Form 2350 

Department of the Treasury 

Internal Revenue Service

Application for Extension of Time 

To File U.S. Income Tax Return 

For U.S. Citizens and Resident Aliens Abroad Who Expect To Qualify for Special Tax Treatment 

▶ See instructions on page 3. 

OMB No. 1545-0074 

2011

Please 

print or 

type. 

File by 

the due 

date for 

filing 

your 

return. 

Your first name and initial Last name Your social security number 

If a joint return, spouse’s first name and initial Last name Spouse’s social security number 

Home address (number and street). If you have a P.O. Box, see instructions. 

City, town or post office, state, and ZIP code. If you have a foreign address, enter only the city name on this line; 

then complete the spaces below (see instructions). 

Foreign country name Foreign province/county Foreign postal code 

Please fill in the Return Label at the bottom of this page. 

1 I request an extension of time until to file my income tax return for the calendar year 2011, 

or other tax year ending , because my tax home is in a foreign country and I expect to qualify 

for special tax treatment by meeting the “bona fide residence test” or the “physical presence test” (see instructions). 

2 Were you previously granted an extension of time to file for this tax year? . . . . . . . . . . . Yes No

3 Will you need additional time to allocate moving expenses? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Yes No

4a Date you first arrived in the foreign country 

b Date qualifying period begins ; ends 

c Your foreign home address 

d Date you expect to return to the United States 

Note. This is not an extension of time to pay tax. Full payment is required to avoid interest and late payment charges. 

5 Enter the amount of income tax paid with this form . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ▶ 5 

Signature and Verification 

Under penalties of perjury, I declare that I have examined this form, including accompanying schedules and statements, and to the best of my knowledge and belief, it is 

true, correct, and complete; and, if prepared by someone other than the taxpayer, that I am authorized to prepare this form. 

Signature of taxpayer ▶ Date ▶

Signature of spouse ▶ Date ▶

Signature of preparer 

other than taxpayer ▶ Date ▶

Please fill in the Return Label below. The IRS will complete the Notice to Applicant and return it to you. If you want it sent to another address or to an 

agent acting for you, enter the other address and add the agent’s name. 

(Do not detach)

Notice to 

Applicant 

 

 

 

To Be 

Completed 

by the IRS 

We have approved your application. 

We have not approved your application. 

However, we have granted a 45-day grace period to . This grace period is 

considered a valid extension of time for elections otherwise required to be made on a timely return. 

We have not approved your application. After considering the above information, we cannot grant your 

request for an extension of time to file. We are not granting a 45-day grace period. 

We cannot consider your application because it was filed after the due date of your return. 

Other 

Director Date 

Return Label (Please print or type) 

Taxpayer’s name (and agent’s name, if applicable). If a joint return, also give spouse’s name. 

Address (number and street, include suite, room, or apt. no., or P.O. box number) 

City or town, province or state, and country (including postal or ZIP code) Agents: 

Always include taxpayer’s name on Return Label. 

For Privacy Act and Paperwork Reduction Act Notice, see page 4. Cat. No. 11780H Form 2350 (2011) 
Form 2350 (2011) Page 3 

It’s Convenient, 

Safe, and Secure 

IRS e-file is the IRS’s electronic filing program. You can get an 

extension of time to file your tax return by filing Form 2350 

electronically. You will receive an electronic acknowledgment once you 

complete the transaction. Keep it with your records. Do not send in 

Form 2350 if you file electronically. 

If you think you may owe tax and wish to make a payment, you may 

pay by electronic funds withdrawal. For details, go to www.irs.gov/e-pay. 

E-file Using Your Personal Computer

or Through a Tax Professional

Refer to your tax software package or tax preparer for ways to file 

electronically. Be sure to have a copy of last year’s tax return — you will 

be asked to provide information from the return for taxpayer verification. 

If you wish to make a payment, you can pay electronically (see page 4) 

or send your check or money order to the address shown under Where 

To File below. 

File a Paper Form 2350

If you wish to file on paper instead of electronically, fill in the Form 2350 

and mail it to the address shown under Where To File below. 

Note. If you are a fiscal year taxpayer, you must file a paper Form 2350. 

General Instructions 

Purpose of Form 

Use Form 2350 to ask for an extension of time to file your tax return 

only if you expect to file Form 2555 or 2555-EZ and you need the time 

to meet either the bona fide residence test or the physical presence test 

to qualify for the foreign earned income exclusion and/or the foreign 

housing exclusion or deduction. 

All other taxpayers should file Form 4868, Application for Automatic 

Extension of Time To File U.S. Individual Income Tax Return, to request 

an extension of time to file their return.

Note. Do not file Form 2350 more than once for each move overseas. If, 

after meeting the qualifications for the “bona fide residence test” or the 

“physical presence test,” you remain abroad continuously for the 

following tax year(s) and require an extension, file Form 4868. 

