US Taxes After Moving From Germany, Switzerland or Austria: What Changes in 2026

When do you become a US tax resident?

You become a US tax resident when you meet one of two tests set by US tax law: the green card test or the Substantial Presence Test. The IRS explains in its introduction to residency under US tax law that a person who is not a US citizen is considered a US resident if they meet one of these two tests, and that US tax law refers only to residents and nonresidents. Immigration labels such as immigrant or nonimmigrant do not decide your tax status on their own.

The green card test

Under the IRS green card test, you are a US resident for federal tax purposes if you are a lawful permanent resident of the United States at any time during the calendar year. This applies to every green card route, including the EB-5 investor green card, the EB-1A green card for extraordinary ability and the EB-2 National Interest Waiver. Resident status under this test continues until you voluntarily renounce and abandon it in writing to USCIS, or until your immigrant status is administratively terminated by USCIS or judicially terminated by a US federal court. Spending most of the year outside the United States does not by itself end it.

The Substantial Presence Test

If you hold a temporary visa, the day count decides. According to the IRS Substantial Presence Test, you meet the test if you are physically present in the United States on at least 31 days during the current year and on at least 183 days during the three-year period that includes the current year and the two years before it. For the 183 days, you count all days in the current year, one third of the days in the first year before it and one sixth of the days in the second year before it.

Some days are not counted, for example days on which a person is an exempt individual, a category the IRS reserves for certain diplomatic and international organisation staff, teachers, trainees, students and certain professional athletes. Even a person who meets the test may in some cases still be treated as a nonresident under the closer connection exception. Whether such an exception applies to you is a question for your US tax adviser, never an assumption to plan around.

What happens in the year you arrive?

The year of arrival is often split. The IRS also describes a first-year choice, under which a person may choose to be treated as a US resident for at least part of the year of arrival. The exact start date of your US tax residence, and how your home country treats the same year, is one of the first points to settle with both advisers, because it shapes how you report income for that year in each country.

Do E-2 holders pay US tax?

Yes, once they are US tax residents. An E-2 treaty investor is not taxed because of the visa itself: tax residence follows the tests above, not the visa category. An E-2 holder who lives and runs a business in the United States will often meet the Substantial Presence Test within the first year, and from then on is taxed as a US resident on worldwide income. A person who does not meet either test may be taxed only on US-source income. The same logic applies to the L-1A intracompany transferee visa, the O-1 visa and the E-1 treaty trader visa. If you are weighing the E-2 itself, our guide to the E-2 visa for Germans, Austrians and Swiss and the E-2 Treaty Investor visa page set out the requirements.

Does the US tax worldwide income?

Yes, for US tax residents. The IRS page on the taxation of US residents states that their worldwide income is subject to US tax and must be reported on their US tax return, and that these amounts must be reported whether they are earned within or outside the United States. For someone moving from Germany, Austria or Switzerland, this means that income from home, such as rent from a flat in Munich, dividends from a portfolio held in Zurich or a pension from Vienna, enters the US return once you are resident.

Nonresidents, by contrast, are subject to federal income tax only on income from sources within the United States, with narrow exceptions. US tax residents also have reporting obligations for foreign accounts and assets: FBAR reporting applies to foreign financial accounts above USD 10,000 in aggregate, and FATCA reporting on Form 8938 applies to specified foreign financial assets. State income tax may apply in addition to federal tax and differs by state, so the state you choose to live in is part of the picture.

Planning a move and want to know which US route fits your family and business? Book a free consultation with Mirabello Consultancy, and we will coordinate the immigration side with your tax advisers.

Which double tax treaties apply between the US and Germany, Austria and Switzerland?

The United States has an income tax treaty with each of the three countries. The IRS list of United States income tax treaties includes Austria, Germany and Switzerland. In German the topic is usually searched as "Doppelbesteuerung USA Deutschland", and the German term for a treaty is Doppelbesteuerungsabkommen, or DBA.

• Germany: the IRS Germany treaty documents list the income tax treaty of 1989 and a protocol of 2006, each with a technical explanation.
• Austria: the IRS Austria treaty documents list the income tax treaty of 1996 and its technical explanation.
• Switzerland: the Swiss Federal Tax Administration lists the agreement with the United States: the income tax agreement signed on 2 October 1996, in force since 19 December 1997, and the amending protocol of 23 September 2009, in force since 20 September 2019.

What does a tax treaty do for you?

