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hellobabe233 · Feb 21, 2016, 08:36 PM

Hello,

I have a question... I am from Belgium
[LIST]Personal info deleted

I will file a 1040 NR and 8843 to exclude days of presence. Should I also file one or two 8833 to explain my treaty position or is it not necessary?

They say this about for 8833:

Exceptions. You do not have to fileForm 8833 for any of the following. [FONT=HelveticaWorld][...][/FONT]

2. You claim a treaty that reducesor modifies the taxation of incomefrom dependent personal services,pensions, annuities, social securityand other public pensions, or incomeof artists, athletes, students, trainees,or teachers. This includes taxablescholarship and fellowship grants.

I don't know if the bolded statement applies to my particular case??

I have spent a lot of time looking into this and I was not able to find a definitive answer to my three questions.

Thanks

AtlantaTaxExpert · Feb 21, 2016, 08:55 PM

You have a $9,000 treaty exemption for your work under the Form 1099-MISC as a business trainee.

You get a total tax exemption for doing research. BOTH are covered by Article 19.

I would submit ONE Form 8833 explaining the circumstances and claim BOTH exemptions. I have reviewed the tax treaty, and nowhere does it say that you cannot claim both exemptions.

If you want my professional help preparing this return, you can email me at the email address in my profile.

hellobabe233 · Feb 21, 2016, 09:30 PM

Hello,

Thank you so much for your quick answer; I really appreciate. It makes me more confident in claiming the exemptions.

Do you think it is safe to claim the research exemption even though my J1 is "J1 Intern" instead of a more classical "J1 Scholar" or something like that? I have scientific publications and records proving I am was indeed doing research so...

AtlantaTaxExpert · Feb 21, 2016, 10:20 PM

In my mind, actions speak louder than paperwork. I believe your exemption request has a sound legal basis.

hellobabe233 · Feb 21, 2016, 10:28 PM

What do you mean by "I believe your exemption request a sound legal basis." ?

AtlantaTaxExpert · Feb 21, 2016, 10:43 PM

Forgot a word; just fixed it.

hellobabe233 · Feb 21, 2016, 11:07 PM

Thanks a lot for your amazing help and thanks for making us smarter :) please check your emails

AtlantaTaxExpert · Feb 22, 2016, 08:16 AM

Have checked the email. For the general reading public edification, I will share my email answer with them.

Okay, now that I know the research was done with IBM and NOT a university or non-profit research lab, I KNOW it will NOT be accepted as non-profit in nature. Even though you partnered with the Air Force and other national labs, the fact that you worked with IBM, a FOR-PROFIT corporation, will make it virtually impossible to convince the IRS that the research meets the criteria of public interest as specified in the tax treaty. IBM will benefit from the research, and they are considered "a specific person or persons" in this context.

Sorry, but I have argued similar cases several times with the IRS, and LOST every time. If the research is done within a for-profit corporation, it has NO chance of being considered eligible for tax-exemption.

The FICA (Social Security and Medicare) tax exemption is a matter of U.S. tax law, and is good for two calendar years, which, for you, is 2014 and 2015. The fact that you did not get paid for 2014 does not matter.