▲!

CAUTION

Form 2350 does not extend the time to pay taxes. If you do 

not pay the amount due by the due date (April 17, 2012, for 

a calendar year return), you will owe interest and may be 

charged penalties. For details, see Filing Your Tax Return 

that begins on this page. 

▲!

CAUTION

If we give you more time to file and later find that the 

statements on this form are false or misleading, the 

extension is null and void. You will owe the late filing penalty 

explained on page 4. 

Who Should File 

You should file Form 2350 if all three of the following apply.

1. You are a U.S. citizen or resident alien. 

2. You expect to qualify for the foreign earned income exclusion and/

or the foreign housing exclusion or deduction by meeting either the 

bona fide residence test or the physical presence test but not until after 

your tax return is due. 

3. Your tax home is in a foreign country (or countries) throughout your 

period of bona fide residence or physical presence, whichever applies. 

Additional Information 

Pub. 54, Tax Guide for U.S. Citizens and Resident Aliens Abroad, has a 

detailed discussion of the foreign earned income exclusion, the foreign 

housing exclusion and deduction, the bona fide residence test, and the 

physical presence test. You can get Pub. 54 from most U.S. embassies 

and consulates or by writing to: 

Internal Revenue Service 

1201 N. Mitsubishi Motorway 

Bloomington, IL 61705-6613 

You can also download Pub. 54 (and other forms and publications) at 

IRS.gov. 

When To File 

File Form 2350 on or before the due date of your Form 1040. For a 

2011 calendar year return, this is April 17, 2012. However, if you have 2 

extra months to file your return because you were “out of the 

country” (defined next), file Form 2350 on or before June 15, 2012. You 

should file Form 2350 early enough so that if it is not approved, you can 

still file your return on time. 

“Out of the country” means that on the regular due date of your 

return, either (a) you live outside the United States and Puerto Rico and 

your main place of work is outside the United States and Puerto Rico, or 

(b) you are in military or naval service outside the United States and 

Puerto Rico. If you qualify as being “out of the country,” you will still be 

eligible for the extension, even if you are physically present in the United 

States or Puerto Rico on the regular due date of the return. You do not 

have to file a form to get the 2-month extension because you were out 

of the country. But you will have to attach a statement to your tax return 

explaining how you qualified.

Where To File 

File Form 2350 by mailing it to:

Department of the Treasury 

Internal Revenue Service 

Austin, TX 73301-0045

You can also file by giving it to a local IRS representative or other IRS 

employee.

Period of Extension

If you are given an extension, it will generally be to a date 30 days after 

the date on which you expect to meet either the bona fide residence test 

or the physical presence test. But if you must allocate moving expenses 

(see Pub. 54), you may be given an extension to 90 days after the end of 

the year following the year you moved to the foreign country.

Gift and generation-skipping transfer (GST) tax return (Form 709). 

An extension of time to file your 2011 calendar year income tax return 

also extends the time to file Form 709 for 2011. However, it does not 

extend the time to pay any gift and GST tax you may owe for 2011. To 

make a payment of gift and GST tax, see Form 8892. If you do not pay 

the amount due by the regular due date for Form 709, you will owe 

interest and may also be charged penalties. If the donor died during 

2011, see the Instructions for Forms 709 and 8892. 

Filing Your Tax Return 

You may file Form 1040 any time before the extension expires. 

Form 2350 does not extend the time to pay taxes. If you do not pay 

the amount due by the regular due date, you will owe interest. You may 

also be charged penalties. 

Interest. You will owe interest on any tax not paid by the regular due 

date of your return, even if you qualify for the 2-month extension 

because you were out of the country. The interest runs until you pay the 

tax. Even if you had a good reason for not paying on time, you will still 

owe interest. 

Late payment penalty. The late payment penalty is usually 1⁄2 of 1% of 

any tax (other than estimated tax) not paid by April 17, 2012 (for a 

calendar year return), or June 15, 2012, if you have 2 extra months to file 

your return because you were out of the country. It is charged for each 

month or part of a month the tax is unpaid. The maximum penalty is 

25%. You might not owe this penalty if you have a good reason for not 

paying on time. Attach a statement to your return, not to the Form 2350, 

explaining the reason. 
Form 2350 (2011) Page 4 

Late filing penalty. A late filing penalty is usually charged if your return 

is filed after the due date (including extensions). It is usually 5% of the 

tax not paid by the regular due date for each month or part of a month 

your return is late. Generally, the maximum penalty is 25%. If your return 

is more than 60 days late, the minimum penalty is $135 or the balance 

of tax due on your return, whichever is smaller. You might not owe the 

penalty if you have a good reason for filing late. Attach a statement to 

your return, not Form 2350, explaining the reason. 

