Hi，I am a chinese postdoc in the USA. Previous I was in J2 visa and I came back to china in march 28th,2012. Now I come to the USA with J1 visa again in march 31th,2013. I think i have been in china for a full year(365 consecutive days) and be eligible to use the tax treaty benefit again? Could you give me an answer if in this situation i am eligible to clain tax treaty or not?Thanks very much!

“I am a chinese postdoc in the USA. Previous I was in J2 visa and I came back to china in march 28th,2012.”============Were you a J2 or J1 visa holder???? The J-2 Visa is a non-immigrant visa issued by a consular official at a U.S. embassy or consulate for spouses and dependents ,unmarried children under the age of 21, of J-1 exchange visitors who accompany or later join the J-1 holder in the US.

“ Now I come to the USA with J1 visa again in march 31th,2013. I think i have been in china for a full year(365 consecutive days) and be eligible to use the tax treaty benefit again? Could you give me an answer if in this situation i am eligible to clain tax treaty or not?======== Persons subject to one-year foreign residence requirement and want to change their status including: J-1 visa holders subject to the one-year home residency requirement.I guess you need to talk to an intl tax repre at the IRS.Your time in the US does not count toward the one-year requirement. You should keep documentation of your trips to the US, such as airplane tickets and, of course, copies of entry and exit stamps in your passport, in order to establish the precise dates you were here

Last year i am in J2 visa , and now I get my J1 visa and come back to USA after 1 year. I saw on the website said that if i left USA for at least one year , i can get the china tax treaty based on Article 19.Could you tell me is it correct? And how could i contact IRS?Thanks

“Last year i am in J2 visa , and now I get my J1 visa and come back to USA after 1 year. I saw on the website said that if i left USA for at least one year , i can get the china tax treaty based on Article 19.”==========>If you are a As a research scholar from China with J1 visa your income is exempt from federal income tax for 3 years. It is exempt from FICA taxes for two years.


“Could you tell me is it correct? And how could i contact IRS?”=====> I guess you can visit the IRS website here for your issue; Chat Access

I called IRS that the IRS told me that i am eligible for this tax treaty.However the institution still make the determination that i cannot use it. This is really unfair.What can i do?

"However the institution still make the determination that i cannot use it. This is really unfair.What can i do?"====>I guess you just need to let the school know what the IRS tells you.

I let the school know the IRS determination and at last they said they just follow their determination.I can file tax return myself. So i feel it is really unfair.

Although certain countries have tax treaties with the U.S., the existence of a tax treaty with your country does not automatically exempt you from paying U.S. taxes. A treaty might provide a tax exemption for research scholars from a certain country, but not for students from that country; or it might provide a full exemption for students with fellowships but only a partial exemption for students with assistantships. Some treaties that might have exempted you last year might not exempt you this year. IRS Publication 901 provides a list of treaties and their specific provisions, but interpreting treaties is a complex matter, and no one at the school may not be qualified to interpret treaties for you. Treaties will sometimes allow for partial or even full exemption from paying federal taxes, but unless you are absolutely certain that a particular treaty applies to you, you are safer to let your employer withhold your taxes at the non-treaty rate, and then when filing your tax return the following year, to make your treaty claim directly to the IRS. At that time, if you are eligible for the treaty benefit the IRS will give you a refund. But if you have asked your employer not to withhold because you thought a treaty applied to you, and then it turns out that you are NOT eligible to claim the treaty, you will have to pay a penalty to the IRS. If you are certain that a tax treaty exemption is available to you, and if you hold a job at the school that comes with benefits (for example, a post doc position, or a TA or GA), you must file duplicate originals of Form 8843 with the Payroll Office along with duplicate copies of a statement for the specific section of your country's treaty that you believe applies to you. (These statements are available at the Center for International Services.) If you believe you are eligible to claim a treaty, but your employment at the school is not one with benefits, the school will withhold your estimated taxes at a non-treaty rate and you will have to make your treaty claim directly to the IRS with Form 8843 and the required statement

The fact is that i think they know what i said is totally right and i am eligible for the tax treaty.However they just want to follow the glacier software which count the calendar year as to establish the hometown residency by mistake. However why i have no right to claim the treaty and let them not withhold the federal tax. This thing is unfair. I think one should follow the IRS rule, i have the rights but i have been refused.I cannot do even anything.This let me feel very diappointed.

I understand what you mean;however, it is beyond my decision. Probably you need to talk to the school to make a wise decision.