Index
Employment & Social Security Numbers
Tax Filing Requirements
US Tax Guide for International Students, Professors, Teachers, & Researchers
Tax Treaties
Dependents
ITIN
Filing Deadlines
Tax Forms and Resources
Where to Get Help
Employment & Social Security Numbers
International students indicate on the Form I-20 that they already have support money and will not need employment. Do not count on employment to support your studies. Off-campus employment is illegal during your first nine months in student status. However, you may work on campus if jobs are available. You first must obtain a valid social security number. If you were assigned a temporary 999-99-XXXX number for use at Sinclair, you cannot use that number for employment.
To obtain a US social security number, you must be in valid F1 nonimmigrant status. You may apply at the Social Security Administration office, which is located in the federal building on the corner of Perry and Third streets. The official address is 200 W. Second St., Dayton, OH 45402. It is the brown highrise building with a US post office branch on the first floor, which is diagonally across Third St. from Sinclair's campus.
You will need to bring the following information with you when you apply for the social security number.
passport
I-94 card
I-20 form
letter from the foreign student advisor verifying that you are eligible for employment at Sinclair
You will receive your social security number card in the mail in approximately 7-10 business days. If you wish to use your social security number instead of the 999-99-XXXX assigned to you at Sinclair, bring your card and photo ID with you to the office of Registration & Student Records. You must complete a social security number correction form and present it at the counter along with your card and photo ID.
You must have a social security number to file a federal tax return for a refund of taxes to you.
U.S. federal law requires that 30% of the money earned by students on F1 status be paid to the federal government in the form of federal income tax. The state and local governments will take an additional percentage! If you work at Sinclair Community College, the College will deduct 30% of your hourly wage rate for US federal taxes. Additional state and local taxes also will be withheld. Some countries have tax treaties with the US government, which enables F1 students to recover some or all of the federal taxes. But you must file the correct tax return by April 15!
If you worked in the US....
All F1 students who work in the U.S. are required to file the federal tax form 1040 NR or form 1040 NR EZ each year that they lived in the U.S. Do not file tax form 1040 or 1040EZ. These forms are not the same and may not be used by F1, F2, M1, M2, J1, or J2 nonimmigrant visa status holders.
If you were employed either at Sinclair or off campus, around January 31 of the next year you will receive a form W2 from each one of your employers. You must keep any former employers and your current employer aware of your current mailing address so that they may send you your W2 forms. You also will receive from Sinclair a form 1042S. You will need the W2 and the 1042S to file your tax returns.
Keep the Office of Registration & Student Records informed of your current mailing address too. Also, even if you did not work but you received a scholarship from Sinclair, the College will send you a form 1042s. You will need this form to file your taxes.
If you did NOT work in the US....
You still must file form 8843 each year that you are in the US.
J1 Scholars and Exchange Visitors:
All J1 and J2 exchange visitors are required to file IRS form 8843 each year. J1 status visitors who were employed also are required to file form 1040 NR-EZ or 1040 NR. Please keep Sinclair informed of your address so that we keep you informed of international student tax changes and requirements.
Some countries have made tax treaties with the U.S. If your country's government has such a tax treaty, you may be eligible for a refund of some or all of your federal tax dollars. Publication 901, U.S. Tax Treaties
You also may be eligible to claim your children as tax deductions. To do so, your children will need to obtain an individual tax identification number (ITIN). At this time, persons on F2 status are not eligible for social security numbers. Spouses will be able to obtain the ITIN.
To apply for an ITIN, a person must first apply for a social security number and be denied. Obtain a letter of denial for the social security number. Then apply at the IRS for an ITIN using IRS form W-9.
The forms 1040 NR-EZ or 1040 NR and form 8843 must be posted marked/filed by April 15 before midnight..
Those international students who did NOT earn US income have until June 15 to file form 8843.
All IRS (U.S. Internal Revenue Service) tax forms and publications may be ordered by calling 1-800-829-3676 or printed from the IRS forms web site. If you call for forms, be certain to call before January for the fastest response. Otherwise, the telephone number is likely to be busy!
You will need Adobe Acrobat Reader 3.0 or higher to view and/or print forms from the office of Registration & Student Records.
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Federal Tax Returns: |
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Form 8843 |
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Form W-9 Request for Individual Tax Payer Identification Number (ITIN) |
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Instruction Booklets: |
No one at Sinclair can prepare your tax forms for you. You may be able to find assistance completing your form 1040 NR-EZ at the Dayton office of the Internal Revenue Service, 200 West Second St, Dayton, Ohio 45402. It is located inside the US Federal Building (brown high rise at the corner of Perry St. and Third St. diagonally across the street from Sinclair's campus).
Also, look in the Yellow Pages under Tax Preparation or Certified Public Accountants for companies such as H&R Block. Or you may purchase a tax preparation software. Sinclair does not endorse any specific tax preparation service or software.
Tax Sites' Tax and Accounting Directory
H&R Block
Kiplinger's Tax Cut software
TurboTax Intuit
