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International Students & Programs Office ISPO
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Resources for Income Tax Return Filing 

 

While the International Services and Engagement Office (ISEO) is unable to offer specific tax advice, we may be able to point you to toward appropriate income tax return filing resources. You can review this page and visit  internationaltaxhelp.ucsd.edu  for additional general tax return filing guidance.  International students and scholars with tax related questions may contact internationaltaxhelp@ucsd.edu  with general questions.

In some cases, you may decide to seek tax advice with a licensed tax professional. ISEO recommends working with tax professionals with training in non-resident alien (NRA) tax regulations.

 

 

All F and J International Students:

File Form 8843 Every Year

All international students present in F or J visa status in the U.S. during any part of 2023, who are also considered to be nonresident aliens for tax purposes must complete and file the Form 8843, even if they had no U.S. source income.

If you had U.S. source income, then you need to file this form together with your tax return.

Please keep in mind that neither UC San Diego nor any of its employees are authorized to offer tax advice, and ISPO employees are not trained on answering tax questions.

UC San Diego-specific instructions on how to complete the Form 8843 can be found here: How to Complete Form 8843.

General instructions on how to file Form 8843 can be found on the following United States Internal Revenue Service (IRS) website: About Form 8843.

 

F and J International Students Who Received Any U.S. Source Income in 2023:

Visit internationaltaxhelp.ucsd.edu

Please keep in mind that neither UC San Diego nor any of its employees are authorized to offer tax advice, and ISPO employees are not trained on answering tax questions.

However, ISEO has put together a useful tax page with general tax advice:

CLICK HERE TO VISIT INTERNATIONALTAXHELP.UCSD.EDU

Attend Tax Workshops

 (Virtual) Understanding Taxes in the U.S.

  • Tuesday February 13, from noon (12:00pm) to 1:00pm, RSVP to receive zoom link
  • This workshop will  provide an overview of basic U.S. tax concepts and processes to help scholars and students anticipate what their tax liability will be, as well as their annual tax filing obligations and what resources are available to meet these obligations.
  • Reference materials from last year:

 ** Note: Subtitles/Closed Captions for this video were automatically generated by Zoom. If you have questions regarding any of the information on the video contact ischolars@ucsd.edu **

 (Virtual) Completing the Federal Tax Form 8843

  • Tuesday February 27, from noon (12:00pm) to 1:00pm, RSVP to receive zoom link
  • This workshop is for all F students and J Exchange Visitors who were present inside the U.S. for at least one day during the prior tax year in F or J status, are Nonresident Aliens for federal tax purposes, AND have no U.S. source income. If you meet all three of these conditions, your only U.S. federal tax filing obligation is completing the Form 8843 (dependents must file this form as well). The workshop will review tax filing obligations, tax residency determination, and then proceed step-by-step in filling out the Form 8843 from both an F/J student perspective and a J scholar perspective.
  • Reference materials from last year:

** Note: Subtitles/Closed Captions for this video were automatically generated by Zoom. If you have questions regarding any of the information on the video contact ischolars@ucsd.edu **

 (Virtual) Federal Tax Workshop

  • Tuesday March 12, from noon (12:00pm) to 2:30pm, RSVP to receive zoom link.
  • Professor Steve Gill, San Diego State University, Fowler College of Business faculty member, and Douglas Kelley, Accounting Lecturer at San Diego State University and Coordinator for the San Diego State University VITA program, will present on federal tax filing requirements for Nonresident Aliens for Tax Purposes and using Glacier Tax Prep software in preparing nonresident alien tax returns.
  • Reference materials from last year:

** Note: Subtitles/Closed Captions for this video were automatically generated by Zoom. If you have questions regarding any of the information on the video contact ischolars@ucsd.edu **

 
 

(Virtual) State Tax Workshop

  • Wednesday March 20, from noon (12:00pm) to 2:00pm, RSVP to receive zoom link.
    • Ideally students and scholars should complete their federal tax returns prior to attending this workshop and may want to bring them for reference. This session will NOT be recorded.

    • Important:  You will need to have completed your federal tax return in order to begin your state tax return.

  • Representatives from the California Franchise Tax Board (FTB) will be present
  • Reference materials from last year:

Use Glacier Tax Prep Software

  • UC San Diego has purchased a license for Glacier Tax Prep (GTP) software to help international students and scholars affiliated with UC San Diego at any point during 2023 and who were nonresident aliens for tax purposes to use for filing their federal tax returns, at no cost
  • Those persons who had complete UC San Diego Glacier records as of 12/31/2023 will receive an email from Glacier (support@online-tax.net) with the subject line "Welcome to Glacier Tax Prep" and instructions for login
  • If you do not receive this email by mid-March 2024, you may request an access code by emailing your request to internationaltaxhelp@ucsd.edu 

Contact IRS and FTB for Additional Tax Information

  • If you have additional questions regarding your specific situation, we recommend contacting the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) at (800) 829-1040
  • For questions about the California state taxes, you may also contact the California Franchise Tax Board (FTB) at (800) 852-5711
  • You may also visit this link from the IRS and read this presentation from IRS: Electronic Toolkit for Nonresident Aliens (PDF from the IRS)

 

Review Additional Resources:

Learn About ITIN

If you do not yet have an Individual Taxpayer Identification Number (ITIN) and you need one for tax purposes, then visit our ITIN Information page for more details about the ITIN.

Learn about Social Security Number (SSN)

If you do not yet have a Social Security Number (SSN) and you need one for tax purposes, then visit our Social Security Number page for more details about the SSN.