Checklist [‘tʃeklist]: n. a list of items (names or tasks etc.) to be checked or consulted.
- You do not need to answer questions that are not applicable to you.
- You do not need to answer questions if already covered by tax documents.
- Please highlight information you do not want me to miss.
- Please do indicate your spreadsheet contains multiple tabs, example: check_list_info (multiple tabs).xls.
- Please try to avoid but do indicate when a file contains multiple facts, example: all_1099_forms (multiple docs).pdf.
- Please do not embed tax documents in the checklist info doc.
- If you have a passworded doc, please either follow the instructions here
to remove the password, or put the password in the filename. Google Drive already provides security.
- Please do not use filenames starting with a dash (_) which is my indication that the file has been read and processed (LOL).
You can create a Google doc or Google sheets after you enter your link by clicking “+ New”, or create your own
simple word or text document and upload it along with tax documents.
New in 2025.
- No tax on tips.
- No tax on overtime.
- Auto loan interest deduction.
- SALT (State And Local Taxes) cap increases.
- Senior deduction.
- Trump account.
Frequently Forgotten Items.
These items can help you if provided or hurt you if omitted. Highlights here, detailed in the text body below.
- Mortgage principal amount paid for loans more than 750K.
- Car tax (CA, MA, VA, WA).
- Dependent care expenses (5 pieces of info).
- E*Trade Stock plan supplemental info for “company” (versus personal) stocks sold.
- Form 3922 or purchase confirmation for sold stocks from ESPP (Employee Stock Purchase Plan).
- State 529 for your children (3 pieces of info).
- “Backdoor” Roth IRA conversion (3 pieces of info).
- Closing disclosure when you buy, sell, or refinance a home.
- F-1/OPT student visa history.
- Rent paid in the year (MA, NJ only).
Are You a US Citizen, Resident Alien, or Nonresident Alien?
and be sure to provide information in the Nonresident section at the end of this checklist.
Note, Special benefit for married couples: if one spouse is a resident at the end of the year 2025, you and your nonresident spouse can elect to file jointly as residents.
What is Your Filing Status?
- Single.
- Married Filing jointly (MFJ).
- Married filing separately (MFS).
- Head of Household (HOH, single parent with dependent).
- Qualifying surviving spouse (QSS), formerly known as Qualified Widow(er) (QW).
- Not sure, please describe your situation.
Please provide the following info for the taxpayer (and spouse if filing jointly):
- First name.
- Middle name.
- Last name.
- Pronouns (He/Him/His, She/Her/Hers, They/Them/Theirs).
- Social Security Numbers or Individual Tax Identification Number, see ITIN in SPECIAL SITUATION section if you do not have either.
- Occupation.
- Date of Birth (MM/DD/YYYY).
- Address.
- Telephone number.
- Email address.
- IP PIN (Identity Protection Personal Identification Number, you know if you have it).
and for EACH dependent (your spouse is not your dependent):
- First name.
- Middle name.
- Last name.
- Date of Birth (MM/DD/YYYY).
- Social Security Numbers or Individual Tax Identification Number, see ITIN in SPECIAL SITUATION section if you do not have either.
- Relationship (the dependent is your Son, Daughter, Dad, Mom, or …).
I do not use it for the filing fee or any other purposes, for new clients or returning clients with changed info.
- Bank name.
- Bank routing number (as appeared on your checkbook if you use a checking account, Paper & Electronic not Wires).
- Your account number (as appeared on your checkbook if you use a checking account).
- Your account type (Checking or Savings).
- Account holder(s).
Virtual Currency
- Did you receive a Form 1099-DA (new in 2025) reporting Digital Asset (DA) sales or exchanges in 2025?
-
At any time during 2025, did you: (a) receive (as a reward, award, or payment for property or services); or (b) sell,
exchange, gift, or otherwise dispose of a digital asset (or a financial interest in a digital asset) (Yes/No)?
The following actions do not require a Yes answer:
- Holding a digital asset in a wallet or account;
- Transferring a digital asset from one wallet or account you own or control to another wallet or account that you own or control; or
- Purchasing digital assets using U.S. or other real currency, including through the use of electronic platforms such as PayPal and Venmo.
