No, these are two different questions, but they are connected because you can't take the deduction if you are itemizing. And yes, you can deduct your foreign housing costs AND your earned income, because the housing costs are part of that income. That's why they have the possibility for you to do both. But all I can get is the exclusion. And I don't qualify for the exclusion because I am self-employed. I get the deduction. but ONLY if you itemize. (Though in this year's edition, even if I could itemize, the option for the deduction and not exclusion isn't offered for some reason, and that's wrong.)
