Two J1 visa during the last 4 years: resident or Non resident for tax purposes?

[ukamichan]

Hi !
I am not sure if anyone would have any answer to my question here, but I cannot seem to find any info about my tax situation, and I am honestly lost ! Here is the situation :
I am a French citizen, and has been an exchange student in the US during Academic year 2016/2017 for 10 months under the J1 "Student, Non-Degree" visa status. During year 2018, I was not in the US and only visited a 2 weeks on ESTA Visa waiver. And in 2019, I conducted an internship from January 2019 to June 2019.

My problem is as follow : my employer withhold social security and Medicare taxes, because according to them I was considered a tax Resident for 2019. When I enter my information on software (like the Sprintax one), they tell me I am still considered non-resident and should get a refund from those taxes. I am a bit lost.

I gathered those information about the resident/Non-resident situation, and I think this is what I understood:
F1 and J1 Student visa : 5 years tax exempt (considered "Non-Resident Alien") stating from the first year of entry (in my case, that would be 2016), not exempt anymore at the start of the sixth year and needs to file as a resident for tax purposes after that (if substantial test passed)
J1 Non-student, such as trainee or Intern : can claim the first 2 years from the date of entry as a non-resident, not exempt anymore at the start of the third year and needs to file as a resident for tax purposes after that (if substantial test passed).

Basically my question is as follow : was my first J1 "Student Non-Degree" considered as a "student" category, thus allowing 5 years of exemption (Until 2021 in my case)? If that is the case, are my previous 5 years of exemption still up to date, even if I had another visa type in the meantime?

Or my J1 "Intern", so Non-student, category from 2019 took over and "reset" it? Or my first J1 visa was considered "Non-student" and I only had 2 years of exemption, now expired, and need to file as a resident (because I pass the substantial presence test?)?

I am not a Native English speaker, an it is very hard for me to understand IRS documents and their nuances !

Thank you for your help !

[ukamichan]

Wow thank you so much !!

This is so helpful ! 

I can now ask my employer for my FICA tax back then ! 

Thank you very much !

[KurtL1]

You must complete a Form 843 Claim for Refund and Request for Abatement and mail in the form with a copy of the W-2 attached.

See How could I issue a refund of social security and medicare tax that were deducted by mistake by my e...

[ukamichan]

Thank you so much ! Very nice of you, everything is clear now ! Thank you !!

[KarenJ2]

You are considered a Resident for tax purpose in 2019 assuming you were in the US 183 days or more during 2019.

You were on a J-1 student visa for 10 months for the school year 2016 - 2017.  You were exempt for the  2 years 2016 and 2017.

You were only present in 2018 for 14 days on a ESTA Visa. These days can be counted.

In 2019 you arrived on a J-1 Visa as an intern. If you are on a J-1 visa for interns and trainees, there is a rule for J1 nonstudent visas called the 6 year lookback rule. This rule says that if you were exempt for 2 out of the past 6 years, you cannot be exempt again.

You need to start counting your US days of presence for the Substantial Presence Test on the day you arrived in the US in January 2019.  If you are in the US 183 days or more, you are a US resident for 2019.

Your employer was correct to withhold FICA taxes.  Please see the IRS Alien Liability for Social Security and Medicare.

However, foreign scholars, teachers, researchers, trainees, physicians, au pairs, summer camp workers, and other non-students in J-1, Q-1 or Q-2 nonimmigrant status who have been in the United States more than two calendar years are RESIDENT ALIENS and are liable for social security/Medicare taxes. When measuring an alien’s date of entry for the purposes of determining the two calendar years mentioned above, the actual date of entry is not important. It is the calendar year of entry which is counted toward the two calendar years. Thus, for example, a foreign teacher who enters the United States on December 31, 2012 counts 2012 as the first of his two years as an "exempt individual."