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Forms That Must Be Filed With the IRS With Form 1040: Taxes for Americans Abroad (2025 IRS Guide)

This guide covers “Forms That Must Be Filed With the IRS With Form 1040” within taxes for americans abroad. The following material presents the IRS treatment of this topic, including the qualifications, exceptions, and examples in the source section. Read the rules alongside the facts of your own situation before deciding what to report, deduct, or document.

Adapted from Publication 54 (12/2025), Tax Guide for U.S. Citizens and Resident Aliens Abroad, published by the Internal Revenue Service. This guide retains the source edition’s years, amounts, deadlines, and examples. It is guidance for that edition, not a statement that the same figures apply to every tax year.

Context for these rules

  • Whether you have to file a return,

  • When to file your return and pay any tax due,

  • How to treat foreign currency,

  • How to file electronically,

  • Where to file your return,

  • When you can treat your nonresident alien spouse as a resident, and

  • When you may have to make estimated tax payments.

Publication

  • 3 Armed Forces' Tax Guide

  • 334 Tax Guide for Small Business (For Individuals Who Use Schedule C)

  • 501 Dependents, Standard Deduction, and Filing Information

  • 505 Tax Withholding and Estimated Tax

  • 519 U.S. Tax Guide for Aliens

  • 570 Tax Guide for Individuals With Income from U.S. Territories

  • 970 Tax Benefits for Education

Form (and Instructions)

  • 1040 U.S. Individual Income Tax Return

  • 1040-ES Estimated Tax for Individuals

  • 1040-X Amended U.S. Individual Income Tax Return

  • 2350 Application for Extension of Time To File U.S. Income Tax Return

  • 2555 Foreign Earned Income

  • 4868 Application for Automatic Extension of Time To File U.S. Individual Income Tax Return

  • 8822 Change of Address

All of these forms, instructions, and publications can be downloaded from IRS.gov. See chapter 7 for information about getting these publications and forms.

Forms That Must Be Filed With the IRS With Form 1040

Form 8938.

You must file Form 8938, Statement of Specified Foreign Financial Assets, to report the ownership of specified foreign financial assets if the total value of those assets exceeds an applicable threshold amount (the “reporting threshold”). The reporting threshold varies depending on whether you live in the United States, are married, or file a joint income tax return with your spouse. Specified foreign financial assets include any financial account maintained by a foreign financial institution and, to the extent held for investment, any stock, any securities, or any other interest in a foreign entity and any financial instrument or contract with an issuer or counterparty that is not a U.S. person.

For more information, go to IRS.gov/Form8938.

Form 5471.

Certain U.S. persons who are officers, directors, or shareholders in certain foreign corporations must file Form 5471, Information Return of U.S. Persons With Respect To Certain Foreign Corporations, and schedules to satisfy the reporting requirements of sections 6038 and 6046, and the related regulations for each applicable foreign corporation. For more information, go to IRS.gov/Form5471.

Form 926.

U.S. citizens or residents, domestic corporations, or domestic estates or trusts must file Form 926, Return by a U.S. Transferor of Property to a Foreign Corporation, to report any exchanges or transfers of tangible or intangible property that are described in section 6038B(a)(1)(A) of the Internal Revenue Code to a foreign corporation. For more information, go to IRS.gov/Form926.

Form 8865.

A U.S. person must file Form 8865, Return of U.S. Persons With Respect to Certain Foreign Partnerships, to report the information required under section 6038 (reporting with respect to controlled foreign partnerships), section 6038B (reporting of transfers to foreign partnerships), or section 6046A (reporting of acquisitions, dispositions, and changes in foreign partnership interests). For more information, go to IRS.gov/Form8865.

Form 8858.

Certain U.S. persons that own a foreign disregarded entity (FDE) or foreign branch (FB) directly or, in certain circumstances, indirectly or constructively must file Form 8858, Information Return of U.S. Persons With Respect to Foreign Disregarded Entities (FDEs) and Foreign Branches (FBs), and schedules to satisfy the reporting requirements of sections 6011, 6012, 6031, and 6038, and related regulations. For more information, go to IRS.gov/Form8858.

Form 8621.

A U.S. person that is a direct or indirect shareholder of a passive foreign investment company (PFIC) files Form 8621, Passive Foreign Investment Company or Qualified Electing Fund, if they:

  • Receive certain direct or indirect distributions from a PFIC,

  • Recognize a gain on a direct or indirect disposition of PFIC stock,

  • Are reporting information with respect to a QEF or section 1296 mark-to-market election,

  • Are making an election reportable in Part II of the form, or

  • Are required to file an annual report pursuant to section 1298(f).

Note:

If you are an individual taxpayer that owns a mutual fund or ETF that is not domiciled in the United States, you may have a Form 8621 obligation.

For more information, go to IRS.gov/Form8621.

Forms 8964-ELE and 8964-TRA.

If you own one or more qualified business units (QBUs), you may have a Form 8964-ELE and 8964-TRA filing requirement. These forms implement the reporting requirements in the final Treasury Regulations under section 987.

Form 8964-ELE.

Form 8964-ELE is used to make or revoke elections under the section 987 regulations. The form is used to satisfy the reporting requirements of Regulations sections 1.987-1(g).

For more information, go to IRS.gov/Form8964ELE.

Form 8964-TRA.

Form 8964-TRA is used to report the section 987 transition information required under Regulations section 1.987-10(k).

The following persons have a requirement to file Form 8964-TRA:

  • An owner of the section 987 QBU on the transition date. Form 8964-TRA should be filed for the tax year beginning on the transition date.

  • A deferral QBU owner or the owner of an outbound loss QBU if the deferral event or outbound loss event occurred before the transition date. Form 8964-TRA should be filed for the tax year beginning on the transition date.

  • An owner of a terminating QBU.

For more information, go to IRS.gov/Form8964TRA.

Form 8854.

Section 877A applies to U.S. citizens who have relinquished their citizenship, and long-term residents who have ended their residency (expatriated) on or after June 17, 2008. Form 8854, Initial and Annual Expatriation Statement, is used by expatriates to certify compliance with tax obligations in the 5 years before expatriation and to comply with their initial and annual information reporting obligations under section 6039G.

Note: Individuals who expatriated for immigration purposes after June 3, 2004, and before June 17, 2008, but who have not previously filed a Form 8854, continue to be treated as U.S. citizens or U.S. lawful permanent residents for U.S. income tax purposes until they file a Form 8854. See section 7701(n), as in effect before June 17, 2008. For more information, go to IRS.gov/Form8854.

Using the guidance

Keep the documents that establish the dates, amounts, and circumstances described above. References to other chapters, forms, worksheets, or earlier and later sections refer to the linked IRS publication. Check the full publication and its updates before relying on a rule for a different tax year or a situation not addressed here.

Sources and further reading

The cited U.S. government text is in the public domain. Source accessed October 28, 2026. Fynoptic has organized this material for educational use and is independent of, and not endorsed by, the IRS.

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