International Student and Scholar Services | Social Security and Medicare Taxes
United States employers are required to withhold Social Security and Medicare taxes from wages earned in the United States. Individuals in F-1, J-1, M-1 or Q-1 status are exempt from these withholding as long are they are considered nonresident aliens for tax purposes.
F-1 and J-1 students are exempt from these taxes for 5 calendar years. Please note that these 5 years correspond with the 5 years that the student is exempt from the Substantial Presence Test (see discussion below). A student who initially enters the United States in December, uses up one year of exemption from FICA taxes. The exemption from FICA taxes also ends when the student becomes a resident for tax purposes or changes status to another nonimmigrant classification.
J-2 Dependents who have obtained work permission from the Bureau of Citizenship and Immigration Services are not exempt from FICA taxes.
If FICA taxes have been withheld
and your employer cannot refund
the money withheld, you should file Form 843,
Claim for Refund
And Request for Abatement.
You should try to obtain a refund from your employer first. However, if you need to file a Form 843, you should provide the following explanation in Item #5 of the form:
I am a nonresident alien student on an F-1 (or J-1) visa. Section 3121(b)(19) of the Internal Revenue Code and the regulations thereunder state that a nonresident alien student on an F-1 (or J-1) visa is not liable for paying Social Security and Medicare taxes on his wages for as long as he is a nonresident alien under residency rules stated in Section 7701(b) of the Internal Revenue Code. Under Section 7701(b), a foreign student on an F-1 becomes a resident alien after five (5) calendar years in the United States I state that for calendar year ____ I was a nonresident alien student and not liable for the Social Security and Medicare tax. I hereby ask for a refund of the Social Security and Medicare taxes withheld from my wages. I have asked my employer for a refund of these taxes and have been refused.
& nbsp; Attachments:
& nbsp; Form W-2 showing tax withheld in boxes 4 and 6
& nbsp; Copy of I-94
& nbsp; Copy of I-20