If you are on an F-1 visa, the tax filing requirements for F-1 students are straightforward in structure even when the details get technical: nearly every F-1 student who was in the United States during the year must file Form 8843, and any student who earned U.S.-source income must also file Form 1040-NR as a nonresident alien. This is true even if you earned nothing, and it is true even if a tax treaty wipes out every dollar of tax you would otherwise owe.1Internal Revenue Service. Taxation of Nonresident Aliens Getting this right matters for reasons beyond the tax bill. An incomplete filing history can create problems with future visa renewals and green card applications.
Who Has to File and What
The rule splits cleanly by whether you had U.S. income.
If you had no U.S.-source income during the year, you still file Form 8843 on its own. Mail it to the IRS service center in Austin, Texas, by the return due date.2Internal Revenue Service. Form 8843 – Statement for Exempt Individuals and Individuals With a Medical Condition The form asks for your name, visa type, dates of entry and exit, and the name of your school. That is it.
If you had any taxable U.S. income (wages, taxable scholarship money, and so on), you file Form 1040-NR and attach Form 8843 to it. You transfer wages from your W-2, scholarship income from your Form 1042-S, and any other reportable amounts to the appropriate lines, and you use designated sections of the form to claim any tax treaty benefits.1Internal Revenue Service. Taxation of Nonresident Aliens
Dependents on F-2 visas have the same Form 8843 obligation. Each family member files their own, including children. Skipping the form for a spouse or child can cause that person to be classified as a resident alien under the substantial presence test.
Why Your Residency Status Controls Everything
Tax residency is separate from immigration status. You can hold an F-1 visa and be either a nonresident alien or a resident alien for tax purposes, depending on how long you have been in the country. The distinction decides which form you file, which income you report, and which deductions you can take.
The IRS applies the substantial presence test, which counts days of physical presence in the United States across a three-year weighted formula. Reach 183 weighted days and you are generally treated as a resident alien.3Internal Revenue Service. Substantial Presence Test F-1 students, however, get a carve-out. During your first five calendar years in the United States, you are an “exempt individual,” and none of your days count toward the 183-day threshold.4Internal Revenue Service. Exempt Individual – Who Is a Student
A calendar year counts as long as you were present under F-1 status for even one day. If you arrived in August 2022, that entire year is your first calendar year, and your exempt period runs through 2026. Form 8843 is what preserves this exemption. Fail to file it on time and the IRS could treat you as a resident alien, which broadens your obligations to worldwide income.2Internal Revenue Service. Form 8843 – Statement for Exempt Individuals and Individuals With a Medical Condition
During the exempt period, you file Form 1040-NR. After the five calendar years run out, your days start counting, and if you meet the substantial presence threshold you become a resident alien and file Form 1040 instead.5Internal Revenue Service. Determining an Individuals Tax Residency Status
Getting the Tax ID Number You Need to File
You need a Social Security Number or an Individual Taxpayer Identification Number to file. Which one depends on whether you have work authorization.
If you have a job offer or current employment, apply for an SSN at your local Social Security Administration office. You cannot apply without employment authorization. Bring your unexpired passport with a valid visa, your Form I-94, your Form I-20, and a letter from your designated school official confirming enrollment and employment.6Social Security Administration. International Students and Social Security Numbers
If you have no work authorization and are not eligible for an SSN, apply for an ITIN using Form W-7. The form is normally submitted with the tax return it supports, but F-1 students who need an ITIN solely to file Form 8843 can qualify for an exception that lets them apply without attaching a return. Your designated school official can provide a certification letter that substitutes for mailing your original passport to the IRS.7Internal Revenue Service. Instructions for Form W-7
What Income You Report
As a nonresident alien, you are taxed only on U.S.-source income. Money earned in your home country, interest from foreign bank accounts, and other foreign income are generally not reportable on your U.S. return.
Wages
Wages from authorized employment are fully taxable. That includes on-campus work, Curricular Practical Training, and Optional Practical Training. Your employer issues Form W-2 showing wages and taxes withheld.8Internal Revenue Service. About Form W-2, Wage and Tax Statement
Scholarships, Fellowships, and Grants
Amounts used for tuition and required course materials such as textbooks and lab fees are generally tax-free. Any portion covering room, board, travel, or other living expenses is taxable. The default federal withholding rate on taxable scholarship amounts paid to nonresident aliens is 30%, but F-1 students qualify for a reduced 14% rate when the payments come from a qualifying scholarship or organization.9Internal Revenue Service. Withholding Federal Income Tax on Scholarships, Fellowships and Grants Paid to Nonresident Aliens A treaty can reduce this further. Your school reports taxable amounts on Form 1042-S.
U.S. Bank Interest
Interest on deposits in U.S. banks, savings institutions, and credit unions is generally not taxable for nonresident aliens, provided it is not connected to a U.S. trade or business.10Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 26 U.S. Code 871 – Tax on Nonresident Alien Individuals Give your bank a Form W-8BEN so they do not withhold tax on it. The interest may still appear on a Form 1042-S for reporting purposes.
Capital Gains
If you buy and sell stocks or other investments while here, nonresident alien students present in the U.S. for 183 days or more during the calendar year face a flat 30% tax on U.S.-source capital gains (or a lower treaty rate). These gains go on Schedule NEC of Form 1040-NR, not Schedule D.11Internal Revenue Service. The Taxation of Capital Gains of Nonresident Students, Scholars and Employees of Foreign Governments Exempt days still count for this 183-day physical presence threshold, so most F-1 students in their exempt period who invest will meet it.
