Filing taxes as a consultant

europe International management consulting MBB salary taxes USA western europe
Recent activity on Nov 07, 2018
4 Answers
2.3 k Views
Anonymous A asked on Nov 06, 2018

Very interested in the tax implications of being a consultant.

Could anyone enlighten me on tax implications of being an international consultant? What happens when you work on a project in a different country from your home office? I know this will vary wildly but genuinely just curious.

I am from the US but live in western Europe. I work and pay taxes in Europe, but I still must file each year with the US (fortunately I don't have to pay anything). If I were working for a consulting firm here in Western Europe and I was placed in a project in the US would that then be US income? The paycheck would of course still be going from my home office into my bank account in that country...but the work would be done in the US. Very curious as when you file taxes in the US as an expat you have to give very precise information about your length of stay in the US/what you were doing.

And when I work in other countries in Europe (within or outside of the EU) do I pay taxes to my home office country no matter what?

(edited)

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Guennael
Expert
replied on Nov 06, 2018
Ex-MBB, Experienced Hire; I will teach you not only the how, but also the why of case interviews

I don't think you have tax attorneys here, so no-one is truly qualified to answer. As a consultant, you won't have much time to figure it out anyway... just hire a professional, your company should be able to help with that.

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Benjamin
Expert
replied on Nov 06, 2018
ex-Manager - Natural and challenging teacher - Taylor case solving, no framework

HI,

I can at least speak for Europe. This depends on the number of day abroad.
Living in France, if I stay a certain amount of time outsitde France, I will receive taxe rebate on my French salary.

Best
Benjamin

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Anonymous replied on Nov 07, 2018

The answer depends on so many factors - your work status, your nationality, the country you are in, the country you are travelling too, etc. I know in some cases, if you spend over X days in another country, you have to pay taxes there too (however, the firm will cover this). I also know some international colleagues need to spend over X days in the UK to maintain their visa, so are limited in how long they can be on a travel project.

In some cases, though, travel can be beneficial to taxes, but I wouldn't be able to tell you exactly what. Advice I received from a partner is that if you travel a lot, you should get an accountant as it could be worth thousands (or in his case, tens of thousands) of pounds.

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Vlad
Expert
replied on Nov 06, 2018
McKinsey / Accenture Alum / Got all BIG3 offers / Harvard Business School

Hi,

In most of the countries, it depends on the number of days abroad.

If you spend abroad too much MBB companies will reimburse you any tax expenses related to that.

Best

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Guennael gave the best answer

Guennael

Ex-MBB, Experienced Hire; I will teach you not only the how, but also the why of case interviews
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