Nasty Surprise

This is the kind of stuff I don't want to be reading first thing in the morning:

Americans Living Abroad Get a Nasty Tax Surprise

In an effort to raise revenues, tax writers in Congress added a last-minute provision that retroactively increased taxes for Americans living abroad.

All I could think of was the sight of me writing a check to the IRS for a huge amount of money. (You ever get that feeling of your stomach dropping into your buttocks upon reading something particularly and personally horrifying?)

Fortunately after reading the whole article, it actually is the opposite: The $80,000 tax exclusion has been raised to $82,400. Even if there are increased taxes, it will only be on my income over $80,000. Additionally, I'm not claiming any tax deductions based strictly on living outside the country, which is where most of the increases are to be found.

All OK. Deep breath. Relax.