Hi,
I'm an Indian national on J1 visa. I was not aware of the tax exemption treaty and I did not claim for federal tax withholding reimbursement in the last two years. As a result, many of my colleagues got quite a lot in tax returns than I. Now I'm in my third year of stay in the US and still on J1 visa. Is there any way I can claim for reimbursements that I did not make over the past 2 years. And what are the implications of continuing to stay on J1 visa after 2 years after you make such a claim.

As a UK citizen working in the US on a J1 I've assimilated some information on this but am by no means an expert. Basically, you can technically only claim exemption on a tax treaty if you are in the US for 2 years or less and then leave. If this is the case, you do not pay tax to either the US or Indian governments. If you had gone back to India after 2 years, you could have claimed all those taxes back. However, if you are in the US for longer than 2 years, you lose all rights to claiming the exemption. The danger is that if you have claimed exemption, you can then be asked to pay all those taxes back. Because you are in your third year, you have technically done the right thing, and paid your taxes - I would leave it at that.

Thanks Lynda -- very helpful.