Hi, I am an MBA student from Thailand and now I am studying an MBA in San Francisco. I earn some money from the internet. I am promoting some merchant websites through Google Adwords. When some visitors buy products that I am promoting, I get paid commission. The problem is that
1. I am not a resident - I am holding F-1 Visa
2. The company that I am promoting their website is a non-US based company. The company is located in Malta. So they sent the commission to me from a bank in Malta which is an offshore bank.

Do I have to pay taxes to IRS for my affiliate commission?

Thank you for your answer.
Gizmoball

Gizmoball:

Are you paying taxes on the money earned to Thailand? If so, I would have no problem arguing that this income is foreign-based income and therefore is not taxable by the U.S. government.

If not, the IRS would argue that the income is U.S.-based (since Google is U.S.-based) and assess taxes accordingly.