It used to be that you could feasibly be very comfortable financially from an operatic career, but there are astronomical expenses. You must prepare in advance to be methodical about keeping account of your money and keeping track of receipts, etc… for taxes and social security in the U.S. I say all this, because I HAVE NOT been methodical, and have paid the price in wasted money and sooo much time!

Nothing is set up for your type of job: forms, programs, everybody, it seems, are set up for someone who lives in one place, and works for a nice big company in one place. Get used to being frustrated, and “playing the system.” Find a good CPA who’s worked for some other singers, and get together with him/her as you start your careers, to get the low-down on how you should prepare your tax stuff, what you can write off and can’t, etc..

MAKE AN EFFORT to put aside a certain percentage of your earnings. You are a free-lance artist. You never know if those next three gigs will get cancelled, you might get sick or damage your voice, and there’s no health plan that comes with the job.

Start paying on a good health plan that will cater to your needs – – make sure it covers things on the road, because THAT’S where you’ll get sick. Nobody but you is in charge of your pension plan! Don’t trust AGMA (the US opera singers’ union) to do anything for you…

I have had problems with the whole tax system, for it is not set up for itinerant singers. This is not the official legal advice of an expert – this is a smattering of information that I have gathered over the years, and the way I understand them. So if you have clarifications or corrections, please email me!!   I am always pleased to get the real skinny on things.

I have worked mainly in France, England, Italy, Switzerland, a little in Germany, Austria, Spain, Norway, Sweden and Portugal. Other than these, I have no idea. I probably am pretty clueless about these countries, in any case! This information is geared towards the American singer, but some things are true for European Union singers, too.  As I now am a tax resident in Italy, my situation is quite changed, so some of this information may now be out of date.  Get the skinny from the IRS site itself if in doubt.  (For example, write-offs!  These were changed under Trump…)

ALLGEMEIN FÜR AMERIKANER

STEUERN

Most of our tax system is not set up for a free-lance singer. Even establishing “residency” someplace is difficult, because most of us are not ever home. See the IRS page on Steuerwohnsitz. Sometimes it will be in your better interests to claim taxes in one place rather than another – some states have a lower (or none!) state tax, and some cities, like New York City, have very high city taxes. Since you are not at home much, why pay all those taxes THERE? Check out the applicable laws, and see what you need to do to fulfill the requirements. The tax system is set up for people living in one place, getting income from one source. So be prepared to be creative with your taxes, and get a CPA who has worked for other singers with international careers.For example, to avoid having to keep each and every receipt of food, etc. there is a book of allowable per diem deductions for living expenses for the military and US workers abroad (and in the USA, at that) for every year. You get your CPA to look up the per diem for the city where you have travelled, multiply this by how many days you were there on work, and voila’ you have your expenses for that period. Ask your CPA or read the IRS website’s very helpful publication about expenses. Die Tagespauschale deckt jedoch nicht die Wohnkosten ab, daher müssen Sie alle Quittungen aufbewahren. Ich bewahre ohnehin viele Essensquittungen und diverse andere arbeitsbezogene Ausgaben auf. Aber ich bewahre alles auf.

Alle Länder der Europäischen Union und die meisten europäischen Länder (und die meisten Industrieländer, in denen Opern oder klassische Konzerte stattfinden) haben Doppelbesteuerungsabkommen mit den USA and with other European countries. This means that if you are a US citizen, you will not have to pay double taxes.  But how does this work for US citizens?  It’s not always clear, and your CPA may not know about this if they don’t work with people who work in Europe. You need to get a form from the Social Security Service that says that you pay Social Security (and thus, taxes) in the United States and give it to EACH job you do. This way, they do NOT take out the extra 15% or so for THEIR social security program. Make sure you get this form to the financial department of a concert venue or opera company as soon as you get there, because once you have been paid, their social security will already have been taken out, and you can not get that refunded once it has been deducted. Tough beanies for you if you’ve forgotten the form, because you’ll have to pay social security AGAIN in the USA when you file taxes. You can not deduct it from your US taxes, because you were supposed to have gotten that form in on time! Don’t leave this up to your agent – check every time at the beginning of a gig, because agents can forget things or make mistakes, and you may need the time to get that form sent from the USA. Usually they will not accept a copy of the form; they need an original, so faxing does not work.  AND – when you get to an engagement, go by their financial office and make sure they have put through your form.  You can not be too vigilant about this – – check out your paycheck and ask for clarification if you don’t understand the different deductions.  I have found out here, years later, that even at gigs here in Italy where I KNOW I turned in this form, they still deducted social security here in Italy because someone didn’t do their job and I did not check my paycheck!

