Tax consultant said I do not need to file form 8843

[Anonymous]

Hello,

I was on an F1 visa (with OPT) for tax year 2019. I was working full time at a company as part of my OPT.

I filed my tax returns with the help of a consultant from a tax filing firm who e-filed the 1040NR  for me, but said I do not need to file the form 8843. I had filed 8843 for all my years in the US before that - 2016,2017,2018.

Is this correct? If not, can I mail in my form 8843 to the IRS with a letter explaining my situation?

[SusanY1]

We don't have enough information to know if you need to file the 8843 this year or not - it depends on whether you need to claim an exemption from days counted for the physical presence test.  

You should clarify with the tax consultant to be sure of the reason why the form is not required in this tax year. 

[Anonymous]

Thank you for your response. Do I need to claim an exemption from days counted for the physical presence test just to prove that I was a non-resident in 2019 (& can file a 1040NR)?

Full disclosure - I was on an F1 visa throughout 2019 and for 3 moths into 2020 (at which point I transitioned to an H1B).