Hi everyone,

I have suddenly found myself in a situation, and I don't know how to file my taxes.

I am here as an F-1 student on OPT, it is my fifth year here. I am primarily a writer. I stayed in the U.S. for an extra year to try to write, and also to apply for graduate school for Fall 2007.

Anyway, in the meantime, I have taken a babysitting job on the side in order to survive. I have earned about $10,000 over the year, balancing 2-3 babysitting/reading mentorship (like homework helper) jobs. Now I am starting to figure out my taxes and came across the following problems that I never even realized were "rules" for students in OPT:

1) I did not receive a w-2 or 1099 from my employers -- will that lack of paperwork give me problems with the IRS or the INS?

2) I considered myself an employee, but because I did not get a w-2, where should I record my taxes -- line 8? Or will have to put everything under Schedule C, as if I was self-employed? I read somewhere that self-employment is not allowed for F-1s (and I was frankly shocked to learn this, I never heard this during the OPT seminar my school hosted). What can I do?

3) Am I entitled to self-employment tax exemption? I read somewhere again that I can only use the exemption if the job was related to my field of study (my field of study was literature).

4) My employers did not give me any payslips to help me prove how much I earned, although I am certain I can "account" for what I earned.

Please help. I wish to stay in the US for a few more years to study before I go back home.

Thank you.

First and foremost, what was the EXACT date your first entered the U.S.?

1) No, the IRS just uses the paper audit to track income. You can fill out the Schedule C and report the income without the Form 1099.

2) Sorry, you are self-employed. Yes, technically, that IS a violation of your F-1 visa, but you will get into MORE trouble not claiming this income than by claiming it and paying the taxes due.

3) In my opinion, you should claim the self-employment tax exemption, if for no other reason than tehre is no place to report the SE tax on Form 1040NR. Much depends on when you entered the U.S.

4) Enter the best estimate of your income.