if you have carryforwards they exist only because the FTC for that year and the amount of FTC carryfoward exceeded the allowable amount for that year. nothing you can do can change this unless you were to report more foreign income of the general category. It is quite common for FTC to be used FTC every year and eventually the carryforward expires
there is a 10 year carryforward limitation for FTC so any prior to 2012 would have expired unused. also any unused FTC can only be carried back 1 year
Internal revenue code section 6511 does allow for 10 years to amend returns
(d)(3)Special rules relating to foreign tax credit
(A)Special period of limitation with respect to foreign taxes paid or accrued
If the claim for credit or refund relates to an overpayment attributable to any taxes paid or accrued to any foreign country or to any possession of the United States for which credit is allowed against the tax imposed by subtitle A in accordance with the provisions of section 901 or the provisions of any treaty to which the United States is a party, in lieu of the 3-year period of limitation prescribed in subsection (a), the period shall be 10 years from the date prescribed by law for filing the return for the year in which such taxes were actually paid or accrued.
what all this means is you could claim credit for unused FTC from 2012 of the general category by carrying it back to 2011
