Your Tax Obligations in the US (F and J visa holders)

If you are on an F or J visa (including F-2 and J-2), United States law requires that you complete and submit tax return forms for each year that you reside in the United States, whether or not you have earned income. For 2005, the forms must be submitted to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) by April 15, 2006. If you were present in the United States for even one day in the year 2005, you must submit a tax return.



The information detailed below is for F and J visa holders who have remained in the United States for five years or less. By IRS definition, these people qualify for non-resident status when filing their taxes. For F visa holders who have been in the United States for more than 5 calendar years, the IRS may consider you as residents (even though you are not a resident by immigration (INS) standards; that is you do not have a green card). Please consult the information sheet we have attached called “The Substantial Presence Test” to learn if you are considered a nonresident alien or a resident alien by the IRS. This information has been extracted from the National Association of Foreign Student Advisor’s 1997 “US Federal Income Tax Guide for International Students and Scholars” and from the Internal Revenue Service’s “Foreign Student Text.” For more complete information on the Substantial Presence Test, please consult IRS Publication 519-US Tax Guide For Aliens. If you pass the Substantial Presence Test, you must file your taxes as a resident of the United States and must use Form 1040EZ, 1040A or 1040. These forms may be obtained at your local post office or library. H-1 and H-4 visa holders should file as residents.



Non-resident (as defined above) students and dependents with any taxable U.S. income must file a form 1040NR or 1040NR-EZ. Also, anyone whose income is not taxable due to treaty exemption must file the 1040NR or 1040NR-EZ in addition to the 8243, which should be filed with your employer. See Publication 901, “US Tax Treaties,” for information about whether your country has tax agreements with the U.S. In some cases the treaty will explain that certain types of income are taxed only in the person'’ country of legal residence (home country). Also, students are generally exempt from tax on remittances (including scholarships and fellowship grants) received from abroad for study and living costs.



Scholarships or Fellowships from the U.S. are tax-free if they are used under the terms of the grant for university tuition, fees, books, supplies, and equipment, which are required for courses at the educational institution. The portions of the scholarship or fellowship from the U.S. that is used for other expenses, such as room and board and travel are taxable.



So whether a scholarship or fellowship is taxable depends on its source and its use under the terms of the grant.



Interest Income (interest on bank deposits, certificates on deposit, savings bonds, deposits in credit unions) is not subject to U.S. tax if received by a nonresident alien.



ALL non-resident (as defined above) F-1 and J-1 students and F-2 or J-2 dependents are required to submit Form 8843 “Statement for Exempt Individuals,” whether or not you have income to declare. Each individual is required to fill out an 8843 (even dependents).



If you are a non-resident alien by IRS definition, follow these directions to file your taxes:



A.Pick up a Form 8843 (ALL students) and a Form 1040NR or 1040NR-EZ (only if you have income to declare). Also, if you do not have a social security number or ITIN number, you must fill out a W-7 form to send with your 8843. (If you have dependents, you must use the regular Form 1040NR . If you don’t have dependents, you should use the Form 1040NR-EZ, which is much easier to fill out.) We have a limited supply of these forms. They will be given out on a first-come, first-served basis. You may also obtain the forms by calling the IRS’ forms order line at 1 800 TAX FORM (which is 1 800 829-3676). Remember to order a Form 1040NR or 1040NR-EZ, a Form 8843, a copy of Publication 519 “US Tax Guide for Aliens,” and a copy of Publication 901, “US Tax Treaties.” You may also download these forms and publications from the IRS’ website at

http://www.irs.ustreas.gov/prod/forms_pubs/index.html.