Da ist ein Freibetrag für ausländisches Erwerbseinkommen, as I understand it, that used to be around US$120,000 for 2022 for work done outside the U.S. You have to qualify for it, so check out the IRS Website at the link above. As I understand it (I reiterate – I am not an expert) this means you do not have to pay taxes on that first $120,000 you made outside the USA. You will have paid already what they take out at the source in the country in which you made the money. $120,000 sounds like a lot of money, until you realize what kind of taxes and expenses you’re paying!

The big weenie is that you will have to pay taxes in the USA on the money you earn out of the US over that 120,000$ – again. So much for not being double-taxed. The main scope, though, is to have your expenses abroad bring down your income to lower than that amount. It may not always possible, but at least it’s something to keep in mind when you’re planning your bookings. If you do not claim this foreign earned income exclusion, you will be able to deduct the taxes you pay abroad off of your US taxes. Remember in places like France where you will file taxes also (and maybe be levied even more taxes a little later – read below) that the extra taxes you will pay there will need to be deducted from the NEXT year’s US declaration, because of the timing of their declarations.

FRANKREICH

_{Dies sind Informationen, die ich von der Pariser Bastille-Oper erhalten habe}

Sie sind Künstler. Sie erhalten für Auftritte in Frankreich Geld. Diese Einkünfte unterliegen in Frankreich der Besteuerung. Sie können die Doppelbesteuerung Ihrer französischen Einkünfte vermeiden.

STEUERRECHT UND INTERNATIONALE VERTRÄGE
Frankreich hat mit mehr als 80 Ländern Steuerabkommen unterzeichnet. Jedes Abkommen enthält spezifische Klauseln. In den meisten Fällen hat Ihr Wohnsitzland entschieden, dass Sie Ihre französischen Gebühren in Frankreich versteuern und dass die in Frankreich gezahlten Steuern ganz oder zum größten Teil von den in unserem eigenen Land zu zahlenden Steuern abgezogen werden.

15% Quellensteuerabzug (sofortige Zahlung)
France deducts from all artists’ earnings 15% of gross income, i.e. before any deductions of social security contributions or expenses. N.B- – It is only a first installment. You may have to pay an additional amount later.

JÄHRLICHE STEUERERKLÄRUNG (obligatorisch)
- Obligatorisch für alle Personen, die in Frankreich ein Einkommen beziehen.
-Ermittelt für einen Haushalt
-Es gibt die Familiensituation (Angehörige) an, die den zu zahlenden Steuerbetrag beeinflussen kann.
-Es betrifft nur Einkünfte aus französischen Quellen.
-Anhand dieser Erklärung wird Ihr Nettoeinkommen berechnet.

BERECHNUNG DES NETTOEINKOMMENS
Vom Bruttoeinkommen (Summe der von Ihnen erhaltenen Beträge) werden die obligatorischen Sozialversicherungsbeiträge abgezogen, sofern kein Entsendeschein vorgelegt wird.

BERECHNUNG DES GESAMTBETRAGS DER ZU ZAHLENDEN STEUERN
-der niedrigste Gesamtsatz beträgt 25% Nettoeinkommen
- Die Einkommensteuer ist progressiv mit Steuersätzen von 0% bis ungefähr 58%.
-Bereits an der Quelle einbehaltene Einkünfte werden von der Endabrechnung abgezogen.
-Einkommen außerhalb Frankreichs werden nicht berücksichtigt.

SO ERHALTEN SIE IHRE ERKLÄRUNG
-Vom Konsulat oder der französischen Botschaft in unserem Herkunftsland.
- bei jedem Finanzamt (Centre des Impots) in Frankreich.
-Beim Finanzamt (Centre des Impots) des 12. Arrondissements, 27 bis, rue Meuniers, 75012 Paris.

WANN MÜSSEN SIE IHRE ERKLÄRUNG ABGEBEN?
- Für Einwohner Europas vor dem 30. April und für Amerikaner vor dem 15. Mai.
- Das französische Steuerjahr endet am 31. Dezember.
-Die Zahlung muss innerhalb von 45 Tagen nach Benachrichtigung durch das Finanzamt erfolgen.

