Forum USA


Forum of expats in the USA: Ask questions and participate to discussions concerning expatriation.

  Search the whole website

  User's Charter  -  Help  -  Terms and Rules  -  Privacy Policy

✎ EN Tax in Washington DC

Discussion in 'USA' started by TomRi, Sep 14, 2010.

  1. TomRi

    TomRi Member

    Joined:
    Sep 14, 2010
    Messages:
    5
    Likes Received:
    0
    Gender:
    Male
    Living In:
    Germany
    Nationality:
    German (DE)
    Languages:
    German, English
    Hi all,
    I have been offered a freelancer job (Telecoms) in Washington DC.
    Can you pleas help me to find out how much tax and social insurance I have to pay?

    How about the cost of living in Washington DC?

    Many thanks
    Thomas
     
  2. texkourgan

    texkourgan Addicted member
    Networker Editor

    Joined:
    Jan 29, 2008
    Messages:
    7,051
    Likes Received:
    17
    Gender:
    Female
    City:
    Berlin
    Living In:
    Germany
    Nationality:
    American (US)
    Languages:
    English, a little Deutsch
    In general, in the United States tax is due at federal, states and sometimes local levels.
    For instance, if you live in New-York city, you have to pay the federal tax, the tax of the state of New-York and the tax of the city of New-York.
    The tax burden varies significantly between states: some states do not levy taxes on personal income or corporate profits like in Texas, while others have a fairly heavy taxation like in New York. Conversely, some taxes are exclusively levied at a local level like the Sales and Use tax. For taxes in DC: http://otr.cfo.dc.gov/otr/site/default.asp. As a consequence, there is no VAT per se in the United States.

    It is also important to determine your tax status in the country. A tax resident is taxed on his income as any U.S. citizen. You are considered as a tax resident by the U.S. administration if:

    * You hold a green card;
    * You have lived in the United States for more than 183 days;
    * You have lived in the United States for more than 30 days during the last calendar year and at least 183 days during the current year and the previous last two years.

    In general, income tax is deducted at source on the salary and an annual tax return form must be filed at the end of the fiscal year. The http://www.irs.gov/ is responsible for monitoring taxes and performs audits to assure that tax returns are being appropriately paid. FAQ about taxes as a non-resident are addressed here: http://www.irs.gov/faqs/faq13-4.html.

    As far as cost of living in DC, it is fairly high for the USA. Here is a helpful article on pros & cons of the area: http://dc.about.com/od/communities/a/LivinginDC.htm. There is also a handy cost of living calculator on Easy expat http://www.easyexpat.com/en/mod/cost.htm.

    Best of luck!
     
    Stop hovering to collapse... Click to collapse... Hover to expand... Click to expand...
  3. TomRi

    TomRi Member

    Joined:
    Sep 14, 2010
    Messages:
    5
    Likes Received:
    0
    Gender:
    Male
    Living In:
    Germany
    Nationality:
    German (DE)
    Languages:
    German, English
    Thanks Texkourgan,
    one question.
    You said:
    This means they will still charge federal tax on personal income but not state tax on personal income.
    With personal income you mean salary i.e.
    I am a freelancer and get a daily rate. Would this be called a personal income as well?

    From what I have seen the state tax vary from 0% (Texas, Florida) to ~9% (i.e. California).
    This means they are not the biggest part of your overall tax rate.
    On the other hand Federal Tax starts at low percentages (for low income) and goes up to ~35% for high incomes but state tax is a flat tax starting from your 1st earned Dollar?

    Thanks

    Thomas
     
  4. Jamesmadisonexpat

    Joined:
    Jan 14, 2011
    Messages:
    5
    Likes Received:
    0
    Gender:
    Male
    City:
    Miami
    Living In:
    Colombia
    Nationality:
    American (US)
    Languages:
    English, Spanish
    Hi thomas, texkourgan sure gave us all some great info! Kudos to her and Easyexpat for having this site. while i was searching through the info i found this site to be especially helpful.. http://bit.ly/ExpatTaxReturn

    all the best,
    James
     
Loading...
Similar Threads Forum Date
☛ EN Advice Taxes in the USA USA Jun 24, 2013
✎ EN US taxes - love them or hate them? Have your say! USA May 4, 2011
✎ EN US TAX : French Real Estate Income - Loi Robien USA Jan 21, 2010
✎ EN US TAx Court - big problem! USA Nov 16, 2006
✎ ES New York,boston & Washington USA Apr 7, 2010

Share This Page