Last Year’s Tax Returns (for New Client Only).
-
Please provide last year’s return (federal and state).
OR both of the following:
-
Four transcripts (Return, Record, Account, Wage and Income) from your account at the IRS.
AND
-
Taxes owed and paid to or refunds received from states, for example:
- VA: owed and paid $500
- DC: refund of $300
The information is in your last year’s return, the 1099-G the state sent out, or your bank record.
Location Info.
Please provide a list of your locations throughout the year, formatted as shown
below. Specify the state (and city if there is a city tax involved) if you were in the United States or the country if you
were abroad. You do not need to include vacations where you did
not change your state residency. For travel history outside the United States,
you can retrieve your records from the I94 Website.
- 01/01/2025 - 05/15/2025 Maryland (MD)
- 05/16/2025 - 08/15/2025 China
- 08/16/2025 - 12/31/2025 Virginia (VA)
Income and Income Adjustment.
- W-2 wage forms from ALL employers for the year.
-
Retirement distribution. When dealing with pensions, annuities, distributions
from retirement plans, rollovers, and conversions.
For “backdoor” Roth conversions from a traditional IRA, I need the following information:
- The gross amount converted (Form 1099-R, box 1).
- The combined year-end balance of all traditional and rollover (not Roth) IRA accounts
across all financial institutions (as of December 31 of the tax year).
A rollover IRA is a type of traditional IRA used to hold pre-tax money rolled over from an
employer-sponsored retirement plan (for example, a 401(k), 403(b), or pension).
Do not count balances in Roth IRA accounts or 401(k) accounts.
- The after-tax basis in your traditional IRA accounts before conversion (the portion of your IRA balance before conversion
that has already been taxed and should be reported on Form 8606).
For example, if you contributed $7,000 to a traditional
IRA account and deducted $3,000 on your tax return, your basis is $4,000. If you rolled over $10,000
from your employer’s 401(k) plan to a traditional IRA, your basis from that rollover is $0.
For a more detailed explanation, see Backdoor Roth IRA.
I need these three amounts to calculate the tax-free portion of the conversion as follows:
\[\text{Tax-free amount} = \text{Cost basis} \times \dfrac{\text{Conversion amount}}{\text{Conversion amount} + \text{Year-end balance}}\]
Please provide these 3 pieces of information. Here is an example:
- I converted $7,000 from my traditional IRA to a Roth IRA, as shown on Form 1099-R.
- As of December 31, 2025, the combined balance of all my traditional and rollover IRA accounts across all financial institutions was $6.
- Of the $7,006 total (conversion plus year-end balance), $7,000 is after-tax
basis from my non-deductible contribution to my traditional IRA account
made in the year 2025 *for the year 2025.
- Traditional IRA contribution only. Please provide:
- The date that you contributed or you will contribute (you have until the filing deadline to make contribution).
- The amount of contribution.
- The year allocated to.
- Social Security benefits (SSA-1099).
- Independent contractor and other miscellaneous income (1099-MISC).
- Unemployment compensation (1099-G).
- Schedule K-1 forms for Partnership, S Corporation, and trust income.
- Alimony received.
- Jury duty pay.
- Gambling and lottery winnings.
- Prizes and awards.
- Scholarships and fellowships.
- State and local income tax refunds (1099-G, if you did not file with me last year and you have not provided the last year’s returns and you have itemized last year).
Financial Assets.
- Interest income statements (1099-INT, 1099-OID). Please do not forget the interest paid by the IRS and states.
- Dividend income statements (1099-DIV). Some funds, for example, Fidelity and iShares, contain a percentage of government securities that is exempted from state tax, please upload a Google sheets file using the template.
- Proceeds from stock, mutual fund, and bond sale (1099-B).
- Virtual currencies (faq).
- RSU (Restricted Stock Unit) sale or “sale to cover”.
- ESPP (Employee Stock Purchase Plan) sale:
- E*Trade Stock Plan Transactions Supplemental Info if your broker is E*Trade.
- Form 3922 covering all of the stocks from the purchasing years or
- Purchase and Sale Confirmations from your broker (if Form 3922 is not available).
- Specify the document that contains the ESPP sale along with number of shares sold, and proceeds received.
