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Internal Revenue Service (IRS)
U.S. Taxes

Finding a Tax Professional

The Embassy does not have the authority or the expertise to give advice on either the French or United States tax systems. You may wish to consult a tax professional and the Internal Revenue Service if you require assistance.

Find a Tax Professional

Who Must File U.S. Taxes?

All U.S. citizens and resident aliens must file a U.S. individual income tax return, even if they permanently live outside the United States and may not owe any tax because of income exclusion or tax credit.

You May Need to Renew Your ITIN.

All ITINs not used on a federal tax return at least once in the last three years will no longer be valid for use on a tax return as of Jan. 1, 2017. Additionally, all ITINs issued before 2013 will begin expiring this year, starting with those with middle digits of 78 and 79 (Example: (9XX-78-XXXX). All expired ITINs must be renewed before being used on a U.S. tax return. No action is needed by ITIN holders who don’t need to file a tax return next year. Also, there are new documentation requirements when applying for or renewing an ITIN for certain dependents.

Find more information in the ITIN Expiration Frequently Asked Questions.

Downloadable forms, publications, and answers to your federal tax questions can be found at IRS.gov. The website contains a wide array of tax topics, including international and military taxpayers.

Foreign Bank and Financial Accounts (FBAR)

While there are many legitimate reasons to own foreign financial accounts, they may need to be reported, even if no taxable income is generated. For information on FinCEN Form 114 (formerly TD F 90-22.1), go to http://www.irs.gov/Businesses/Small-Businesses-&-Self-Employed/Report-of-Foreign-Bank-and-Financial-Accounts-FBAR

Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA)

Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA)

You may be required to file the Form 8938, Statement of Specified Foreign Financial Assets, with your 2016 income tax returns, when the total value of your specified foreign financial assets exceeds certain amounts. Specified foreign financial assets include foreign financial accounts and foreign financial investment assets not held in a domestic or foreign account. The Form 8938 filing requirement does not replace or otherwise affect a taxpayer’s obligation to file an FBAR (see previous topic). For more information, please refer to the FATCA website at: http://www.irs.gov/Businesses/Corporations/Foreign-Account-Tax-Compliance-Act-(FATCA).

For more information, please see the Joint FAQs on FATCA.

Exchange Rate

The United States Internal Revenue Service has no official exchange rate and accepts any posted exchange rate that is used consistently.

For exchange rates, please check https://www.irs.gov/individuals/international-taxpayers/foreign-currency-and-currency-exchange-rates .

For additional exchange rates, check the U.S. Treasury website https://www.fiscal.treasury.gov//or other commercial sites such as www.oanda.com. The IRS requires that all income be reported in U.S. dollar equivalents. Taxpayers generally use the yearly average exchange rate to report foreign income that was regularly received throughout the year. If you had only a few foreign transactions on particular days, you may prefer to use the exchange rates of those specific days.

IRS Resources for International Taxpayers

Tax information for foreign persons with income in the United States or U.S. citizens and resident aliens with income outside the United States. Tax information for foreign businesses with activities in the U.S. or domestic businesses with activities outside the United States.