Filing Tax in USA
Table of Contents
- As an international student you must fill the 8843 form (irs.gov) even if you are not earning anything. This is not a income tax return, but just an statement to US Goverment for tax purposes.
- To file the income tax, first you need you W2 Form. It specifies your earnings and the tax withheld. You will get it from your employer.
1. Federal
The main form for federal income tax is 1040-NR (irs.gov).
- First fill out 1040 Schedule A for Itemized Deductions. The tax you paid to state won't be counted in your income to compute federal tax.
- Use 1040 Tax Table to compute your tax (irs.gov)
- At the end you fill out:
- 1040 NR
- 1040 V for check payment [Not required if you pay online]
- 1040 NR Schedule A
- 1040 NR Schedule OI
- List of all tax files is at freefilefillableforms.com
After filling out all the forms print them, sign them, and along with 8843 mail them by post to IRS.
If you paid online, you might need to write the payment confirmation code on the top left of you 1040NR.
2. State
For Alabama the main income tax form is Form 40NR. Download the print only version from revenue.alabama.gov.
- See the 40-NR Instructions for instructions on how to fill that form
- At the end you fill out:
- 40 NR
- Schedule W2
Finally, you have to send both these documents and also all the tax documents you sent for federal income tax to your state tax office.