Nonresident Alien Tax Issues

This area of tax administration is complicated, but there are a number of resources to assist institutions in understanding the rules and staying on top of compliance.

College & University Discussion Group

Operated by the University of Tennessee, the Aliens-L list enables campus administrators at more than 700 institutions to share information and tackle everyday problems related to withholding and reporting taxes on nonresident aliens. Just go to the ALIENS-L listserv web site and follow the instructions for subscribing.

IRS Resources

Documents

• New IRS Publication: Publication 1187 (Specifications for Filing Form 1042-S, Foreign Person's U.S. Source Income Subject to Withholding, Magnetically or electronically)
• New IRS Publication on Tax Treaties
• Publication 513 -Tax Information for Visitors to the United States
• Publication 519 - U.S. Tax Guide for Aliens
• Notice 2005-76, Withholding on Wages of Nonresident Alien Employees Performing Services within the United States
• Notice 2005-77, Elimination of Filing Requirement for Nonresident Alien Individuals with United States Source Effectively Connected Wages below the Personal Exemption Amount
• Publication 515, Withholding of Tax on Nonresident Aliens and Foreign Entities
• Publication 519, U.S. Tax Guide for Aliens
• Tax Treaties
• IRS letter on travel reimbursements to guest lecturers (1998)

Forms

• Form 1042-S, Foreign Person's U.S. Source Income Subject ot Withholding (2004)
• Form 1040NR, U.S. Nonresident Alien Income Tax Return (2003)
• Instructions for Form 1040NR
• Form 1040NR-EZ, U.S. Income Tax Return for Certain Nonresident Aliens with No Dependents
• Form W8-BEN, Certificate of Status of Beneficial Owner for United States Tax Withholding
• Form 8833, Treaty-Based Return Position Disclosure Under Section 6114 or 7701(b)