- For tax theory, see Tax notes: ISO, ESPP, and RSU.
- ISO (Incentive Stock Option) sale:
- E*Trade Stock Plan Transactions Supplemental Info if your broker is E*Trade.
- Form 3921 covering all of the stocks from the grant years or
- Release and sale Confirmations from your broker (if Form 3921 is not available).
- Specify the document that contains the ESPP sale along with number of shares sold, and proceeds received.
- For tax theory, see Tax notes: ISO, ESPP, and RSU.
- Early withdrawal penalties on CDs and other time deposits.
Landlord (Property Owner Renting Out Space) or Rental Business.
Please use the rental Google sheets
to organize your expenses. If you want to do it the hard way (this feature will be deprecated), here is a list:
- Rent received.
- Advertising.
- Home-Owner Association (HOA) fees.
- Auto and travel (see “Auto expenses for business use” section).
- Cleaning and maintenance.
- Commissions.
- Gardening
- Home insurance.
- Private Mortgage Insurance (PMI).
- Legal and other professional fees (tax preparation fee).
- Management fees.
- The mortgage interest paid to banks, etc.
- Other interests.
- Painting and decorating.
- Pest control.
- Plumbing and electrical.
- Repairs.
- Supplies.
- Taxes.
- Telephone and internet (provided to tenants).
- Utilities.
- FIRST-YEAR RENTAL: Rental starting date (MM/DD/YYYY).
- FIRST-YEAR RENTAL: Closing disclosure, aka settlement doc, HUD-1, ALTA, which is 2-3 pages with numbers (not words for lawyers).
- FIRST-YEAR RENTAL: Term of loan (e.g. 15 years, 30 years).
- FIRST-YEAR RENTAL: Assessment near the rental starting date from the county website.
- MIXED (RENTAL AND PRIMARY RESIDENT TOGETHER): Rental ratio.
- PARTIAL YEAR AND MIXED: Specify expenses for what time period, and for what space (entire house or the rental rooms).
- Auto expenses for rental business.
Sale of Primary Residence or Rental Home
- 1099-S if issued as part of the closing process.
- Both Closing disclosure when you bought and sold the property.
- A spreadsheet listing of major improvements (that increase the home value) and sales expenses not in closing disclosures, not expensed (rental), and not depreciated (rental).
- Date
- Description of improvement or sale expense
- Amount
The IRS allows for a tax exclusion of up to $250,000 ($500,000 for
married couples filing jointly) of capital gains from the sale of
a primary residence under certain conditions as specified in IRC 121.
The conditions are:
- The property must be the taxpayer’s main home and owned by the
taxpayer for at least two of the five years preceding the sale.
- The exclusion can only be claimed once every two years.
It’s important to note that this exclusion may have limits or not apply
in certain situations, such as if the home was used as a rental
property, if the taxpayer was involved in a 1031 exchange.
If you qualify for the exclusion, and the capital gain is clearly within the limit, then you do not need to submit
the list of improvements and expenses related to the sale.
HSA.
If you have HSA (Health Savings Account), please provide:
- Is it a “self-only” plan (insurance only covers yourself) or a family plan? i.e. does the insurance cover only yourself or a family member as well?
- 1099-SA or the amount spent from HSA. Zero is also a meaningful number.
- All the spending from the HSA was used for medical purposes and not reimbursed.
- The amount you contributed yourself by depositing a check or making a bank transfer. The contribution via payroll is already excluded from taxable income in W-2.
- 5498-SA if you have it (optional).
- [CA and NJ] They tax HSA investment earnings. Your HSA provider does NOT issue a 1099 for these amounts, so you must provide them from your year-end HSA statement. Please upload a separate file named “HSA_earnings_state_taxable” containing the following information:
- Total interest earned in year:
- Total dividends received (including reinvested):
- Total realized capital gains or losses (from selling investments, use negative number for losses):
Homeowner and Itemizing Items
Provide the information when:
- You have a large home mortgage payment (more than the standard deduction minus 10,000), or
-
You live in a state which allows state itemized deduction while using the federal standard deduction
The states that allow separate state itemized deduction:
The states that do not allow separate state itemized deduction:
Generally, you itemize expenses if you own a home, or have large
deductible items such as donations, medical expenses, and state tax paid.
| Filing Status |
Standard Deduction Amount |
| Married Filing Jointly & Surviving Spouse |
$31,500 |
| Head of Household |
$23,525 |
| Single |
$15,750 |
| Married Filing Separately |
$15,750 |
The itemized deduction items:
- Mortgage and home equity interests Form 1098.
