Hi everyone,
As the title suggests, I am a US Citizen currently living in the UK since Nov2015. I am here on a Dependent Spouse Visa since my wife is a civilian with the DoD and we are here on orders.
I've been offered a remote position to work for a US Company, and they are willing to bring me on board as a full-time employee. I am not sure if I can *legally* accept this position or if I need to set myself up as a contractor. To the best of my knowledge, the company does not have a tax presence here -- they have contractors that are all UK residents and paid through a payroll company. There's a lot of information out there regarding employer tax presence and employee vs self-employed distinctions. My current plan of action is: if I were a Full-Time employee, I would withhold zero federal/state (I'm lucky enough to be a VA resident
) taxes, pay self-employment and NIC 2+4 taxes to HMRC, and then file FEIE or FTC at the end of the US tax year. Is this ideal/advisable, legal, and/or even possible?
In essence, I am trying to avoid having to renegotiate the offer as it stands to be as a contractor. I would ideally like to be a full-time employee because I will have a US based 401(k), health benefits, and also the fact that I *will* be moving back stateside in 2019. Are there severe differences in tax obligations between being a US employee vs a contractor, billing the US company?
Lastly, since my wife is covered under the NATO Status of Forces Agreement (SOFA), are there any tax amendments that would be extended to me that I should be aware of?
Thank you so much in advance. Expat tax is a confusing nightmare for me
Cheers,
Jon
