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US Taxes for Americans & Digital Nomads in Medellín

Living in Medellín doesn't pause your US taxes. You moved for the weather, the cost of living, the pace of life — not to deal with the IRS. But if you're a US citizen or green card holder, Uncle Sam doesn't stop asking just because you've relocated to Sabaneta, Envigado, El Poblado, or Laureles. The US is one of the only countries in the world that taxes its citizens on worldwide income no matter where they live — and on top of that, your old home state may still think you belong to it, and your Colombian income has its own reporting rules in Bogotá. Most people find out about one of these three systems the hard way.

All State Tax Resolution is built around one idea: you shouldn't need three different advisors in three different countries to stay compliant. Sabih Shafi, EA — an Enrolled Agent licensed by the U.S. Treasury — handles your US federal and state tax picture, and personally coordinates with our licensed Colombian accounting partner so your Colombian filings and your US filings actually line up, instead of quietly contradicting each other.

Book a free 15-minute consult → or call/text (323) 900-0305.

Who This Is For

  • US remote workers and digital nomads based in Medellín who get paid by US clients or

employers and are trying to figure out what's actually taxable where.

  • Retirees drawing Social Security or a pension while living in Antioquia full-time.

  • Business owners running a US LLC, S-corp, or a Colombian SAS (or both) from Medellín.

  • Americans married to Colombians navigating joint filing, ITINs, and two tax systems

in one household.

  • Anyone who's fallen behind on US filing since moving abroad and isn't sure how bad

it actually is (usually: less bad than you think, if you act before the IRS does).

  • Anyone still getting tax notices from a US state — California, New York, or another

"sticky state" — despite having moved to Colombia years ago.

If you recognize yourself in more than one of these, that's normal. It's exactly why this page exists as one place instead of five.

No US-Colombia Tax Treaty — Here's What That Actually Means

The single most common fear we hear: "There's no tax treaty between the US and Colombia — so am I getting taxed twice on the same income?"

Usually, no — but the reason isn't a treaty, it's the Foreign Tax Credit (Form 1116). Without a treaty to fall back on, the Foreign Tax Credit does the heavy lifting: it credits Colombian tax you've already paid against the US tax owed on that same income, generally dollar-for-dollar up to certain limits. The Foreign Earned Income Exclusion (Form 2555) is the other main tool — it excludes a set, inflation-adjusted amount of foreign earned income from US tax entirely, though it doesn't apply to investment or rental income the way the credit can, and you can't use both on the same dollar of income. Which combination actually saves you the most depends on your specific income mix and your Colombian tax rate — there's no one-size-fits-all answer, which is exactly why this needs an actual review rather than a generic blog-post formula.

Here's the part almost no US-based expat tax preparer can actually do: your Colombian filings are prepared by our licensed Colombian accounting partner (contador), and Sabih coordinates directly with them so the Foreign Tax Credit numbers on your US return actually match what was filed with DIAN. Most firms either only touch your US return and leave you to sort out the Colombian side yourself, or they're a Colombian firm that doesn't touch the US side at all. We built this specifically so nothing falls in the gap between the two systems.

(One more system that trips people up: Colombia's own 183-day rule can make you a Colombian tax resident if you spend more than 183 days there in a rolling 365-day period. That's a completely separate question from your US filing obligation, which never goes away regardless of residency — it's just one more reason the coordination matters.)

Did You Really Leave California? (Or New York — Or Any Other "Sticky State")

This is the part of the "full coverage" promise that almost no other expat or digital-nomad tax firm in Medellín advertises — because most of them only handle the federal side.

Moving to Colombia does not automatically end your obligation to a US state. States look at domicile, not just where you're currently living: your permanent legal home, determined by intent plus objective conduct. A handful of states — California and New York chief among them — are notoriously aggressive about continuing to tax former residents who haven't clearly and completely broken that domicile.

What states actually look at:

  • Property you still own or rent in-state

  • A driver's license, vehicle registration, or voter registration you haven't updated

  • Where your bank accounts, professional licenses, and doctors/dentists still are

  • Where a spouse or minor children remained, if not everyone moved together

  • How often and how long you go back for visits

  • Whether you filed a part-year resident return in the year you actually left, or just

stopped filing

Some states offer limited safe-harbor treatment for people working abroad under sufficiently long foreign employment contracts — but these come with specific conditions and are not automatic. If a state notice has already landed in your inbox (a residency questionnaire, a proposed assessment, anything like that), how and whether you respond matters a great deal, and the clock is usually already running.

We advise on breaking domicile correctly, prepare part-year returns, and respond to state notices — as a specific, standing part of what we do, not an afterthought bolted onto a federal return.

Every Form This Actually Touches

Different situations trigger different filing requirements. Here's the realistic map for someone living in Medellín — not an exhaustive IRS glossary, just what actually shows up in practice:

  • 1040 — Your core US individual income tax return: Still required every year, on worldwide income, regardless of where you live

  • 2555 (FEIE) — Foreign Earned Income Exclusion: Can exclude a set amount of foreign wage/self-employment income from US tax

  • 1116 (FTC) — Foreign Tax Credit: Credits Colombian tax paid against US tax on the same income — the main double-tax fix with no treaty in place

  • FinCEN 114 (FBAR) — Report of Foreign Bank and Financial Accounts: Required if your combined foreign accounts (Bancolombia, Davivienda, etc.) topped $10,000 at any point in the year — filed separately from your 1040, deadline auto-extends to Oct 15

  • 8938 (FATCA) — Statement of Specified Foreign Financial Assets: A separate reporting duty from the FBAR, with its own (higher, for those living abroad) thresholds