- (The principal amount paid for the year OR equivalently the ending principal balance on 12/31/2025 OR the average balance) IF the borrowed amount exceeds 750K. The information can be obtained in one of the following ways:
- Form 1098.
- The final mortgage statement for 2025 that shows the “Interest Paid Year to Date” amount matching your Form 1098. This statement should also include the “Principal Paid Year to Date” amount.
- For mortgage loans with uneven payments, please provide the average balance
by adding the outstanding balance of a debt on each month during the
taxable year that the debt is secured by a qualified residence, and dividing
the sum by the number of months during the taxable year that the residence is a
qualified residence, per Reg §1.163-10T.
Please provide a spreadsheet using the example in “Monthly balance method” in
this Google Sheets doc here.
- Closing disclosure if you bought or refinanced your home in current year.
- Real estate tax (property tax). If it is not on Form 1098, you can get it from your county:
- Energy property based on manufacturer’s certification document.
- Personal Property Tax (car tax), see this link for a complete list.
- CA: The vehicle license fee is deductible, use this page to find the vehicle license fee.
- MA: Vehicle excise tax.
- SC: The Personal Property Tax paid to your county based on your vehicle’s value.
- VA: Car tax is deductible. If your car is in Fairfax county, use this page to get your car tax. In Fairfax city, use this page.
- WA: In most major metropolitan areas of Pierce, King, and
Snohomish counties of Washington state, it is Regional Transit Authority
tax (RTA excise tax)
which is a line item in car registration is deductible, use this page to find the RTA tax.
- Gifts to charity (cash).
- Gifts to charity (non-cash).
- Un-reimbursement expenses related to volunteer work.
- Investment interest (margin interest).
- After-tax medical expenses above 7.5% of your adjusted gross
income. Healthy, high-income individuals should use pre-tax HSA or MFS.
- Prescription.
- Insurance premiums.
- Medical supplies.
- Eye exams.
- Glasses.
- Contacts.
- Co-pays.
- Medical transportation (miles).
- Long-term care insurance premium up to a maximum based on your age:
- $450 for ages 40 or under.
- $850 for ages between 41 to 50
- $1,690 for ages between 51 to 60
- $4,520 for ages between 61 to 70
- $5,640 for ages 71 or over
Other Separately Accounted Expenses.
- Adoption expenses.
- Alimony paid.
-
Moving expenses (for a military move, and move to following states) if you drove, you can use mileage plus hotel; if you flew, the air ticket.
The states that allow moving expenses include:
Child and Dependent Care Expenses
- Name of the provider.
- Address of the provider.
- EIN or SSN of the provider.
- The total amount you paid.
- Please list each child’s name and the amount allocated to them (add more if needed).
- First child’s name:
Amount:
- Second child’s name:
Amount:
Please create a list by care provider, use Google sheet if necessary.
/* Tuition for education does not count as care, but care with incidental education element does. For details, please click IRS Publication 503. */
Education Expenses of You or Your Dependents
- Tuition and Education fees: 1098-T, if box 1 (payments received) is empty also student account statement or bank transfer showing the amount paid).
- Student Loan interest: 1098-E.
- Educator Expense Deduction up to $250 for K-12 teachers.
Self Employed Business (Sole Proprietorship).
Please use the self-employed business expense Google sheet
guide you through the process.
If you provide the business income and expenses manually, here is a partial list:
- Business income (1099-NEC and own records).
- Partnership SE income (Schedules K-1).
- Employment taxes and other retirement plan contributions.
- Auto loans and leases if for business use, see “Auto Loan Interest” section for personal use.
- Auto expenses (see “Auto expenses for business use” section).
- Entertainment and meals.
- Job hunting expenses.
- Lodging.
- Home office.
- Professional dues.
- Union dues.
- Publications.
- Research expenses.
- Safety equipment.
