U.S. taxes for people and companies arriving from abroad

Two groups, each with its own questions:

• Foreign nationals living or working in the U.S. on a visa, newly arrived, or splitting time between countries. Start with foreign nationals and tax residency.
• Foreign companies selling into Texas, hiring here, or opening a U.S. subsidiary. Start with foreign companies.

Both often need treaty benefits looked at, and companies usually need a U.S. bank account.

Some people belong to both groups at once: a professional who moved to Houston for work and still owns a company back home, or a founder who relocated to run a new U.S. subsidiary. Their personal and company questions are handled together, so the two sets of returns agree.

Because she made it herself. Blaga Veleva earned an MBA in Accounting from the University of National and World Economy in Sofia, Bulgaria, then a Master's in Accounting from Sam Houston State University, building her U.S. accounting foundation after training abroad. She went on to work as a controller for an industrial energy company and has led Tax & Business Solutions for more than 17 years. Clients arriving from elsewhere get someone who knows what is unfamiliar about U.S. rules, because it was once unfamiliar to her too.

• Cross-border tax planning, so income is not taxed twice where a treaty or credit prevents it.
• U.S. tax compliance: the federal returns and Texas filings that apply to you.
• Tax residency determination: resident, nonresident, or dual-status for the year.
• Treaty benefits: whether a tax treaty lowers U.S. tax or withholding, and how to claim it.
• U.S. market expansion support: entity choice, Texas registration, registered agent and bank account.

Not for individuals. "Texas does not have a personal income tax," says the Texas Comptroller (Texas Comptroller), so a foreign national living in Houston usually deals with federal tax only. Companies are different: the Secretary of State notes that non-U.S. entities doing business in Texas "are subject to state franchise tax and federal income tax on certain income" (Texas SOS).

To be clear about scope: the firm is not an IRS Certifying Acceptance Agent for ITIN applications, does not offer foreign bank account (FBAR) or FATCA reporting as a service, and does not handle immigration matters. Visa questions belong with an immigration attorney. If your situation touches one of these, say so at the free consultation and you will get a straight answer about what the firm can and cannot do.

With a free consultation, in person on FM 1960 West or by phone and video. You describe your situation: when you arrived or plan to, what you earn and where, and what your company does or will do in the U.S. Blaga then tells you which questions apply to you (residency, treaty, entity, bank account, returns) and in what order. Documents travel through the secure client portal, so clients who live outside Houston, or outside the U.S., can work the same way as local ones.