Federal 2011: Foreign Rental Property Furnishings and Depreciation Methods
Updated: 2/20/2013
Article ID: SLN60700
Taxpayers, who have rental properties in foreign countries, may have different ways to depreciate those property assets than for rental properties located in the U.S.
Certain customers, who chose the “ALT” depreciation method for foreign “rental property furnishing” type assets they placed in service during 2011, may have filed an incorrect tax return.
TurboTax has fixed this issue.
How to tell if you may be impacted
You may be affected if ALL of the following are true:
- You filed a 2011 federal tax return prior to January 26, 2012 AND
- You filed a Schedule E for your rental property located outside the United States AND
- In TurboTax interview, you placed a “rental property furnishing” type asset into service during 2011 AND
- You chose the “ALT” depreciation method for this asset
If you are affected, you may have underpaid your federal tax. You may need to amend your federal tax return. Your state return may also be affected and if so, you will need to amend it.
You can make the corrections yourself.
- To do it yourself, please follow these step-by-step instructions on:
- Amending your federal return and
- Amending your state return.
- After you make the changes to your tax return, you will need to mail a copy of:
- Your federal amended return to the Internal Revenue Service and
- Your state amended return to your state tax authority, if your state return is affected.
- Your printed return(s) will include instructions on how and where to mail it.
Or let us do the work for you.
- Please download and print this Authorization Form.
- Complete the form and fax it to us at the number printed at the top of the form.
- A TurboTax representative will contact you (within 15 days) when your corrected return is ready to be securely emailed back to you.
- You can print, sign, and mail the corrected return to the Internal Revenue Service and to your state tax authority if your state return is affected.