- Self-employed health insurance premiums paid.
- Supplies.
- Telephones.
- Tools and equipment.
- Travel.
- Uniform and cost of cleaning.
- Internet expenses if for business use.
Tesla and Other Electric Vehicle Credit
If your vehicle is qualified, please provide:
- Year.
- Make.
- Model.
- VIN (Vehicle Identification Number).
- Date Placed in service (date bought).
- Price or sales receipt.
- Transferred credit to dealership? Yes/No.
- 2023 tax return (if I did not file your return) for AGI verification. You can use your modified AGI from the year you take delivery of the vehicle or the year before, whichever is less. Your modified adjusted gross income (AGI) may not exceed:
- $300,000 for married couples filing jointly.
- $225,000 for heads of households.
- $150,000 for all other filers.
- Home charge station receipt.
Auto Loan Interest.
You can claim auto loan interest if you satisfy all the following conditions:
- Vehicle is NEW (not used/certified pre-owned).
- You purchased between 2025 and 2028.
- Vehicle was MANUFACTURED in the United States.
- You have Form 1098-VLI from lender showing interest paid.
- Your income is below $120,000 (Single / Married Filing Separately) or $240,000 (Married Filing Jointly).
No tax on tips.
- Work in an occupation that “customarily and regularly received tips” BEFORE 2025.
- Have a valid Social Security Number (SSN).
- Tips must be VOLUNTARY.
- File a joint return if married.
- Income below phase-out threshold ($150,000 if Single and $300,000 if Married Filing Jointly).
- Not in “Specified Service Trade or Business” (SSTB, legal, medical, consulting, accounting services).
No tax on overtime.
- Must be a NON-EXEMPT employee under Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA).
- Receive FLSA-qualifying overtime pay.
- Have a valid Social Security Number.
- Cannot file Married Filing Separately.
- Income below phase-out threshold ($150,000 if Single and $300,000 if Married Filing Jointly).
Trump account (also called a 530A account).
- Who qualifies: Any U.S. citizen child under 18, potentially with a $1,000 seed if born 2025 - 2028.
- Who opens it: Parent/guardian (custodian) files Form 4547 or uses trumpaccounts.gov, then opens a Trump (530A) account at a brokerage once available.
- Where: Major brokers/banks that support Trump accounts (e.g., Fidelity, Schwab, others - check each firm’s implementation starting mid‑2026).
- What it invests in: Only very low‑cost U.S. stock index mutual funds/ETFs, no sector bets or leverage.
- Why open one: To capture the $1,000 federal seed (if eligible) and long‑term tax‑deferred equity growth for a child, with relatively simple, low‑fee investing.
Fun trivia: Form 4547 echoes that Trump is the 45th and 47th president. My tax software does not support the form as of now.
Medical Insurance Documents
- 1095-A if you have bought health insurance from the marketplace (aka Obama care).
- 1095-B, or 1095-C if you live in a state that requires insurance coverage:
- 1099-HC (MA Health Care Coverage) if you live in MA, or equivalently the following information on your insurance card:
- Name of insurance company.
- Subscriber number.
Miscellaneous Documents.
- Last year’s federal and state tax returns (helpful but not absolutely required).
- IRA, KEOGH, and other retirement plan contributions (if self-employed, identify as for self or employees).
- Records to document casualties or theft losses.
- Records for any other expenditures that may be deductible.
- Records for any other revenue for sales of property that may be taxable or reportable.
- Federal, state, and local estimated income tax paid for the tax year.
- Employment taxes and other business taxes paid for the tax year.
- NY and NJ require driver’s license ID, issuing state, expiration date, and issue date, or simply upload images of the front and back of your driver’s license if you have one.
State-Specific Deductions.
- All states: 529 college savings plan. Please list:
- Account number.
- Owner name.
- beneficiary name.
- Amount contributed in 2025.
- MA: rent paid.
- landlord’s name
- landlord’s address
- total rent paid IN the year.
- MA: commuter expense (MBTA, E-ZPass).
- NJ: rent or property tax paid.
- VA: Long-term insurance premium is a state deduction.
Some states impose use tax on items purchased from out-of-state or foreign sellers that would have otherwise been subject to sales tax if purchased within the state.
