The issues arising from legal and estate planning have very different implications in different countries.
Do you have information or experience from your country of origin or current country of residence concerning estate, legal or inheritance planning? Share it with us by emailing .
For specifics of estate and inheritance laws in Germany start with this overview...
Do you have a will? In which country? Do you need one in both or several?
For some examples of why you might need to consider these options start with Angloinfo's International Wills and the U.S. Expat Abroad - Don't Be Duped!
U.S. Estate and Gift taxes are considered "transfer" taxes and not "income" taxes and the tax is asserted against the person making the transfer. The U.S. Estate and Gift taxes apply differently to U.S. persons and non-U.S. persons, and some of the rules depend on if the non-U.S. person is considered a resident (which are not the same as traditional...
FAWCO, and its partners American Citizens Abroad (ACA) and Association of Americans Resident Overseas (AARO) advocate in Washington DC on behalf of the over 8 million Americans and green card holders living outside of the US. They attend Overseas Americans Week and maintain contact with legislators to inform them about US policies that have unfair ramifications on Americans living overseas.
We...
The two other forms mentioned on our Tax Basics page are Form 8938 and the FBAR/FINCen Form 114 which are required for Americans and green card holders who have foreign bank accounts to file.
For form 8938 see FAWCO’s 8938 Guidelines for a simple description and chart showing thresholds of foreign...
Preparing
It’s best to be as prepared as possible before you’re ready to fill out the forms, or go to an advisor or tax preparer if you are using an expert, to file your taxes. Here are some resource lists to get you started.
FAWCO Tax Laundry List PDF (60KB)
This is a compiled summary of tax...