Clear answers to the hardest US tax questions

Foreign-owned US businesses

• Form 5472 & the $25,000 penalty for foreign-owned single-member LLCsThe compliance trap most foreign founders never hear about — until it's expensive.
• Does a foreign-owned LLC with no income still have to file?Why "no income" almost never means "nothing to file."
• Form 1120 + 5472 vs. Form 1120-F: which return?Two very different filings — and choosing wrong is costly.
• Non-resident opening a US LLC: the full compliance checklistEvery step from formation to filing, in order.
• EIN & ITIN: getting a US tax ID without an SSNYes, you can get both without a Social Security Number.

Cross-border individuals & new immigrants

• Your first US return: resident vs. non-resident & the substantial presence testWhich status you file under changes everything.
• Reporting foreign income & accounts as a new US residentWhat you must disclose once you become a US tax resident.
• Form 1040-NR: US rental income for non-residentsWhat you owe on US property income, and how to file it.
• Selling US property as a foreign owner: FIRPTA withholdingWhy a big chunk gets withheld at closing — and how to handle it.
• The US–Russia tax treaty & the 2024 suspensionWhat changed, and what it means for your withholding.

Facing the IRS

• What an Enrolled Agent can do in an IRS auditAnd how representation differs from a CPA or attorney.
• You received an IRS CP2000 notice: what it meansIt's not a bill — and not an audit. Here's how to respond.
• Offer in Compromise: who actually qualifiesThe truth behind "settle your IRS debt for less."
• IRS penalty abatement: first-time & reasonable causeTwo real ways to get penalties removed.
• FBAR & foreign-account penalties: disclosure optionsIf you missed foreign-account reporting, what to do now.