Please provide the total amount of these purchases, as well as the sales or use tax already paid to another state.
SPECIAL SITUATIONS
ITIN (Individual Taxpayer Identification Number) Applicant (the Person Who Needs ITIN) Only:
Nonresident Alien
- Which country are you a citizen of (China, India, or other countries)?
- If the status ever changed in the current year or a prior year, the date of change (MM/DD/YYYY). For example, “10/01/2025 from F1 to H1B.”
- How many days (including partial days) have you stayed in the US in 2025, 2024, and 2023 respectively? Do not count days when you were a nonresident with F or J visa. You can get your travel history outside the United States from the I94 Website and use the Days Calculator to compute days between two dates.
- Is the number of days in the US in 2025 consistent with the location information provided earlier?
- Have you applied for a green card (i.e. submitted I-140)?
- Have you received form 1042-S?
- Does any wage document include a treaty deduction (we cannot deduct twice)?
- [New client only] Did you file last year? If so, what form was used (1040, 1040A, 1040EZ, 1040NR, 1040NR-EZ)?
- [New client only] In what years have you filed federal taxes claiming US-China tax treaty 20(c)? You do not need to answer the question if you have provided last year’s return.
Foreign Earned Income Exclusion (FEIE) / Foreign Tax Credit (FTC)
You can qualify Foreign Earned Income Exclusion by passing either:
-
Bona Fide Residence Test: To qualify, you must have established a residence
in a foreign country and lived there for an uninterrupted period that
includes an entire tax year (January 1 to December 31). You need to demonstrate
an intention to stay in the foreign country indefinitely or for an extended
period, integrating into the local community and lifestyle. Paying local taxes
may help support your claim, but it is not a strict requirement.
-
Physical Presence Test: You must be physically present in a foreign country
or countries for at least 330 full days during any consecutive 12-month
period. This 12-month period does not need to be entirely within the current
year, but it must include part of the current year to claim the exclusion for
that year. This test qualifies you for a prorated exclusion limit based on the number
of qualifying days in the year.
Additionally, you can generally claim the Foreign Tax Credit for foreign taxes
paid on income included in your U.S. tax return that is not excluded under the
Foreign Earned Income Exclusion.
/* If you have any foreign names or addresses, please provide them in the original language in addition to the English translation. If I am familiar with a standard translation, I will use it. */
- Of what country are you a citizen/national?
- Visa in the foreign country, how long does it need to renew?
- Foreign residency first established (i.e. when did you establish the foreign residency)?
- Your foreign home address including postal code. Own or rent?
- Employer’s name.
- Employer’s foreign address including postal code.
- Employer’s U.S. address if it has one.
- Income earned in U.S. dollars, use IRS published conversion rate if available. The following table is based on quarterly average from the Treasury Reporting Rates of Exchange.
| County |
Currency |
1.00 USD in 2025 |
| Australia |
Dollar |
1.551 |
| Canada |
Dollar |
1.398 |
| China |
Renminbi |
7.129 |
| Euro Zone |
Euro |
0.886 |
| Hong Kong |
Dollar |
7.796 |
| India |
Rupee |
87.133 |
| Japan |
Yen |
149.632 |
| Malaysia |
Ringgit |
4.227 |
- Do you pay income tax to a foreign country on the foreign earned income? If so, please provide a document showing taxable income and tax paid.
- List travel history to and from the US in the format below from 01/01/2023 until now.
- 11/01/2024 - 06/31/2024 in China.
- 07/01/2025 - 07/15/2025 in the US, earned $0.
- 07/16/2026 - 02/19/2026 in China.
- Did you maintain a home in the United States while living abroad?
- If yes, please provide the address of your home, rented or not, the names of the occupants, and their relationship to you.
- The latest year you filed foreign earned income exclusion (Form 2555)?
- Qualified foreign housing expenses:
- Rent
- Utilities (except for telephone, TV services, and internet)
- Personal property insurance (such as homeowner’s or renter’s insurance)
- Leasing fees
- Furniture rental
- Parking rental
- Repairs
- Qualified foreign housing expenses do NOT include:
- Mortgage payments
- Domestic labor (maids, housekeepers, etc.)
