RT @VLJeker U.S. Social Security and Working Overseas | Let's Talk About: US Tax http://t.co/1gOj6GW0d6 old age catches up with everyone
— US Taxation Abroad (@TaxationAbroad) October 9, 2013
Of course it’s always more complicated if you are self employed.
RT @VLJeker Are You Working Overseas? Do You Understand Self-Employment Tax? | Let's Talk:US Tax http://t.co/b53XfFi1me – #FEIE irrelevant
— US Taxation Abroad (@TaxationAbroad) October 9, 2013
The above tweets reference two nice blog posts by U.S. tax lawyer Virginia La Torre Jeker J.D.
There is a general presumption that U.S. citizens must pay U.S. Social Security, Medicare and Self-Employment taxes. The presumption is rebutted if one resides in a country that has a “Totalization Agreement” with the U.S. Since 1984 Canada has had such an agreement.
I recommend both of her posts to you.
As she notes:
… old age catches up with everyone, and a savings plan for retirement should be put into place. Here, the expatriate must be very careful since it is quite easy to be led down a path of investing in offshore products that yield little more than terrible US tax consequences. Make sure you understand the US tax implications of any offshore product before you sign on the dotted line.
Concluding thought:
Some U.S. citizens abroad, depending on your employment history in the U.S., may have accumulated enough credits to be eligible for U.S. Social Security.
At some point this is something that needs to be considered.