Australia US Citizens Tax Guide
Australian tax rules for US citizens living in Australia. The guide covers: the US citizens in Australia — the 'US citizens' who 'live in Australia' are 'Australian residents for the tax purposes' (the 'taxed on the worldwide income in Australia') AND 'US citizens for the US tax purposes' (the 'US taxes the US citizens on the worldwide income regardless of the residence'); the 'US citizens must 'lodge the Australian tax return' and the 'US tax return' (the 'dual tax filing obligation'); the US-Australia tax treaty — the 'US-Australia tax treaty' 'allocates the taxing rights' between the 'US' and 'Australia' and 'prevents the double taxation'; the 'treaty' provides: (i) the 'dividend withholding tax rate of 5% or 15%', (ii) the 'interest withholding tax rate of 10%', (iii) the 'royalty withholding tax rate of 5% for the film and 10% for the other', (iv) the 'pension and the social security benefits' may be 'taxed in the country of the residence'; the 'treaty' also 'provides the relief from the double taxation' — the 'US citizen can claim the 'Foreign Tax Credit (the 'FTC')' on the US tax return for the 'Australian tax paid'; the FATCA reporting (the 'Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act') — the 'FATCA' is the 'US law' that 'requires the foreign financial institutions (the 'FFIs')' to 'report the accounts held by the US citizens' to the 'IRS'; the 'Australian banks and the financial institutions' are 'required to report the accounts of the US citizens' under the 'intergovernmental agreement (the 'IGA')' between Australia and the US; the 'US citizen must 'provide the Form W-9' (the 'US taxpayer identification number') to the 'Australian bank' to 'identify the US status'; the FBAR reporting (the 'Foreign Bank Account Report') — the 'FBAR' (the 'FinCEN Form 114') 'must be filed by the US citizens' with the 'aggregate foreign bank accounts exceeding $10,000' at any time during the 'calendar year'; the 'FBAR' is 'filed separately' from the 'US tax return' through the 'FinCEN filing system'; the Australian superannuation for the US citizens — the 'Australian superannuation fund' is 'treated as the 'foreign trust' for the 'US tax purposes' (the 'super fund is NOT the 'qualified retirement plan' for the 'US tax purposes'); the 'US citizen must 'report the Australian superannuation fund' on the 'Form 3520' and the 'Form 3520-A' (the 'foreign trust reporting'); the 'Australian superannuation contributions' are 'NOT deductible for the US tax purposes'; the 'Australian superannuation earnings' are 'subject to the US tax on the 'PFIC (the 'Passive Foreign Investment Company')' rules' — the 'PFIC rules may 'apply to the Australian super fund''; the 'US citizen should 'seek the professional advice' for the 'US-Australia superannuation tax planning'.
Dual Tax Filing
- Australian tax return: The 'US citizens are 'taxed on the worldwide income in Australia'.
- US tax return: The 'US citizens must 'file the US tax return' (the 'Form 1040') for the 'worldwide income'.
- Foreign Tax Credit (FTC): The 'US citizen claims the FTC for the 'Australian tax paid' on the 'US return'.
For the tax treaties and the treaty benefits, see our Tax Treaties Guide →.
FATCA & FBAR
- FATCA reporting: The 'Australian banks report the US citizen accounts to the IRS'.
- FBAR filing: The 'US citizens with the accounts above $10,000' must 'file the FinCEN Form 114'.
For the non-resident and the cross-border tax rules, see our Cross-Border Tax Guide →.
Australian Super for US Citizens
- Foreign trust reporting: The 'Australian super fund is the 'foreign trust' for the 'US tax purposes'.
- PFIC rules: The 'Australian super fund earnings' are 'subject to the PFIC reporting'.
- No US deduction: The 'Australian super contributions are NOT 'deductible for the US tax'.
For the superannuation rules and the contributions, see our Superannuation Guide →.