October 23, 2024

Congressional Support for Direct File for Americans Abroad


Unprecedented 57 Congressional Signatories from House & Senate support Direct File for Americans Abroad 

This is a direct consequence of DA advocacy efforts 

 

Democrats Abroad ramped up advocacy over the last few months to ensure Americans abroad are included in the new IRS program called Direct File, allowing taxpayers to e-file for free with the IRS for the first time, has paid off.

 

Yesterday, a letter with 57 Congressional signatures was sent to the Internal Revenue Service asking for Direct File to be expanded to include Americans abroad.  This is the first time a bicameral letter has been sent from Congress to a federal agency regarding Americans abroad. We thank Senator Michael Bennet (D-CO) on the Senate Finance Committee and Congresswoman Dina Titus (D-NV-01) as Chair of the Congressional Americans Abroad Caucus for leading on the letter.

Rep. Titus' statement, and a copy of the letter, can be found here.

 

We also want to thank especially Senator Wyden, the Chair of the Senate Finance Committee for his support & acknowledgement of the tax compliance problems faced by low and middle income Americans abroad.

 

Allowing Americans abroad to be able to e-file for free with the IRS will be a step forward by the IRS towards addressing the barriers and problems of filing a US tax return from abroad. The majority (54%) of tax returns filed from abroad owe no tax to the IRS. Given the complication and difficulty in filing from abroad, Americans abroad face tax compliance costs that are ten times higher than stateside Americans. This often feels like a tax in and of itself. Being able to e-file directly with the IRS will eliminate tax filing costs from abroad.

 

This letter, and the public support from Congressional offices, is the culmination of a large amount of Democrats Abroad’s tax advocacy work over the last half year. Expansion of Direct File is only one solution. There are many more on the horizon including regulatory and legislative fixes as Congress gets ready to pass a large tax bill in 2025.

 

Read the FAQs on Direct File for Americans abroad here.

 

Read more about the extensive work of the Democrats Abroad Taxation Task Force here.