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Tax Information for 2011 Tax Year

1. Non-Resident vs. Resident: CLICK HERE to determine your federal tax residency status.  If you have been in the US as an F-1 or J-1 student for more than 5 years (counting the first year you arrived), you are a Resident for tax purposes. If you have been in the US as a J-1 scholar for more than 2 of the past 6 years (counting the first year of arrival), you are a Resident for tax purposes.
   
2. If you are a non-resident for tax purposes for 2011 and you had no U.S. source income in 2011, do not use Glacier Tax Prep to complete your taxes.  Simply, complete IRS form 8843 (found on IRS website www.irs.gov).  Due date:  April 17, 2012.
3. If you are a non-resident for tax purposes for 2011 and you had U.S. source income less than $3,700 (sum of Form W-2 box 1 and Form 1042-S box 2) and no federal taxes have been withheld (sum of Form W-2 box 2  and Form 1042-S box 7),  you are NOT required to file a U.S. tax return. If federal taxes were deducted from your income, you must file 1040-NR-EZ to receive a refund. If you do not file a tax return, you still must complete and file IRS form 8843. Due date:  April 17, 2012.
4. If you are a non-resident for tax purposes for 2011 and you had U.S. source income in 2011 greater than $3,700 (sum of Form W-2 box 1 and Form 1042-S box 2) or federal taxes have been withheld (sum of Form W-2 box 2 and Form 1042-S box 7), obtain a Glacier Tax Prep password to use the software to complete your taxes. You must file your U.S. tax return on form 1040NR-EZ or 1040NR and complete IRS form 8843. Due date:  April 17, 2012.
5. If you are a resident for tax purposes for 2011, you cannot use Glacier Tax Prep to complete your taxes.  You must file your taxes on IRS form 1040 or 1040A.  You are encouraged to seek assistance from a tax advisor. Due date:  April 17, 2012.
6. If you had taxable income for Pennsylvania (Box 15 on Form W-2 is PA and Box 16 is not zero), you must file a PA-40 tax return by April 17, 2012.  Do not submit Form 1042-S with your PA-40 tax return.  If you had taxable income for another state (Box 16 on Form W-2 is not zero and Box 15 is other than PA), you may also need to file a return for that state.  Check with that state’s tax department for guidance.
7. If you had taxable income for the City of Bethlehem (Box 20 on Form W-2 is BETHLEHEM and Box 18 is not zero), you must file a Bethlehem tax return by April 17, 2012.  Do not submit Form 1042-S with your Bethlehem tax return.  If you had taxable income for another locality (Box 18 is not zero and Box 20 is other than BETHLEHEM), you may also need to file a return for that locality.  Check with the tax offices in that locality for more information.
8. If you are a non-resident for federal tax purposes, the VITA site contacts are available to meet with you by appointment to review your completed Federal Tax forms. 
   • Gisela Nansteel (gmn0@lehigh.edu)
   • Kathleen Miller (kjm4@lehigh.edu)
   • Debra Burkholder (deb310@lehigh.edu)
9. Forms are available online:
   • IRS Forms
     
   • 8843
   • 1040NR (1040NR INSTRUCTIONS) 
     
   • 1040NR-EZ (1040NR-EZ INSTRUCTIONS)
     
   • 1040 (1040 INSTRUCTIONS)
   • Pennsylvania PA-40 forms and instructions
   • PA-40 Form
   • PA-40 EXAMPLE
     
   • Bethlehem Forms
   • Local Tax Form
   • US Tax Guide For Aliens
     

10. Click here (PDF) to see instructions on using Glacier Tax Prep.
11. More Tax Information Resources