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The tax filing requirements for students is the same as ordinary citizens in most of the cases. If you have taxable income, you need to file tax return. Even if you do not have to file a tax return, you should file one to get a refund of any Federal Income Tax withheld from your wages. Students can use same standard software to prepare and file their tax return.

International students

The international students may have to file U.S. tax return as either resident or non-resident. Normally they file non-resident federal income tax returns on Form 1040NR-EZ. But if a student is present in U.S. for more than 5 years, then they he/she will be considered as resident for tax purposes and file For 1040/1040A like U.S. citizen or resident. There are special tax software available for international students which will take care of such special rules.

All international students who are nonresident for tax purposes must file Form 8843, a supplemental form to exclude the days of presence in United States from the Substantial Presence Test. If Social Security and Medicare taxes were withheld from wages and you are a nonresident student, you should file Form 843 to get refund of the same. Non-resident students don't have to pay Social Security and Medicare taxes. A good student tax software will automatically inform you about the required special forms to file.

Many universities license these tax software and provide them at a discount or even free of charge to students. Check with your university finance department or university website for more details.

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