TL;DR — Key Takeaways
- →Enter foreign wages, SE income, US-source income, passive income, and foreign taxes paid.
- →Physical presence details: days abroad and Bona Fide Resident status feed the §911 eligibility check.
- →Three scenario cards appear side by side — the winner is highlighted with a Best Option badge.
- →FTC carryforward is shown separately when foreign taxes exceed US liability.
- →FEIE revocation history limits re-election for five years — the optimizer accounts for this.
The FEIE / FTC Optimizer is for US citizens and green card holders living abroad. It compares three tax strategies — FEIE only, FTC only, and the FEIE + FTC combination — and identifies which one minimizes your US tax burden.
What you'll have by the end: a completed optimizer run showing your best filing strategy for the current tax year.
Prerequisites
Have your income details ready: foreign wages, any self-employment income, US-source income, foreign passive income, and total foreign taxes paid. You'll also need your days abroad and primary country of employment.
Step 1 — Navigate to the Optimizer
From the left sidebar, click FEIE / FTC Optimizer. You'll see the optimizer form.
FEIE / FTC Optimizer page with the full form in its initial empty state, showing all input sections
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Step 2 — Confirm Your Eligibility
At the top is a toggle: "I am a US citizen or green card holder." This must be on. If it's off, the tool explains why FEIE and FTC don't apply to non-US persons.
Eligibility toggle at the top of the form in the ON state, with the rest of the form sections visible below
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Step 3 — Enter Your Situation Details
Fill in tax year, filing status, foreign country (your primary country of employment), and US state (optional — relevant if your state doesn't conform to FEIE).
Top section of the form showing the tax year selector, filing status dropdown, foreign country autocomplete, and state selector
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Step 4 — Enter Your Income
Foreign wages are employment income from a foreign employer. Foreign self-employment income is any freelance income earned abroad. US-source income is anything from US clients or investments. Foreign passive income is dividends, rental income, or interest from foreign sources.
Income section of the form with all four income fields filled in with example values
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Step 5 — Enter Foreign Taxes and Physical Presence Details
Fill in total foreign taxes paid this year. If some were on passive income specifically, enter that separately — it matters for the FTC basket calculation. Enter your days abroad (330+ qualifies for the Physical Presence Test) and toggle Bona Fide Resident if you've established formal tax residency in your foreign country.
Foreign tax and presence section showing the total tax field, passive tax field, days abroad counter, and the BFR toggle switch
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Step 6 — Add Optional History
If you've revoked FEIE in the last five years, enter the year. If you have FTC carryforward from prior years, enter those amounts. If you plan to contribute to a Roth IRA this year, toggle that on — FEIE income isn't considered earned income for IRA contribution purposes.
Optional history section showing the FEIE revocation year field and two FTC carryforward amount fields for general and passive baskets
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Step 7 — Run the Optimizer
Click Run Optimizer. Three scenario cards appear side by side: FEIE Only, FTC Only, and FEIE + FTC Stack. The recommended scenario is highlighted with a Best Option badge. Each card shows federal tax, FTC applied, SE tax, NIIT, additional Medicare, state tax, and total net cost.
Three scenario cards side by side — FEIE Only, FTC Only, FEIE + FTC Stack — with the winning card highlighted in a green border and a Best Option badge
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Step 8 — Review FTC Carryforward
If the optimizer generated FTC carryforward credits (you paid more in foreign taxes than your US liability), look for the Carryforward section below the cards. It shows the amount generated and the expiration year. These carry forward for five years.
FTC carryforward section below the scenario cards showing the amount and expiration year
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What's Next
The Mid-Year Move Calculator tutorial shows how to plan your tax liability for a full year if you're changing countries — complementary to this tool for anyone mid-move.