A treaty allocates taxing rights between the two states and is designed to prevent the same income being taxed twice. The IRS notes that residents, not necessarily citizens, of foreign countries are taxed at a reduced rate on certain US-source income under these treaties. It also notes that most income tax treaties contain a saving clause, which prevents a citizen or resident of the United States from using a treaty to avoid taxation of US-source income. In practice, this means that once you are a US resident, the treaty does not simply switch off US tax: it works together with domestic rules in both countries, and the outcome depends on your income types and on which state treats you as resident.

Germany, Austria and Switzerland each apply their own national tax law alongside the treaty. Other nationalities follow their own law and their own treaty with the United States, if there is one, so the points below are German, Austrian and Swiss specifics, not a rule for everyone.

What happens to my German pension, Austrian pension or Swiss pillar 3a?

How a German statutory pension, an Austrian pension or a Swiss pillar 3a is taxed after you become a US resident is not something a general article can answer reliably. It depends on the type of pension, on how and where it was built up, on when and how it is paid out, and on how the treaty and the domestic law of both states apply to your facts. Treaty treatment is assessed case by case by your tax adviser. Bring your pension statements, including the German Renteninformation or your Swiss pillar 3a account statements, to the first meeting with your US and home-country advisers.

Is there an exit tax when leaving Germany?

There can be, for one specific group of people. Section 6 of the German Foreign Tax Act, the § 6 AStG, treats the end of unlimited German tax liability, for example by giving up your residence or habitual abode in Germany, as a sale at fair value of shares within the meaning of section 17 subsection 1 sentence 1 of the Income Tax Act. It applies to natural persons who were subject to unlimited German tax liability for at least seven years in total within the last twelve years.

The same section provides that, on application, the tax can be paid in seven equal annual instalments, as a rule only against security. If the departure was only temporary and you become subject to unlimited German tax liability again within seven years, the claim can lapse under the conditions the section sets out. If you hold shares in a company, including your own GmbH, this is a planning point to raise with your German tax adviser well before you give up your German residence. This article does not cover Austrian or Swiss departure rules: they follow Austrian and Swiss law, which your adviser in that country confirms.

Do non-citizens pay US estate and gift tax?

Yes, on certain assets, and the rules depend on domicile, not on income tax residence. The IRS explains in its estate tax FAQs for nonresidents not citizens that nonresident status for estate tax is determined by the decedent's domicile at the time of death. A person who has moved to the United States with the intention of staying may therefore be treated very differently from one who only owns US assets.

For a nonresident who is not a US citizen, the IRS estate tax page describes the estate tax as a tax on the transfer of US-situated property, which may include cash and securities, real estate, insurance, trusts, annuities and business interests, valued at fair market value at the date of death. The executor must file Form 706-NA when the US-situated assets, together with the gift tax specific exemption used and adjusted taxable gifts, exceed the filing threshold of USD 60,000, a threshold the IRS states is not indexed for inflation. The return is due within nine months of the date of death unless an extension is granted.

For gifts, the IRS gift tax FAQs state that donors who are nonresidents not citizens are subject to gift tax on real and tangible property situated in the United States, and in certain circumstances on intangible property. The IRS list of estate and gift tax treaties shows Austria and Germany with treaties covering estate and gift tax, and Switzerland with an estate tax treaty. The Swiss Federal Tax Administration dates the Swiss agreement on estate and inheritance taxes to 9 July 1951, in force since 17 September 1952. Where a family has heirs in two countries, the interaction of US estate tax with German inheritance tax, or with Swiss cantonal inheritance tax, is again for your advisers to assess.

What should you check before you move?

The table summarises, per country, the official starting points for the conversation with your advisers. It is a checklist, not a statement of how your situation will be taxed.

How does this fit into choosing a US route?

Tax should be understood before a move, not used as the reason for one. The right route depends on your business, your family and your long-term plans: a green card route makes you a US tax resident from the first day of permanent residence, while a temporary visa such as the E-2 does so once you meet the day count. Our overview of routes to move to the USA and the USA immigration hub compare the options, and our guide on how Germans become US citizens covers the longer path. If you are also considering Europe or the Gulf, see our golden visa programmes.

Mirabello Consultancy advises on the immigration route and coordinates the process. An independent licensed US immigration attorney prepares and files every petition, and USCIS or the consulate acts on it. Tax questions belong with qualified tax advisers in the United States and in your home country, whom we are glad to work alongside.