The FICA Exemption
While you remain a nonresident alien, wages from authorized F-1 employment are not subject to the 6.2% Social Security tax or the 1.45% Medicare tax. The employment must be the type your visa allows: on-campus work, CPT, or OPT.12Internal Revenue Service. Foreign Student Liability for Social Security and Medicare Taxes
Once you become a resident alien for tax purposes, this exemption ends. A separate exemption under IRC Section 3121(b)(10) may still protect on-campus work at the school where you are enrolled at least half-time, when the employment is incidental to your studies. Off-campus employment and OPT positions with outside employers do not qualify for this backup exemption.12Internal Revenue Service. Foreign Student Liability for Social Security and Medicare Taxes
If your employer mistakenly withheld FICA during your exempt period, ask the employer to refund it first. If they will not, file Form 843 with Form 8316 directly with the IRS to claim it yourself.13Internal Revenue Service. Form 8316 – Information Regarding Request for Refund of Social Security Tax Erroneously Withheld on Wages Received by a Nonresident Alien on an F, J, or M Type Visa
Deductions You Can Actually Take
Nonresident aliens cannot claim the standard deduction. If you have heard that most filers just take the standard deduction, that shortcut is not available to you.14Internal Revenue Service. Nonresident – Figuring Your Tax The one exception is students and business apprentices from India, who may claim the standard deduction under Article 21 of the U.S.-India tax treaty.
Everyone else itemizes or takes nothing. Itemized deductions available to nonresident aliens with effectively connected income are limited to:
- State and local income taxes withheld from your wages, reported on Schedule A of Form 1040-NR.
- Charitable contributions to qualifying U.S. nonprofit organizations.
- Casualty and theft losses from a federally declared disaster.
The math may not be dramatic on modest wages, but ignoring it entirely leaves money on the table if you paid state income taxes during the year.
Tax Treaties
The United States has income tax treaties with dozens of countries, and many contain specific student provisions that can reduce or eliminate tax on wages, scholarship income, or both. Whether you qualify and how much you can exclude depends entirely on your country’s treaty. There is no universal student exemption.
To use a treaty on wages during the year, submit Form 8233 to your employer so they stop withholding federal income tax on the covered portion.15Internal Revenue Service. Instructions for Form 8233 Your employer forwards the form to the IRS. If you missed that step and tax was withheld anyway, claim the treaty benefit on your annual return to get the money back.
On Form 1040-NR, you must identify the treaty country and the specific article number. Citing the wrong article or claiming a benefit that does not exist in your country’s treaty is a common audit trigger. Read the actual treaty text for your country on the IRS website rather than relying on classmates whose countries have different provisions. And claiming a treaty benefit does not exempt you from filing. Even if a treaty erases every dollar of tax, you still file Form 1040-NR to report the income and claim the exclusion, and you still file Form 8843.
Deadlines and How to File
If you received wages subject to U.S. income tax withholding, your filing deadline is April 15.16Internal Revenue Service. When to File If that date falls on a weekend or holiday, it shifts to the next business day. Nonresident aliens who had no wages subject to withholding but still owe tax generally have until June 15. An extension pushes the filing deadline to October 15 but does not extend time to pay.17Internal Revenue Service. Get an Extension to File Your Tax Return
Form 1040-NR can now be e-filed through tax preparation software or a paid preparer.18Internal Revenue Service. 2025 Instructions for Form 1040-NR Several commercial products designed for nonresident aliens support this. If you file on paper, confirm the mailing address in the current year’s Form 1040-NR instructions and send by certified mail with return receipt requested.
Keep your passport, I-94 arrival record, all Forms I-20, W-2s, 1042-S forms, 1099s, and copies of any Form 8233 you gave an employer. The IRS requires records supporting your return for at least three years from the filing date.19Internal Revenue Service. How Long Should I Keep Records
What Late or Missing Filings Cost You
The failure-to-file penalty is 5% of the unpaid tax for each month your return is late, up to a maximum of 25%. If you are more than 60 days late, the minimum penalty is the lesser of $525 or 100% of the tax you owe.20Internal Revenue Service. Failure to File Penalty A separate failure-to-pay penalty of 0.5% per month accrues on any unpaid balance.
Beyond the money, federal tax returns are part of the record reviewed in visa renewals and adjustment-of-status applications. Gaps, especially missing Form 8843 filings, can raise questions about whether you maintained lawful status. Cleaning up years of unfiled returns after the fact is far harder than filing correctly each year, even in years you owed nothing.
What Changes After Five Years
Once the five-calendar-year exemption expires, your days of physical presence start counting toward the substantial presence test. If you are still in the U.S. on F-1 status, common for longer graduate programs or on OPT, you will likely meet the 183-day threshold and become a resident alien. That means Form 1040 instead of Form 1040-NR, worldwide income on the return, and the loss of the nonresident FICA exemption on off-campus employment. The year your status flips is a dual-status year with its own set of rules.21Internal Revenue Service. Taxation of Dual-Status Individuals
State Taxes
Federal filing is only part of the picture. State residency rules are independent of federal rules, so you can be a nonresident alien for federal purposes but a state tax resident based on how long you lived there. Wages earned in a state with an income tax will show state withholding on your W-2, and you report the income on that state’s nonresident or part-year resident form. A handful of states have no income tax at all. Because rules vary widely, check the tax authority website for any state where you worked or lived during the year.