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I moved last month and I have still so many questions

I moved last month and I have still so many questions

Old Apr 15th 2021, 7:28 am
  #16  
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Default Re: I moved last month and I have still so many questions

Originally Posted by lansbury
I pay quarterly estimated payments to the IRS on my UK income. (April 15th, June 15th, September 15th and January 15th are the dates payments are made)
This is what I do. I’m retired on UK and US pensions. I use the IRS published average to convert to $s when doing my IRS taxes since the payments are regular monthly payments.
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Old Apr 15th 2021, 11:17 am
  #17  
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Default Re: I moved last month and I have still so many questions

Originally Posted by Daymoth
Do you use the same process as if you were self imployed? Or how do you go about it?

Thankyou!
Most people in the US file a tax return, it’s not like the UK. I was commuting to the UK for a while and had UK income to declare on my US returns. The DTA likely means you won’t have much US federal tax to pay after you get the credit for the UK tax you pay. The biggest question is where are you living in the US? If you have state and city tax to pay them that comes out of pocket and you can’t use the UK tax paid as a credit. The other complicating factor is that the UK and US tax year is different, you need to keep good records and be exact on when it was paid to you/tax was withheld so you declare it on the correct US tax year... if it’s after 31 Dec it’s the next US tax year even if the UK have it on the P60/P45 etc so keep all your UK payslips.
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Old Apr 15th 2021, 12:51 pm
  #18  
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Default Re: I moved last month and I have still so many questions

Originally Posted by Daymoth
/

3. This is more of a rant than a question. Ive just finally managed to get my resume to american standards after many attempts. But the jobs im interviewing for offer 10 days of leave. 10...miserable days.
I knew it was bad here but I was hoping 15-20 days was becoming more the norm for skilled labour. I know this is super personal and there is no right answer but in your experience do you suggest I bite the bullet for few years until I have US experience under my belt and then shop around? Or should i try negotiate? Or should I accept reality?

Thanks everyone!
you'll need an EAD to work on a spouse visa, that would be the first port of call on the road to employment.
you'll also need an SSN, applied?
that takes a While, between that approval / receiving time and landing a U.S job you could arrange yourself a few months off, beat that for a first years vacay allowance.



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Old Apr 15th 2021, 1:31 pm
  #19  
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Default Re: I moved last month and I have still so many questions

Originally Posted by Daymoth
Sorry I was not clear, my question is:
Do I need to report to IRS in installments (monthly, quarterly) to avoid getting fined even if im not self employed since my employer will not be making monthly payments to the IRS. And if yes, what is the best way to do it if im not self employed.

Ta!
I believe that you are considered self-employed, in the eyes of the USA, because the employer is not making the necessary tax payments. This is going to cause you a problem in that you are going to be responsible not only for your income tax but that additional amount of tax the employer normally pays the US government, i.e. the self-employment tax. This means your final take-home income is going to be reduced. Most people who continue to work for UK employers do so as a contractor and have the employer "gross up" the amount of the payment to cover the US self-employment tax so you are not losing money.

Because you are not doing regular withholding, you will need to make quarterly estimated tax filings.
Because your employer is not making their payments, you will also need to assess yourself a self-employment tax.



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Old Apr 15th 2021, 1:39 pm
  #20  
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Default Re: I moved last month and I have still so many questions

Originally Posted by Daymoth
Woops I forgot the most important question. I miss clotted cream, help me what do I do???
Check various supermarkets. Trade Joe's will have it and Stop 'N Shop on the east coast does as well.
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Old Apr 15th 2021, 1:43 pm
  #21  
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Default Re: I moved last month and I have still so many questions

Originally Posted by Daymoth
Hi everyone!! Nice to meet you. I am a EU national that resided in the UK for the last 6 years and then moved to the US last month under a spousal visa.

My god I still have so many questions.... Im sorry if what I am asking is obvious, I have read the wiki and last pages but still so many doubts...

1. So I am still employed by my UK employer for the next 5 months. I submited my P85 without the P45 and noting the reason. My understading is that hmrc will either give my employer a NT code or I will be taxed normally if I go above the allowance. I then will have to submit a self assessment for next year ( wich i cannot do online) and claim relief under double taxation treaty. Did I understand this correctly?

