Physical Presence Test
Category: International · Related form: Form 2555
An FEIE eligibility test generally requiring 330 full days in a foreign country or countries during any 12 consecutive months.
How Physical Presence Test fits 2026 planning
Physical Presence Test sits inside cross-border reporting, exclusions, credits, and information returns that travel with foreign income. For tax year 2026, US Tax Tools treats year-scoped constants (brackets, contribution limits, wage bases, credit schedules) as separate datasets — so explanations of Physical Presence Test should be read with the same year selected in any linked calculator.
Category focus: International. Readers usually land on this page while comparing a paycheck estimate, a credit phaseout, or a retirement contribution room figure that depends on understanding Physical Presence Test first.
Worked example
329 foreign days in the chosen 12-month window fails the test; 330 can pass if days are full days abroad.
Treat the example as a teaching sketch, not a filing position. Change filing status, state residency, or mid-year events and the same definition of Physical Presence Test can produce a different cash outcome even when the glossary text stays the same.
What to watch for
Definitions of Physical Presence Test can differ slightly across IRS publications, SSA rules, Marketplace subsidy worksheets, and state agencies. When two programs both say “income,” confirm which modification rules apply — MAGI for one credit is not always MAGI for another.
Legislation and inflation adjustments can move the dollar thresholds around Physical Presence Test without renaming the concept. Prefer the effective date on the primary source (Rev. Proc., SSA notice, USDA table, or state DOR bulletin) over any blog summary — including this one if a later notice supersedes it.
On a filed return, Physical Presence Test most often surfaces around Form 2555. Read the official IRS instructions for that form for the tax year you are filing — glossary pages summarize concepts; they do not replace line-by-line worksheets.
Next step
When you are ready to model numbers, open the Physical Presence Test related calculator on US Tax Tools. Engines keep tax-year datasets separate so a 2025 habit does not silently reuse a 2026 constant.
Related reading: Tax insights for longer 2026 explainers, Methodology for how engines store cents and traces, and Disclaimer for educational-use limits.