Foreign earned income housing exclusion, if staying in hotel or company paid for apartment, should this cost be included in exclusion or left as zero dollars?

[JohnR1 · Accepted solution]

The foreign housing exclusion applies only to amounts considered paid for with employer-provided amounts, which includes any amounts paid to you or paid or incurred on your behalf by your employer that are taxable foreign earned income to you for the year.

The apartment paid for by the company definitely qualify as employer-provided foreign housing, for purposes of claiming the foreign housing exclusion.  If you paid for your foreign hotel costs from your employer-provided salary, your employer reimbursed you for the hotel costs, or incurred the hotel costs on your behalf, then you could include those costs in your foreign housing costs, for purposes of claiming the exclusion.