- Purchased furniture
- Anything deemed “lavish or extravagant”
If you meet the reporting
requirement,
please provide information on EACH of the accounts as follows:
- Bank name.
- Type (Bank, Securities, Other - Please specify).
- Owner if married file jointly (Taxpayer - the person listed first on the tax form, Spouse, or Joint).
- Address in English including postal code (can use headquarter’s address).
- Account number.
- The maximum value of the account during the calendar year in US dollars (not taxable).
- Opened in 2025 (yes or no)?
- Closed in 2025 (yes or no)?
- Interest generated from the account in US dollars (taxable).
- Dividends generated from the account in US dollars (taxable).
Please convert to U.S. dollars using the end of the calendar year exchange
rate and report in U.S. dollars, you can use the Currency Exchange Rates Converter
from the Treasury FiscalData. These are the selected exchange rates on 12/31/2025:
| US Dollar |
1.00 USD on 12/31/2025 |
| Australia-Dollar |
1.495 |
| Canada-Dollar |
1.369 |
| China-Renminbi |
6.998 |
| Euro Zone-Euro |
0.851 |
| Hong Kong-Dollar |
7.784 |
| India-Rupee |
89.854 |
| Japan-Yen |
156.610 |
| Malaysia-Ringgit |
4.056 |
Gift taxes
| Donor |
Recipient |
Amount |
Reportable |
Taxable |
| Resident |
Resident or
Nonresident |
<= $19,000 |
No |
No |
| |
|
>= $19,001 &&
<= $13,990,000 |
Yes |
No |
| |
|
>= $13,990,001 |
Yes |
Yes (up to 40%) |
| Anybody |
Non-US citizen
Spouse |
<= $175,000 |
No |
No |
| |
|
>= $175,001 &&
<= $13,610,000 |
Yes |
No |
| |
|
>= $13,610,001 |
Yes |
Yes (up to 40%) |
| Anybody |
US Citizen
Spouse |
Any Amount |
No |
No |
Nonresident
(US Property) |
Resident &
Nonresident |
<= $18,000 |
No |
No |
| |
|
>= $18,001 |
Yes |
Yes (up to 40%) |
Nonresident
(Non-US Property) |
Resident |
<= $100,000 |
No |
No |
| |
|
>= $100,001 |
Yes |
No |
Nonresident
(Non-US Property) |
Nonresident |
Any Amount |
No |
No |
- A Resident Received a Gift From a Nonresident
When a citizen or resident alien receives a gift1 exceeding $100,000 from a
nonresident alien or from a group of related nonresident aliens, they are
required to file Form 3520.
However, no tax is due on this gift.
The limit applies individually to each recipient, not to a husband and wife
collectively. For example, if a husband receives $90,000 and a wife receives
$110,000, only the wife is required to file the form, as her amount exceeds the
specified limit.
If you meet the filing requirement, please compile a list of gifts received,
including dates, descriptions of the gift, amounts. Please organize a separate table
for each recipient, listing all entries in chronological order. Example:
| Date |
Recipient |
Description |
Amount |
| 04/15/2025 |
Xiaohua Mao |
Cash |
$80,000 |
| 10/15/2025 |
Xiaohua Mao |
Cash |
$80,000 |
| Total |
|
|
$160,000 |
1 According to the IRS, a gift is defined as:
Any transfer to an individual, either directly or indirectly, where full
consideration (measured in money or money’s worth) is not received in return.
If the transaction is not a gift but rather a loan or a movement of your
personal funds, then there’s no need to file Form 3520.
However, it’s essential to maintain a detailed record
of the funds’ source and their intended use in case of inquiries from the
“big brother”.
If you give a gift of more than the annual exclusion limit of $18,000 (2025),
you must file Form 709. However, you do
not have to pay gift tax unless your lifetime gifts exceed the lifetime gift
tax limit of $13.61 million (2025). This is the total amount of money or
property that you can give away during your lifetime without having to pay gift
tax.
Please provide:
- Last filed form 709.
- Donee’s name.
- Donne’s address.
- Relationship to the donor (if any).
- Description of gift.
- If the gift was of securities, give CUSIP no.
- If a closely held entity, give EIN.
I hope this checklist helps you to prepare your tax documents.
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