🇦🇺 Australia → 🇺🇸 United States · Tax residency
Tax residency when moving from Australia to United States
Get this right and your money situation is clean. Get it wrong and you can be taxed twice — or hit with a CGT bill on the way out.
Ceasing Australian tax residency is the pivot of any move, including to United States. Australia taxes residents on worldwide income and non-residents only on Australian-source income — so your status decides whether the ATO cares about your United States salary.
The CGT 'departure' event
When you stop being an Australian tax resident, the ATO treats you as having disposed of certain CGT assets (CGT event I1) — a potential capital-gains bill on the way out. You can often elect to defer it (treat the assets as 'taxable Australian property' instead), but that's a deliberate choice to model before you leave, not after.
When do you actually cease residency?
It's based on the ATO's residency tests (your ties, intentions and time abroad), not just your flight date. Getting a clear position — and the timing — is what stops you being taxed as a resident on your overseas income.
How United States taxes you
The US taxes residents on worldwide income for as long as you hold the visa or green card, and enforces strict foreign-account reporting (FBAR/FATCA) — which catches your Australian super, whose US tax treatment is genuinely complex. This is the corridor where pre-arrival tax planning matters most.
Model the CGT departure event and time your cessation before you go. Coordinate it with the date you become United States resident.
Frequently asked
Do I still pay Australian tax after moving to United States?
Once you've properly ceased Australian tax residency, the ATO generally only taxes your Australian-source income. But ceasing residency can trigger a CGT 'departure' event (CGT event I1) on certain assets — model it (and the option to defer) before you leave.
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Educational information only — not financial, tax, legal or migration advice. Fees reviewed 2026-06; verify current rules via official sources before acting.