2. What happens with NI? Do they stop as part of the P85? (I see many of you do voluntary contributions, I will need to read on this later).

2. My employer is paying me in pounds in a uk bank account. And I am not self employed. How do I go about paying IRS? Should we increase the contributions of my spouse( we will file jointly) to avoid penalties and then at the end of the year I declare my pounds to the IRS?

3. This is more of a rant than a question. Ive just finally managed to get my resume to american standards after many attempts. But the jobs im interviewing for offer 10 days of leave. 10...miserable days.
I knew it was bad here but I was hoping 15-20 days was becoming more the norm for skilled labour. I know this is super personal and there is no right answer but in your experience do you suggest I bite the bullet for few years until I have US experience under my belt and then shop around? Or should i try negotiate? Or should I accept reality?

Thanks everyone!
welcome to America.
After 12 years here this is the one thing that made me want to go home the most often. 10 days is so rubbish (but normal - 20 days VACATION... ha ha, maybe after 10+ years service - really - unheard of outside tenured academic jobs), and sometimes they say 15 days PTO, which includes sick time. So if you get the flu or something that requires any length of time off, or if you have a lot of dental work or something that requires many appointments, you're out of holiday time. PTO is more inhumane than small amounts of vacation. The week to week productivity expectations are also much higher in the US than the UK in my experience, and I learnt to live with and even enjoy that before kids (you can't easily work full time in a professional jobs and have children here unless you never want to see them and never see your family abroad), but the vacation leave is brutal and almost ubiquitous. You are expected to be wedded to your job in a way you only see in the high echelons of an organization in the UK. But it is what it is, it won't change and so you have to suck it up, with a smile, DO NOT suggest you are unhappy with this and it's better in Europe. People hate that!! However, if you want to move fast in your career, this is the place to do it IMO. Driven people really thrive and have so much more freedom to make things happen than in the UK. Sadly, Im not that person. I wish I was!

Clotted cream - whole foods, but it's almost $10

Last edited by Ukoneday; Apr 15th 2021 at 1:51 pm.
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Old Apr 15th 2021, 1:53 pm
  #22  
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Default Re: I moved last month and I have still so many questions

Originally Posted by hutchison
you'll need an EAD to work on a spouse visa, that would be the first port of call on the road to employment.
you'll also need an SSN, applied?
that takes a While, between that approval / receiving time and landing a U.S job you could arrange yourself a few months off, beat that for a first years vacay allowance.
This is incorrect, spousal visa does not require ead, thats fiance visa. I have everything, took 2 weeks to arrive to the mail.

​​​​​​Defenetly considering taking few months to make up for the no travel during the pandemic!
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Old Apr 15th 2021, 1:54 pm
  #23  
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Default Re: I moved last month and I have still so many questions

Originally Posted by Daymoth
Woops I forgot the most important question. I miss clotted cream, help me what do I do???
Wegmans supermarkets here in the North-East carry it. I think Parkers of Buffalo stock it, and they are pretty good at shipping stuff in styrofoam boxes with icepacks.
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Old Apr 15th 2021, 1:56 pm
  #24  
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Default Re: I moved last month and I have still so many questions

Originally Posted by tht
Most people in the US file a tax return, it’s not like the UK. I was commuting to the UK for a while and had UK income to declare on my US returns. The DTA likely means you won’t have much US federal tax to pay after you get the credit for the UK tax you pay. The biggest question is where are you living in the US? If you have state and city tax to pay them that comes out of pocket and you can’t use the UK tax paid as a credit. The other complicating factor is that the UK and US tax year is different, you need to keep good records and be exact on when it was paid to you/tax was withheld so you declare it on the correct US tax year... if it’s after 31 Dec it’s the next US tax year even if the UK have it on the P60/P45 etc so keep all your UK payslips.
So I understand I need to do a tax return at the end, the complicated part for me is how I do tax payments before that ( if I need to do them) if I am not self employed.
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Old Apr 15th 2021, 2:01 pm
  #25  
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Default Re: I moved last month and I have still so many questions

Originally Posted by penguinsix
I believe that you are considered self-employed, in the eyes of the USA, because the employer is not making the necessary tax payments. This is going to cause you a problem in that you are going to be responsible not only for your income tax but that additional amount of tax the employer normally pays the US government, i.e. the self-employment tax. This means your final take-home income is going to be reduced. Most people who continue to work for UK employers do so as a contractor and have the employer "gross up" the amount of the payment to cover the US self-employment tax so you are not losing money.

