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Intro to US Taxes & Tax Filing. Lewis Starkey International Tax Specialist HR Data & Compliance Manager University of Oklahoma Payroll & Employee Services 905 Asp Ave, Room 244 405-325-5563 lcstarkey@ou.edu. Nonresident or Resident?.
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Intro to US Taxes & Tax Filing Lewis Starkey International Tax Specialist HR Data & Compliance Manager University of Oklahoma Payroll & Employee Services 905 Asp Ave, Room 244 405-325-5563 lcstarkey@ou.edu
Nonresident or Resident? • Visa status and years present in US determine residency. • F-1 – NRA if present in US for 5yrs or less • J-1 student – NRA if present in US for 5yrs or less • J-1 non-student – NRA if present in US for 2yrs or less
Nonresident or Resident? • OPT/CPT carries same rules as student status • EAD card carries same rules as student status • All other visa types = RA provided you reach 183 countable days during tax year • Partial years count as full years when calculating US presence
FICA Tax Exemption • Nonresidents for tax purposes qualify for a FICA tax exemption. Social Security and Medicare. • F-1 students: first 5 years of US presence. • J-1 students: first 5 years of US presence. • Residents for tax purposes may qualify for a student FICA exemption based on enrollment. • Undergraduate = minimum enrollment: 6 hours fall/spring semester, 3 hours in summer semester • Graduate = 5 hours in fall/spring semester,2 hours in summer semester
Tax Treaties • If you are a nonresident for tax purposes, you may qualify for a tax treaty based on your country of citizenship. • You will not qualify for a tax treaty until you have a SSN (Social Security Number) or ITIN (Individual Taxpayer Identification Number). • You must sign a tax treaty each year for employment income in my office in PES. • Amounts of the tax treaty benefit vary from country to country.
Filing a US tax return • Deadline for 2012 is April 15, 2013. • Must report earnings from 2012 and federal and state taxes paid. • May be able to get some taxes paid refunded. • Failure to file could come up during future interviews for re-entry to US or during the permanent resident application process.
Who Needs to File? • If you worked and were paid during 2012, then you must file a US federal tax return and Oklahoma state tax return. • Even if you did not pay any taxes due to a treaty exemption.
What Payroll forms do I need to file my taxes? • Form W-2 – shows yearly earnings and taxes paid for tax year. • Form 1042-S – only if you were exempt from paying taxes due to a treaty exemption or received scholarship funds that were taxed or claimed by treaty exemption. Will be mailed the first week of March. • Form 1098-T – not used for tax filing
DO NOT USE INTERNET • Currently, there are NO internet sites that prepare a Federal or State tax return for a nonresident alien. • Turbo Tax, Tax Cut, Tax Act, FreeFile are examples of online sites that are only available if you are a US Citizen or a “resident for tax purposes only.” • If you file incorrectly, you must correct your tax return and pay any penalties, fees and/or interest on any owed taxes.
Year End Tax Filing • Glacier – Prepares your federal 1040-NR form only. $25 fee. • Oklahoma State form 511-NR must be completed on paper. • Federal 1040-NR or 1040-NREZ form can be completed manually by you instead of Glacier. • Federal Form 8843.
Questions? • Email me at lcstarkey@ou.edu to set an appointment. • For questions regarding access to Glacier Tax Prep, please contact Merla Davis at merla@ou.edu. • For tax related questions while in Glacier Tax Prep, contact Glacier’s customer service through the website.
