With the continuous reform of the US immigration policy, more and more Chinese students, scholars and other talents who come to the US for further study choose to stay in the US for a long time. Tax filing is very important for everyone living in the United States, because it is closely related to people's lives. After adapting to work and life in the United States, how to file tax returns has become a major challenge faced by every foreigner studying in the United States. Next, let's talk about how foreigners holding F1 and H1B visas should file tax returns during their stay in the United States.

 

When it comes to tax filing methods for foreigners and non-residents, you must know the SPT (SUBSTANTIAL PRESENCE TEST). This test can directly determine your eligibility for foreign and non-foreign resident status. The two conditions of SPT, 1. You were in the United States last year Stayed for 31 days. You have stayed in the United States for more than 183 days in the past 3 years. Of course, this also includes some related calculations, so I don’t have to count them one by one. If you meet these two conditions, you must be a foreigner Resident (RESIDENT ALIEN) status tax declaration.

 

As an international student holding an F1 visa, the above SPT test does not apply to you, but you must know whether you are an exempt individual (EXEMPT INDIVIDUAL). The conditions that need to be met are as follows, 1. You must be a full-time student. 2 You need and meet to have an F, J, M, Q visa. 3. You must have lived in the United States for no more than 5 years. If you meet all the above conditions, you are an exempt individual. Exempt individuals can use foreign non-resident status ( NONRESIDENT ALIEN) to file tax returns. If you cannot meet these 3 conditions, then you must use the SPT test to determine whether you should use foreign resident status to file tax returns.

 

In addition, visiting scholars with J visas are different from F-1 visas in determining whether they are exempt from personal qualifications. The conditions are as follows: 1. You must be a student. 2. You must have a J visa. 3. In the past 6 years You need to stay in the U.S. for two years in the middle of the year. 4. During your stay in the U.S. for the past six years, the employer in your country of origin must continue to pay you wages. If all the above conditions are met, your tax declaration status will be foreign non-Chinese Resident exempt individuals.

 

Of course, whether you are an international student or a visiting scholar, the prerequisite is that you have not applied for permanent resident status in the United States. Otherwise, you must use foreign resident status for tax declaration.

Here, let me explain the difference between resident alien status and non-resident alien status and tax declaration. If you have a green card, you are a resident alien. If you do not have a US visa, but meet the SPT test, you are also a resident alien. For example, you came to the U.S. through various channels and currently do not have any U.S. status. Then even if you do not meet the conditions for the number of days in the U.S. in the SPT, you must file a tax return as a foreign resident. Unless you can prove your residential address and property The tax home for income and expenses (TAX HOME) is still the country of origin, so you can file tax returns as a foreign non-resident.

 

When filing taxes, all non-resident foreigners (such as foreign students, visiting scholars) should use the 1040NR form to declare. In addition, foreign students and visiting scholars can enjoy tax treaty benefits (TAX TREATY BENEFITS) when filing taxes. The so-called tax treaty benefit refers to the maximum allowance of $5000 for annual labor income. The application period for international students is the first 5 years, and the application period for visiting scholars is the first 3 years.

 

In addition, F1 visa international students, although they start to use Form 1040 to declare tax in the sixth year of coming to the United States, if they can still prove that they are students, they can still apply for tax treaty benefits when using the 1040 tax form to file tax returns. As a visiting scholar, After two years of residence in the United States, he began to use Form 1040 for tax filing as a foreign resident. At the same time, apply for tax treaty benefits for the last year on Form 1040.

 

Non-resident foreigners can only use the single or married tax filing method when filing taxes. This does not include non-resident foreigners who are married to green cards or citizens. When filing taxes as non-resident foreigners, they can enjoy a personal exemption of $3950 It should be noted here that non-resident foreigners cannot use the standard tax credit of $6200, Earned Income Credit and Education Credit to file tax returns.

 

Example: Zhang Sheng is an international student who came to the U.S. with an F1 visa in 2009. He graduated from school in May 2014 and worked in a U.S. company until he returned to China in September. In 2014, he obtained a W-2 form and a 1099- INT form and interest income of $50. According to Mr. Zhang’s situation based on the calendar year, 2014 is his sixth year of residence in the United States. Therefore, he has not qualified for foreign non-resident status to fill out the 1040NR form, and a foreign resident is required Fill in Form 1040 for identity. In this case, Mr. Zhang can enjoy a personal exemption of $3950 and a standard tax credit of $6200. At the same time, because in 2014, Mr. Zhang still has 5 months of school student status, so he can continue to To apply for a tax treaty exemption of up to $5000 on Form 1040, Mr. Zhang needs to declare Form W2, Form 1099-INT, and Form 8833 to illustrate his status when filing taxes.

 

F1 visa international students’ tax returns in the year of status change are as follows: 1. If you came to the U.S. in 2009 or before and changed your status from F1 visa to H1B in October 2014. In this case, you can directly file tax returns using Form 1040, because In 2014, his tax filing status has been qualified as a foreign resident. 2. If you are an F1 visa international student who came to the United States in 2010 or later, they can still use the 1040NR form to file tax returns and enjoy a tax treaty exemption of $5000. Because 2014 is their fifth year of staying in the United States. Even if the F1 visa is converted to H1B, the F1 visa is not affected by the number of days in the U.S., and SPT is not required to assess tax status. In addition, some people ask, in the year of status conversion, Do I need to use Form 1040 and Form 1040NR for mixed tax filing? This method of filing tax returns is more complicated, and the tax form needs to be adjusted in many ways, which is prone to errors or omissions. The accounting firm does not support the use of this tax filing method that does more harm than good.

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