why: so the government won’t be able to use your money for whatever the fuck they’re planning for the next 4 years.
as a traveler, none of my money has been funding Israel, for example.
one-step method: you basically fill out one extra tax form called FEIE while you’re doing your taxes, write down the dates you were outside of the country, and then since you aren’t in the country and are not receiving any services from the US, you don’t have to pay income tax up to a certain amount (it’s a little over 125k this year).
But someone would still have to pay taxes on income earned in the US (such as through online work, and work that generates tax forms that get sent), even though they live in a foreign country?
not if you are earning that money while you are outside of the country.
so if you do remote work for a US company that pays money to your us Bank account but you are outside of the country for 330 days, then you don’t pay taxes on the first 125k of your income that year.
here’s how the IRS explains it:
“The source of your earned income is the place where you perform the services for which you receive the income. Foreign earned income is income you receive for performing personal services in a foreign country. Where or how you are paid has no effect on the source of the income. For example, income you receive for work done in France is income from a foreign source even if the income is paid directly to your bank account in the United States and your employer is in New York City.”
https://www.irs.gov/individuals/international-taxpayers/foreign-earned-income-exclusion-what-is-foreign-earned-income
Great question!