If you are an F-1 visa holder, you are considered a
non-resident alien for the first 2 (non-students) or 5 (students) calendar
years because you will be exempt for the Substantial
Presence Test (SPT) .
Please refer to this US Tax Guide for Aliens for additional information about visa exemptions
and the various filing requirements.
However, since 2015 was your 6th year in the USA, you will be considered a US resident for income tax purposes.
You will need to
enter both the 1042-S and the amount of treaty exemption (if additional treaty exemption is available)on your Form 1040 if
you are a US resident alien. If you received a 1042-S then the IRS has also
received a copy of this 1042-S.
You
will enter the 1042-S income under other earned income (or scholarship income if it is for a scholarship grant)and you will enter the
amount of the treaty exemption (if any available) as a negative amount under other miscellaneous
income. You may also need to attach Form 8833 to your tax return. (Attaching
this form will require that you mail in your return. You will need to select -
file by mail under the file tab.)
Since
Form 8833 is not supported by TurboTax, here is the link to the IRS
website regarding claiming a tax treaty benefit:
https://www.irs.gov/Individuals/International-Taxpayers/Claiming-Tax-Treaty-Benefits
To enter your 1042-S for wages under other
miscellaneous income:
- Click
on the “Federal Taxes” tab ("Personal" tab in TurboTax Home &
Business)
- Next click on “Wages and
Income”
- Next click on "jump to
full list" or “I’ll choose what I work on”
- Scroll down the screen until
to come to the section “Less Common Income”
- Choose "show more",
then Miscellaneous Income
- Choose "Other Income
not already reported on a Form W-2 or Form 1099 "
- Select - "Yes" for
"Other Wages Received"
- After 3 screens, select
"Yes" for "Any other earned income".
- On screen titled " Enter source
of other earned income" - select " Other"
- Input the "1042-S
wages" and the amount on the next screen (screenshot #1)
If this is scholarship income.
To enter your 1042-S related to your scholarship into
TurboTax:
- Click
on the “Federal Taxes” tab ("Personal" tab in TurboTax Home &
Business)
- Next click on “Deductions
and Credit”
- Next click on "jump to
full list" or “I’ll choose what I work on”
- Scroll down the screen until
to come to the section “Education”
- Choose "show more",
then Expenses and Scholarships (Form 1098-T)
- You will need to choose the
student this Scholarship relates to and select "edit"
- Under the Education Summary
page, select "Scholarships and Grants" - edit
- Say "yes" - to
question "Did (name) receive a scholarship or grant in 2015?"
- Enter amount as "Other
Scholarships/Grants/Fellowships (screenshot #2)
You
will now need to enter a negative amount for the treaty exemption under other
miscellaneous income
To
enter your treaty exemption under as other miscellaneous income:
- Click
on the “Federal Taxes” tab ("Personal" tab in TurboTax Home &
Business)
- Next click on “Wages and
Income”
- Next click on "jump to
full list" or “I’ll choose what I work on”
- Scroll down the screen until
to come to the section “Less Common Income”
- Choose "show more",
then Miscellaneous Income
- Choose "Other
Reportable Income" and enter
this information here under other taxable income (screenshot #3)
- You should use a description
related to the tax treaty article exempting the income (ie: China-US tax
treaty, exemption under article 20) and the exempt amount as a negative
number.
