Why is Form 2555 asking for a Location where Housing Expenses Incurred and not showing my Country?

[RiverRanger]

Greetings all,

What to do if my Country is not on the drop down list....there is no other option to chose and I cannot finish my taxes because the automated check will not let me pass this point. Can I enter it manually somehow?

Thanks for the support!

[DaveF1006]

There is an active investigation going on to find out why certain countries are left off the foreign housing lists. There is no ETA for the resolution at this time.

[RiverRanger]

OK and thanks for the info.....is there anyway for me to fill in the data manually - I want to send my taxes off to the IRS and this is the only thing stopping me now.

[AmyC]

Currently, the drop down matches the IRS listing.  About Form 2555, Foreign Earned Income has the form and instructions which include:

Limit on Housing Expenses Worksheet—Line 29b

Note. If the location in which you incurred housing expenses isn't listed in the table at the end of these instructions, and the number of days in your qualifying period that fall within the 2023 tax year is 365, DO NOT complete this worksheet. Instead, enter $36,000 on line 29b.

1.

Enter the number of days in your qualifying period that fall within the 2023 tax year. (See the instructions for line 31.)

1.

_____

2.

Did you enter 365 on line 1?

No. If the amount on line 1 is less than 365, skip line 2 and go to line 3.

Yes. Locate the amount under the column Limit on Housing Expenses (full year) from the table at the end of these instructions for the location in which you incurred housing expenses. This is your limit on housing expenses. Enter the amount here and on line 29b. Also, see Election to apply higher limit on housing expenses, later.

Do not complete the rest of this worksheet

2.

_____

3.

Enter the amount under the column Limit on Housing Expenses (daily) from the table at the end of these instructions for the location in which you incurred housing expenses. If the location isn't listed in the table, enter $98.63. Also, see Election to apply higher limit on housing expenses, later

3.

_____

4.

Multiply line 1 by line 3. This is your limit on housing expenses. Enter the result here and on line 29b

4.

_____

From <https://www.irs.gov/instructions/i2555#limitonhousingexpensesworksheetline-eae47989>

[davmill1015]

Hello.  I am having the same issue; my country is not listed.  I have seen a workaround posted of selecting "Angola - All Others" which will get me through the final checking prior to e-file, but the issue is I'll have a different country listed rather than the actual country the foreign housing expenses occurred.  This may cause the IRS to reject the return.

In the online (cloud-based) version of TT, Form 2555 The Philippines or "All Other Countries" are NOT listed as options in the second country drop-down list (M-Z).   I have been filing online for several years using TT and have always been able to select the proper country (Philippines), but for tax year 2023, it is no longer an option.

I note on the 2023 Instructions for Form 2555 (Instructions for Form 2555 (2023) | Internal Revenue Service (irs.gov)) the Philippines is NOT listed and the IRS states "If the location in which you incurred housing expenses is not listed in the table, and the number of days in your qualifying period is 365, enter $36,000 on line 29b.", which is 30% of the Foreign Earned Income exclusion ($120,000).  

The problem is TT online does not have an "All Other Countries" option and is likely pulling in the list of available countries directly from an IRS data source.  Solution:  TT online needs to include an option to manually enter the country and the default $36,000 figure for Line 29b.  

Can this please be shared ASAP with TT support to implement this seemingly simple fix? I cannot properly e-file until this is resolved.  

Thank you!

[AnnetteB6]

The situation you described is being addressed and corrected.

The following TurboTax help article includes a link where you can sign up with your email address to be notified when everything has been corrected.  The article specifically mentions the Czech Republic as the country that is not shown in the list, but others are being addressed as well.

Why is Form 2555 asking for a Location where Housing Expenses Incurred and not showing Czech Republi...

@davmill1015 

[MayaD]

The option to select "other" is now available. You can revisit the foreign housing exclusion section to finish your return.

@davmill1015