How to claim credit for payment made with this form. When you file 

Form 1040, enter any income tax payment (line 5) sent with Form 2350 

on Form 1040, line 68.

Specific Instructions 

Name, Address, and 

Social Security Number (SSN) 

Enter your name, address, and SSN as shown on the form. Do not 

abbreviate the country name. If you plan to file a joint return, include 

your spouse’s name and SSN in the same order they will appear on your 

return. 

Line 1. If you plan to qualify for the bona fide residence test, enter the 

date that is 1 year and 30 days (90 days if allocating moving expenses) 

from the 1st day of your next full tax year (from January 1, 2012, for a 

calendar year return). If you plan to qualify under the physical presence 

test, enter the date that is 12 months and 30 days (90 days if allocating 

moving expenses) from your first full (24 hour) day in the foreign country. 

Line 4a. Enter the day, month, and year of your arrival in the foreign 

country. 

Line 4b. The beginning date of the qualifying period is the first full (24 

hour) day in the foreign country, usually the day after the arrival date 

shown on line 4a. The ending date is the date you will qualify for special 

tax treatment by meeting the physical presence or bona fide residence 

test. 

Line 4c. Enter the physical address where you are currently living in the 

foreign country. 

Line 4d. Date you expect to return to the United States. If you have no 

planned date, leave this line blank. 

Bona fide residence test. To meet this test, you must be a U.S. citizen 

who is a bona fide resident of a foreign country (or countries) for an 

uninterrupted period that includes an entire tax year. A U.S. resident 

alien who is a citizen or national of a country with which the United 

States has an income tax treaty in effect also may meet this test. 

Physical presence test. To meet this test, you must be a U.S. citizen or 

resident alien who is physically present in a foreign country (or 

countries) for at least 330 full days during any 12-month period. 

Tax home. Generally, your tax home is your regular or main place of

business or post of duty regardless of where you maintain your family 

home. If you do not have a regular or main place of business because of 

the nature of your work, then your tax home is the place where you 

regularly live.

Foreign country. A foreign country is a country other than the United 

States or any of its possessions or territories. 

Signature and Verification 

This form must be signed. If you plan to file a joint return, both of you 

should sign. If there is a good reason why one of you cannot, the other 

spouse may sign for both. Attach a statement explaining why the other 

spouse cannot sign.

Others who can sign for you. Anyone with a power of attorney can 

sign. But the following can sign for you without a power of attorney. 

• Attorneys, CPAs, and enrolled agents.

• A person in a close personal or business relationship to you who is 

signing because you cannot. There must be a good reason why you 

cannot sign, such as illness or absence. Attach an explanation. 

Notice to Applicant and Return Label

You must complete the Return Label to receive the Notice to Applicant. 

We will use it to tell you if your application is approved. Do not attach 

the notice to your return—keep it for your records.

If the post office does not deliver mail to your street address, enter 

your P.O. box number instead. 

How To Make a Payment With Your Extension 

Making Payments Electronically

For information on paying your taxes electronically, including by credit 

or debit card, go to www.irs.gov/e-pay.

Paying by Check or Money Order

• When paying by check or money order with Form 2350, see Where To 

File on page 3.

• Make your check or money order payable to the “United States 

Treasury.” Do not send cash.

• Write your social security number, daytime phone number, and “2011 

Form 2350” on your check or money order. 

• Do not staple or attach your payment to the form. 

Privacy Act and Paperwork Reduction Act Notice. We ask for the 

information on this form to carry out the Internal Revenue laws of the 

United States. We need this information to determine your eligibility for

an extension of time to file your individual income tax return. If you 

choose to apply for an extension of time to file, you are required by 

Internal Revenue Code sections 6001, 6011(a), and 6081 to provide the 

information requested on this form. Under section 6109, you must 

disclose your social security number (SSN). Routine uses of this 

information include giving it to the Department of Justice for civil and 

criminal litigation, and to cities, states, the District of Columbia, and U.S. 

commonwealths or possessions for use in administering their tax laws. 

We may also disclose this information to other countries under a tax 

treaty, to federal and state agencies to enforce federal nontax criminal 

laws, or to federal law enforcement and intelligence agencies to combat 

terrorism. If you fail to provide this information in a timely manner, or 

provide incomplete or false information, you may be liable for interest 

and penalties. 

You are not required to provide the information requested on a form 

that is subject to the Paperwork Reduction Act unless the form displays 

a valid OMB control number. Books or records relating to a form or its 

instructions must be retained as long as their contents may become 

material in the administration of any Internal Revenue law. Generally, tax 

returns and return information are confidential, as required by section 

6103. 

The average time and expenses required to complete and file this 

form will vary depending on individual circumstances. For the estimated 

averages, see the instructions for your income tax return.

If you have suggestions for making this form simpler, we would be 

happy to hear from you. See the instructions for your income tax return.