Hello all, apologies first off if this is a common question/not the correct place to ask, but I’ve been running around all over trying to get some solid guidance…and short of me hiring HR Block or something similar, I figured I would try here first.
I’m a US citizen and longtime resident of Japan and mainly just had to deal with regular employment (salaried) income so I filed but had everything covered by FEIE. However, in addition to my regular salary income, I also ventured into some freelance work with Airbnb (not hosting rentals, but the experience side) and Patreon over the last year with enough income to be over reporting limits. I reported my freelance income to Japan and paid Japan taxes last month.
I initially thought I could report the freelance income to the US and have it covered by the FEIE as well (since the primary work location was in Japan) but the more I searched I found that my Airbnb/Patreon income should be filed as self-employed and thus subject to self-employment tax in the US (not covered by FEIE, based on my understanding). As I was about to call double taxation on that I found out about totalization agreements and then realized I should probably see if I can get some direct guidance before I venture any further. Any guidance on next steps to avoid double taxation, or if I’m out of luck, how to go about declaring my freelance/self-employed income properly to the US?
by commander_rc