Alfred Christopher Morgan, T. C. Sum. Op. 2022-10, filed 6/22/23, caps a busy day for this blogger with his successful defense of his Section 911 foreign earned income exclusion. Alf spent the year at issue in The Kingdom, controlling the quality of the Saudi Arabian National Guard’s chopperjockies as employee of a US contractor. And Alf put in the requisite 330 days outside the Land of the Free, although his testimony and his belated Form 2555 didn’t precisely jibe.

Alf kept his home in GA, but his adult,  non-dependent daughter lived there. He kept his US bank account, because that’s how he got paid. He had US health insurance (as retired military), but also got Saudi coverage.

He and his fellow contractors did travel a wee bit. “On the weekends, which are Fridays and Saturdays, he typically traveled with other contractors to places including South Africa, Bahrain, and Dubai to partake in recreational activities that are otherwise forbidden in Saudi Arabia.” T. C. Sum. Op.2022-10, at p. 3. Roger that.

But for the rest, he rarely visited The Land of the Free, and his activities were extensively local in The Kingdom.

Judge Wells: ” On the basis of the record before us, we conclude that petitioner had stronger domestic ties to Saudi Arabia than he did to the United States in[year at issue]. His community involvement and recreational activities in Saudi Arabia were relatively significant in comparison with those in the United States, and overall, most of his time had been spent in Saudi Arabia. He dedicated much of his free time in Saudi Arabia to serving as the president of a local social club and organizing charitable events such as food and clothing drives in order to benefit the local community.  These charitable events benefited local orphanages, homeless shelters, and members of the local community who worked at the compound. He also spent his free time frequenting local grocery stores and restaurants,  using the recreational amenities at the residence, and traveling with other contractors from the compound to nearby foreign countries. He had obtained an Iqama, which is a Saudi Arabian resident alien card or visa indicating proof of his legal residence; Saudi Arabian medical insurance; and a Saudi Arabian driver’s license. He also did not seek work in any country outside of Saudi Arabia. Taken together, these facts evidence an effort to create a domestic life for himself in Saudi Arabia. See, e.g., Linde v. Commissioner, T.C. Memo. 2017-180.” T. C. Sum. Op. 2022-10, at p. 8.

For the story of Jesse A. Linde, see my blogpost “The Helicopter Pilot and the Virgin,” 9/18/17.

True, Alf paid no taxes in The Kingdom, but that’s because there’s no income tax; everything is VAT. And he owned no realty in The Kingdom, but that’s because his housing was employer-furnished, just like the military. Alf was engaged to a lady who’d lived thirty (count ’em, thirty) years in The Kingdom, and who ran a local beauty parlor. And his employer deemed him valuable and essential.

Of course, Alf filed and paid late on whatever income he had that wasn’t excludable, so he gets chopped for that.

Alf wins the 911 joust.

Btw, Alf’s social club in The Kingdom, of which he had been president, was the WorldWide Fraternity of Turtles. You know, the amphibian dudes whose home is wherever they are.