Hello,
I am trying to understand my residency status for 2024 and was wondering if someone could shed some light on the following.
I am a UK citizen. I first came to the US in 2017 and have been travelling mostly on ESTA. The only exceptions to these are as follows:
- in 2019, from August to September (2 months) I was on a J1 Student non-degree visa; during this time I received no US income, was fully funded by foreign grants, and was told to only file form 8843; I didn't have a SSN at the time so even though I mailed the form I now understand this was likely not recorded;
- since 10/23 I have been working in the US as a J1 Research Scholar, receiving US income; I first filed in 2023 and claimed exempt individual status and tax treaty benefits;
- regarding my 2024 filing, strictly speaking I have spent enough days in the US to pass the substantial presence test; however, I am not sure if I am still able to claim exempt status given the 2 year rule for J visas.
Would 2019 count as one of my exempt years even though I received no US income, did not meet the substantial presence test then (so wouldn't have had to claim exemption), and didn’t even have a SSN? Or would 2023 and 2024 be my exempt years?
Thank you!
