Self Employment Taxes????? Please Help!

I'm working on my tax return and thought I wouldn't have to pay anything, since the income level if you're living abroad is so high. But I am almost all the way through filing on TaxAct and it says I owe $328!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I didn't try and expense anything extra like mortgage payments, because I thought I wouldn't owe, but now should I try and expense as much as I can???

A quick google seems to tell me if you're self employed you have to pay Medicare and SS tax over $400 income!!?

Also, am I supposed to get foreign tax credits? Or exclusion? Is there anything that can help me here?  Geez, my total income was like £2500, this is ridiculous, taking like 10% of my money.

I'm working on my tax return and thought I wouldn't have to pay anything, since the income level if you're living abroad is so high. But I am almost all the way through filing on TaxAct and it says I owe $328!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I didn't try and expense anything extra like mortgage payments, because I thought I wouldn't owe, but now should I try and expense as much as I can???

A quick google seems to tell me if you're self employed you have to pay Medicare and SS tax over $400 income!!?

Also, am I supposed to get foreign tax credits? Or exclusion? Is there anything that can help me here?  Geez, my total income was like £2500, this is ridiculous, taking like 10% of my money.

If you are self employed in the UK there is no Medicare or SS liability, but you do have to deal with the UK NIC etc.

Also you should be able to use the FEIE to eliminate any US tax liability.

It seems there's this self employment tax though!!!

If you are self-employed in the UK, you pay UK NI contributions. Under the totalization agreement, you don't pay SS in both countries.

I had that problem with TaxAct a couple of years ago. It tries to make you pay the SE tax. My solution was to print out the return and manually edit it.

AWESOME!!!!!!!   You have just totally made my day!!!!  So if I just print it out myself, and take out the part where it says I owe, when it gets to the US they won't come trying to charge me?  They'll know about this totalization agreement?   

This is such good news!