International US citizen earn income

[stech]

I am living outside of USA for the whole year in 2021 as a non-citizen. I am getting paid to a US account by company in NJ. I’ve issued a w8-ben to them in early 2021. Is the tax rate 30% for foreign beneficiary?

can I use TurboTax?

[pk]

@stech ,  need more info 

(a) are you a US Green Card holder  or what ?

(b) your  "employer in the US" is  paying you for work done in the USA or abroad?

(c) Which country are you now  and your country of citizenship?

(d) Were you in the USA anytime during 2018, 2019, 2020 and 2021?   When did you arrive abroad?  Is this your first year abroad?

(e) do you property/ assets etc in the USA and have any other income in the USA ?

Generally if you are working abroad, even if being paid  by an US entity, the income  for US purposes may be foreign ( there are ands, ifs and buts here ).  And if you an NRA ( Non-Resident-Alien), you generally file a form 1040-NR -- not supported by TurboTax  ( SprinTax is a partner  for  Intuit/TubroTax ).

Please answer the above request for information

pk

[stech]

@pk  Thanks for the list of questions. below find its answers

A) I am not a US green card holder nor a citizen.

B) The employer paid me by the work done here in my country, but the business is in NY.

C) I am in m home country and citizen of my home country.

D) I was in the USA from Sept 2016 - Sept 2020 as a F-1 visa holder. 

E) I do not have property in the USA, or any income other than the freelancer salary.

I was still in the states for more than 183 days in 2020, so the tax was different from the situation right now. I am not in the USA for the whole year in 2021. 

Thanks

[LoganathanB]

You were a nonresident for the years 2016 to 2020. 

You are considered a nonresident for five calendar years if you were in the USA on an F1 visa and you were not in the USA in 2021 and therefore continue to be a nonresident alien.

The compensation is not a US source of income as you did not perform any service in the USA. 

If there was tax withholding you have to file a 1040NR to get back the taxes.

US source of Income

[pk]

@stech , agreeing with excellent reply by @LoganathanB ,  and just going over the whole thing:

1. assuming that you were not in USA prior to entering on F-1 visa in 2016, you would have been grated an exemption to counting presence in the USA ( towards Substantial Presence Test )  for five Calendar year i.e. till 12/31/2020.  This also assumes that there no adjustments to your  visa status during those years, nor any application for Green Card, H-1B visa etc.

2. Thus  you were a Non-Resident Alien for the period.

3. Since you returned to your home country before the end of 2020, and did not spend any days in 2021 in the USA, you are still and continue to be a Non-Resident Alien.  

4. In such a situation US will tax you ONLY on any US sourced income.

5. In your particular  case of "Free-Lance" earnings from a US entity is NOT US sourced income for US tax purposes  ( because of  the "Income Sourced  to Place of Work"   doctrine followed by the IRS ).  Thus  you do not have to file a US tax return for this earning.  However, if you had passive income  in the USA-- rent, interest, dividend etc.etc. ) these do not come under the above doctrine  and are therefore  will be US sourced and require  you to file a Non-Resident return ( form 1040-NR ).

Does this clarify your situation ?  Is there more I can do for you ?