Tax preparation checklist

We want to make gathering the documents for your preparer as easy as possible. Not every category will apply to you, so just pick those that do, and make sure you have the information available.

When you submit the necessary information you’ll be surprised at how much time and cost you will save by organizing your information beforehand with this US tax preparation checklist.

US tax preparation checklist

Make sure to inform your CPA if in 2015 you:

• got married or divorced
• had a child in 2015
• traveled to the U.S. for work or vacation and if so how long and in which state

If you are employed please provide:

• Salary statement (jaaropgave)
• Dutch income tax return 2015 (aangifte inkomstenbelasting 2015)
• Financial year overview*
• Investment (beleggingen overzicht)**
* Highest balance of all your bank accounts***

If you own a business:

• Add the Annual report (jaarverslag)

If you own rental property:

• Rental income
• All costs incurred for the rental (the US sometimes allows more deductions)
• Any losses

* The yearly financial overview(s) from your financial institutions might not always contain the interest you received. In that case you will need to look up the amount of interest income received separately on your statement.

**  In case of investments – provide a list of any stocks sold during 2015 as well as the date of purchase and purchase price.

*** FBAR Foreign Bank Account Report) form, also known as FinCen form 114. This is the U.S. Treasury form reporting your foreign financial accounts (bank, investment, etc.) if the balance of the accounts (in total aggregate) exceeds $10,000 USD. There is NO extension for this form, and it must be filed electronically by June 30th.  It requires an individual to list the highest balance on all bank accounts owned (individually or joint) or bank accounts where you have signature authority. Remember it’s not the starting or end balance of your account but the actual HIGHEST balance in that year. It’s not difficult to list and requires going through your previous year’s bank statements and noting the highest value.

Disclaimer: The advice offered in this article is intended for informational purposes only. Use of this column is not intended to replace or substitute for professional advice. No action should be taken based on this information without seeking proper professional advice. This website. the company, publisher, and its author are not responsible nor liable for the outcome or results of following any of the above advice and/or links to advise in any given situation.