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New Member
posted Jun 1, 2019 11:54:24 AM

I don't want to claim foreign income exclusion but turbotax keeps automatically claiming it for me, and I can't correct it. How do I correct this?

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4 Replies
Intuit Alumni
Jun 1, 2019 11:54:25 AM

When you are in the foreign earned income section of TurboTax (enter foreign income in the search bar at the top of the screen and click the Jump to link):

  1. Enter foreign earned wages (if not already entered on W-2 screen)
  2. Confirm wages
  3. Enter any amounts your employer paid you cash for
  4. Next screen says: Would you Like to Try and Exclude Your Foreign Earned Income? Click NO I know I don't qualify to exclude my foreign income

Level 2
Jul 10, 2020 11:04:27 PM

We didn't see the 4th step when we were doing a married joint filing:

"Next screen says: Would you Like to Try and Exclude Your Foreign Earned Income? Click NO I know I don't qualify to exclude my foreign income"

 

What we saw is "Whose Foreign Income Would You Like to Try and Exclude?"

If we choose "Neither of us", then we won't even see the form 2555 for "foreign income".

 

We want to get the foreign tax credit, not exclusion. Please help. Thanks a lot!

Level 1
Apr 13, 2021 8:07:29 PM

Were you able to get past this error? I'm having the same issue - selecting no is not an option.

Expert Alumni
Apr 14, 2021 3:54:08 PM

@janepencil If you choose to exclude the foreign income, you will not see Form 2555. This form will only appear in your return if you exclude foreign income. Your foreign income will then appear as wages in line 1 of your 1040.

 

Now, to claim the Foreign Tax credit:

  1. Open Turbo Tax
  2. Go to federal>deductions and credits>estimate and other taxes paid
  3. Foreign taxes >start
  4. Start answering questions. Make sure you answer the question correctly about if this is the first year you are making the simplified  election
  5. Answer the questions in the next screens until you reach a screen that talks about income type. This will be the general category of income. 
  6. Next screen is where you add the country your foreign income was earned in. 
  7. Next screen will ask you what your source income earned in that country. Here you will allocate income earned while you were in that country.
  8. You will continue answering questions until you get to a screen that says foreign taxes paid to XXXX. Be sure not to list a date at the bottom beyond 12/31/2020 or you won't get the foreign tax credit and will show up as an error in your return