I am assisting my girlfriend with filing her first tax return, and she is currently in this country on a OPT (f1) visa. Her income is greater than the $3300 deduction limit, however we have both heard that OPT visa-holders are exempt from Soc. Sec. taxes and Medicare taxes. Are both of these true?

Also, in regards to her tax return, I am using TurboTax and have just entered her W-2 info. Is there any special I should know to enter or claim? Thanks!

First and foremost, you cannot use TurboTax to file your girl friend's tax return.

She has to file a Form 1040NR or 1040NR-EZ, a form neither TurboTax nor any of the other popular software packages will support.

It IS true that, under OPT, she is exempt from Social Security and Medicare taxes. However, they are often withheld anyway, which means she has to file Form 843 plus some support documents to claim a refund. If they withheld these taxes, she should ask the employer to refund them to her. That's the first step.

If you need my professional tax help, contact me at [email protected].