Because you are not doing regular withholding, you will need to make quarterly estimated tax filings.
Because your employer is not making their payments, you will also need to assess yourself a self-employment tax.
Huh that stinks. Ok sounds like I need to talk to a tax advisor or someone in the irs because this is more complex than what I initially though. Thanks a lot for your input!
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Old Apr 15th 2021, 2:06 pm
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Default Re: I moved last month and I have still so many questions

Originally Posted by Ukoneday
welcome to America.
After 12 years here this is the one thing that made me want to go home the most often. 10 days is so rubbish (but normal - 20 days VACATION... ha ha, maybe after 10+ years service - really - unheard of outside tenured academic jobs), and sometimes they say 15 days PTO, which includes sick time. So if you get the flu or something that requires any length of time off, or if you have a lot of dental work or something that requires many appointments, you're out of holiday time. PTO is more inhumane than small amounts of vacation. The week to week productivity expectations are also much higher in the US than the UK in my experience, and I learnt to live with and even enjoy that before kids (you can't easily work full time in a professional jobs and have children here unless you never want to see them and never see your family abroad), but the vacation leave is brutal and almost ubiquitous. You are expected to be wedded to your job in a way you only see in the high echelons of an organization in the UK. But it is what it is, it won't change and so you have to suck it up, with a smile, DO NOT suggest you are unhappy with this and it's better in Europe. People hate that!! However, if you want to move fast in your career, this is the place to do it IMO. Driven people really thrive and have so much more freedom to make things happen than in the UK. Sadly, Im not that person. I wish I was!

Clotted cream - whole foods, but it's almost $10
Thanks mate. Its going to be a struggle. Im not that person either...
Ill check whole foods, i will also try to make it myself but my electricity bill might be more than the $10...
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Old Apr 15th 2021, 2:09 pm
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Default Re: I moved last month and I have still so many questions

Originally Posted by Daymoth
So I understand I need to do a tax return at the end, the complicated part for me is how I do tax payments before that ( if I need to do them) if I am not self employed.

You don't have to be self-employed to file quarterly estimateds. All the form (1040-ES) needs is your social security number and the amount you are paying. That then goes towards your annual tax obligation. File estimateds both to the IRS and your state tax authority (presuming you live in a state with income tax).
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Old Apr 15th 2021, 2:10 pm
  #28  
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Default Re: I moved last month and I have still so many questions

The US and the UK have a “totalization agreement.” You may need to consult with a tax professional on this. This most commonly a “certified public accountant.” In addition to CPA’s there are “enrolled agents” and attorneys who specialize in taxation.

BTW, paid leave is not a legal requirement, but rather a matter of custom and practice. It can vary a lot.
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Old Apr 15th 2021, 2:13 pm
  #29  
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Default Re: I moved last month and I have still so many questions

Originally Posted by rpjs
Wegmans supermarkets here in the North-East carry it. I think Parkers of Buffalo stock it, and they are pretty good at shipping stuff in styrofoam boxes with icepacks.
is there anything Wegmans doesn’t carry? I wish we had them in CA.
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Old Apr 15th 2021, 2:21 pm
  #30  
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Default Re: I moved last month and I have still so many questions

Originally Posted by Nutmegger
You don't have to be self-employed to file quarterly estimateds. All the form (1040-ES) needs is your social security number and the amount you are paying. That then goes towards your annual tax obligation. File estimateds both to the IRS and your state tax authority (presuming you live in a state with income tax).
Amazing!! Thank you for confirming!!!
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