WOHIN SIE IHRE ERKLÄRUNG SENDEN SOLLTEN
-To Centre des Impots des Non-Residents, 9 rue d’Uzes, 75094 Paris, cedex 02
-Zum Centre des Imports de Menton für Einwohner von Monaco.

WENN SIE DIE ERKLÄRUNG VERGESSEN ODER ZU SPÄT ABGABEN
-Sie verlieren bestimmte Vorteile, die für fristgerecht abgegebene, unaufgeforderte Steuererklärungen vorgesehen sind, und Ihre Steuerschuld wird höher ausfallen (101 bis 401 TP3B, manchmal mehr). Außerdem sind die Strafzinsen in Ihrem Herkunftsland nicht abzugsfähig.

BERATUNG UND UNTERSTÜTZUNG
This form says ” Ihr Bevollmächtigter kann Sie über die Verwaltungsverfahren beraten. Er/sie kann Sie bei Bedarf an einen Steuerberater verweisen. ” This is the biggest piece of bullcrap I have read in a long time. No agent I know has the time, patience, or the know-how to help you with your taxes in France. I recommend asking someone IN France while you are there for the name of a capable tax consultant that they know, who speaks English. If I find any names or numbers, I will put their contact information on to these pages. THE MAIN PROBLEM FOR US AS U.S. CITIZENS IS THAT THE FORMS WHICH WE SHOULD USE TO FILE ARE NOT AVAILABLE TO US WHILE WE ARE IN FRANCE – YOU WILL HAVE TO WAIT UNTIL THE NEXT FISCAL YEAR TO ASK FOR THE APPROPRIATE FORM. Good luck!

DIE PENSION

Ask your employer about this, so you can get your French pension number. Because you are working in France, you will be entitled to a Frence pension when you’re 65 or so. (I don’t know their retirement age offhand.) If it still exists by then! Anyhoot, it’s good to know that you are entitled to it. I believe this is one of the taxes that you and your employer are paying into each engagement. There are some taxes that are just paid by you, some just paid by your employer, and some paid half and half. I think the pension is the latter. Don’t quote me on it, though.

LES CONGES SPECTACLES

This is lovely little gem of an organization that plans for your vacation money! Your employer pays into this fund that you can then tap into for your vacation money each year. Nice idea. It requires a bit of paperwork, but the dividends are superb.The first time you work in France, your employer and you will fill out a form for the Conges Spectacles. Make sure everything’s correct on it, otherwise you’ll keep getting the wrong name on it, etc and it’s a big pain to change – they are not friendly and do NOT speak English. Your employer will give you the signup form at the end of your job, which you will send immediately to the Conges Spectacles so you can get your Conges Spectacles number.

Your employer will also give you a blue form, which proves that you have worked there and has the hours, etc… Hold onto this until the next April rolls around. You’ll need to wait for the Conges Spectacles (the first time you work in France) to send you your number, then fill out your blue form with this, and send it in after the 1st of April. If they receive it before April, they’ll refuse it. So don’t jump the gun! Also included in your confirmation with your new number will be a sheet asking you how you’d like to be paid. Fill out this form with your bank details, and send it in April 1 with your blue form, and from then on, your Conges Spectacles will be directly deposited in your bank account.

Pretty nifty! I think you’re still supposed to send in the blue forms for every year in April, but I don’t think I have in a while, and I still have gotten payments from them. Hmmm. In any case, they get a copy of the blue form from your employer(s) but I guess it’s better to follow the rules than miss out on your money. Even if you have not known to file in a few years, and get all your information in, sometimes they will pay you, if you include a note telling them that you didn’t know you were entitled to the money! I did that the first time after having worked in France for some years, and they paid me the back amount, even though they are not required to.  Here’s their website (in French). https://conges-spectacles.audiens.org/home.html

 

ENGLAND

If you make over a certain amount of money in England, you will need to file taxes there. You may not end up paying any more money, but you need to file.As an American, you will need to have a work permit BEFORE stepping foot into the country. They are very strict about this, so don’t arrive at the airport or at the train station without it. Either that, or you’d better claim to be there for tourism!

Die einzige Ausnahme hiervon ist die Arbeit für die BBC Proms, eine wahre Tradition in England im August und September. Allerdings erhalten Sie dann einen Brief von den Proms, den Sie stattdessen zur Passkontrolle mitnehmen.