Jamaican Hotel Worker: What to file

[anu31402]

This is my first. I got refereed to a Caribbean who gets visa and works in the Hospitality industry between October 20xx and June 20xx every year in the US. He has Social Security and a dependent with Tax Id. What Federal form is required? Any reference would be appreciated.

[Koss]

Need add'l info...

The first thing you have to determine is whether the taxpayer is a resident alien or a nonresident alien. This isn't as easy as it sounds. If they have a visa, that generally means that they do not have a "green card," which means that under immigration law, they are a nonresident alien. But in many cases, a nonresident alien is considered a resident alien for tax purposes.

A resident alien is taxed just like a US citizen. You use Form 1040.

A nonresident alien must file Form 1040NR.

You should start with IRS Publication 590, US Tax Guide for Aliens. Edit: Publication 519.

This publication used to have a pretty good flowchart to determine whether a person is a resident alien or nonresident alien. For some reason, the flowchart is no longer there. You can find the flowchart at this link:

https://www.fpanet.org/docs/assets/6838AA9A-1D09-67A1-ACFFF20F222CB51B/USresidencyflowchart.pdf

But be careful. The flowchart can be dangerous if it is used out of context. There's lots of footnotes and technical terms, and every rule has an exception.

For example, you need to know how many years your client has been doing this seasonal thing, and you may need dates of arrival and departure. You also need to know what type of visa they have. And eventually you may need the same information for the child.

This gets really complicated really fast.

Even if the child is young enough that they have no income and no filing requirement, you still need to determine whether the child is a resident alien or nonresident alien, for tax purposes, because that, among other things, determines whether the child qualifies as a dependent for your client.

And you need to know your client's marital status, too, 'cause there are some special rules that come into play there, as well...

The best advice I can give you is: Don't make any assumptions.

BMK

[Gary2]

And don't forget to check the tax treaty.

[BP.]

IRS Publication 590, US Tax Guide for Aliens.

Great post; slight tweak . . . Pub 519.

[anu31402]

I appreciate the response. Thanks

Kay, EA
NY