This September I will be moving to the US as a permanent resident (my wife is a US citizen). I am a UK citizen and currently have approx. $100k held in a UK tax-free savings account (ISA). I intend to remove at least $30k and bring it with us when we move to help us get started. We are not yet sure which country we want to settle down in, and are looking to decide in 3ish years whether to stay in US or move back to UK.
I can leave the remaining $70k in the UK account, however I'm not sure if I will be taxed on this foreign account each year while in the US. Conversely, I don't know if I'll be heavily taxed in the first year of residency if I move to the US with $100k (will this count as income that first year?).
As far as I see it, I have 3 options:
Take $30k to the US. Leave the $70k in the UK. Pay US taxes on a foreign account until we decide where to settle down.
Take $100k to the US. Pay international money transfer fees. Potentially pay a large tax on my "income" of $100k in that first year (?). Potentially pay those transfer fees again in a few years if we decide to move back.
Take $30k to the US now. Bring over approx. $20-30k a year over the next few years. Pay a smaller transfer fee each time, but potentially reduce my US tax burden each year.
Any help would be greatly appreciated, especially concerning tax on non-US accounts and tax on large money transfers from abroad.
If it helps, I am a mechanical engineer moving to California, and so my future income is expected to be $60-$90k a year.
Submitted June 09, 2021 at 11:19AM by jdv23 https://ift.tt/3iqp9nv