  • W-7 — ITIN application: For a Colombian spouse or dependent who needs a US taxpayer ID — the original passport can be certified locally (Embassy/Consulate or an IRS-authorized Certifying Acceptance Agent) instead of mailed

  • 5471 — Information return for a foreign corporation: Relevant if you own a controlling share of a Colombian SAS — high-penalty if missed, worth a specific ownership review

  • 8621 — PFIC reporting: Often missed — Colombian mutual funds, ETFs, or pooled investment accounts held through a local brokerage can be classified as PFICs, which carry their own punishing reporting regime

  • 3520 / 3520-A — Foreign trust reporting: Can be triggered by certain Colombian pension or investment vehicles depending on structure — worth confirming rather than assuming it doesn't apply

  • 2848 — Power of Attorney: Lets Sabih, as your EA, deal directly with the IRS on your behalf if a notice or exam comes up

  • State part-year / nonresident returns — State-specific: For the year you actually moved, and any year a "sticky state" continues to assert a claim

  • DIAN filings (Colombia) — Colombian income/asset declarations: Prepared by our licensed Colombian accounting partner — coordinated with your US return, never handled by Sabih directly

Every one of these is fact-specific. Nothing above is a diagnosis of your situation — it's the map of what to check.

Behind on Filing? The Streamlined Path Back

If you've fallen behind since moving — and a lot of people quietly have — the Streamlined Filing Compliance Procedures may be the way back into compliance without the penalties normally assessed on late returns, for those who qualify. In broad terms, it requires:

  • Filing the last 3 years of delinquent or amended returns

  • Filing the last 6 years of FBARs

  • Certifying, honestly, that the failure to file was non-willful — not an intentional,

knowing violation, but negligence, a misunderstanding, or simply not knowing the rules applied to you abroad

For non-willful filers living abroad who qualify, the offshore penalty that would otherwise apply is reduced to zero. This doesn't erase a genuine tax liability if you actually owe money — but it can remove the failure-to-file, failure-to-pay, and FBAR penalties stacked on top. The single biggest factor is timing: this option is generally available only if you act before the IRS contacts you first. If a notice already arrived, that changes the conversation — but it doesn't mean you're out of options, it means you need representation, which is exactly what Form 2848 authorizes Sabih to provide.

About Sabih — An Enrolled Agent Who Actually Lives Here

Sabih Shafi is an Enrolled Agent — licensed by the U.S. Treasury — the only tax credential that's federally licensed nationwide specifically for tax representation (alongside CPAs and attorneys). Unlike a firm back in Miami, Doral, or a call center somewhere, Sabih lives in the Medellín area full-time, works Colombia hours, and understands the actual day-to-day reality of being an American here: the Bancolombia FATCA questions, the SAS-vs-LLC questions, the "my ex-state won't let go" questions, the "I need to send documents but don't want to mail my passport" questions.

That local reality is paired with a genuinely bilingual, coordinated practice: Colombian filings are handled by our licensed Colombian accounting partner, with Sabih coordinating both sides so the numbers match and nothing gets double-taxed or double-missed. And unlike firms that stop at tax prep, Sabih's practice is built around representation and resolution — IRS notices, exams, and now state residency defense — not just filing a return and disappearing until next April.

Book your free 15-minute consult → or call/text (323) 900-0305.

Frequently Asked Questions

Yes — US citizens and green card holders are taxed on worldwide income regardless of where it's earned or where it's already been taxed. Without a US-Colombia treaty, the Foreign Tax Credit (and in some cases the Foreign Earned Income Exclusion) is what prevents you from paying full tax twice on the same dollar. Which one (or which combination) applies best to you depends on your specific numbers.

No. Colombian filings are prepared by our licensed Colombian accounting partner. Sabih is an Enrolled Agent licensed by the U.S. Treasury for US federal tax matters; he coordinates with our Colombian partner so both returns are consistent, but he does not prepare or sign Colombian filings himself.

Once both sides have the relevant Colombian tax figures (income reported and tax paid to DIAN), Sabih uses those figures to prepare your US return with the Foreign Tax Credit (or FEIE, where appropriate) applied correctly, so the same income isn't taxed twice and nothing is missing from either return.

Because moving abroad doesn't automatically end your state domicile — it has to be genuinely and demonstrably broken (property, ID, voter registration, financial ties, family location, and more all factor in). This is common, especially with California, and it's a specific area we work in rather than refer out.

Yes — we can review the notice, evaluate your specific facts, and help prepare a response or the underlying part-year/nonresident return. We can't promise a particular outcome with any state, but responding correctly and on time matters far more than most people assume.

Often less than people fear, if you act before the IRS reaches out first. The Streamlined Filing Compliance Procedures exist specifically for non-willful late filers abroad and can remove certain penalties for those who qualify — but a real review of your specific years and facts is the only way to know where you stand.

Pricing depends on the complexity of your specific filing situation (number of accounts, business structures, years behind, state issues, and so on), so we don't publish a flat rate on this page. You'll get a clear, transparent quote after your free consult — no surprise fees.

Either — many clients are in Medellín, El Poblado, Envigado, Sabaneta, or Laureles, and some are elsewhere in Colombia or still transitioning. Consults and document exchange are handled online and by phone/video either way.

Ready to Get Both Sides Right?

Whether it's your first year filing from Colombia, you're years behind and need a clear path back, or a US state won't stop sending notices — this is what All State Tax Resolution is built to handle, end to end.

Book your free 15-minute consult → or call/text (323) 900-0305.

Sabih Shafi is an Enrolled Agent — licensed by the U.S. Treasury. Colombian/DIAN filings are prepared by our licensed Colombian accounting partner. All information above is general and educational — not a guarantee of any specific tax outcome; every situation is fact-specific. Serving Medellín, Envigado, Sabaneta & El Poblado.

 
 
 

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