuing state-source questions that may coexist with the federal sale analysis.

Foreign entity classification guide

See why the local company label does not by itself determine whether the U.S. treats the entity as a corporation, partnership, or disregarded entity.

Form 5471 filing categories

Review the ownership-event and annual-reporting categories that can matter when foreign-corporation stock changes hands.

Form 8865 and foreign partnerships

Review foreign-partnership ownership and transaction reporting before assuming an interest sale is only a capital-gain item.

Expat tax filing

See the broader return-preparation service when the transaction becomes part of an accepted filing engagement.

Start here

Tell me what's going on.

You don't need to know which form, filing procedure, or service you need. Start with the broad facts, and I'll review whether a FileAbroad consultation is the appropriate next step.

Start My Business Sale Intake

Prefer email? info@fileabroad.com

Do not send sensitive tax documents through the public intake form or ordinary email.