Tax year 202614 guides
U.S. tax filing basics for international students
Who has to file, which forms you need, deadlines, and how a nonresident return differs from the one your American friends file.
If you were in the US in 2026 on an F, J, M or Q visa and were a nonresident alien, you file Form 8843 for 2026, even with no income. If you also had taxable US income, such as wages or a taxable scholarship, you file Form 1040-NR with Form 8843 attached. It is due Thursday, April 15, 2027 if you were paid wages subject to US income tax withholding, and Tuesday, June 15, 2027 if you were not.
Start with how to file US taxes as an international student, which covers the forms, your residency and where to mail them. The 2027 deadlines gives every date with its weekday, and what is new for tax year 2026 explains the work-authorization question on the draft Form 1040-NR. To choose how to prepare the return, compare the tax software: Intuit says TurboTax does not prepare Form 1040-NR. If you missed a year, file each one on that year's own Form 8843.
Read in this order
How to file US taxes as an international student (tax year 2026)
Nonresident F-1 and J-1 students file Form 8843 for 2026, plus Form 1040-NR by April 15, 2027 if they had wages. Forms, deadlines, where to mail.
Tax deadlines for international students in 2027
F-1 and J-1 students with 2026 wages file Form 1040-NR by Thursday, April 15, 2027. With no wages, or Form 8843 alone, it is Tuesday, June 15, 2027.
What's new for international students' taxes in tax year 2026
Tax year 2026 changes for F-1 and J-1 students: a work-authorization question on the draft 1040-NR, a $16,100 India standard deduction and new brackets.
Tax software for international students compared (2027 filing season)
Sprintax (from $54.95 without a code), Glacier Tax Prep, F1TaxReturn, VITA and paid preparers compared for 2026 Form 1040-NR: cost, states, e-file.
Is Sprintax free? What your university code covers
Sprintax's federal return is free only if your school or another sponsor gives you a code. State returns cost extra: from $49.95 each in October 2026.
Can F-1 students use TurboTax? What to use instead
F-1 students who are nonresident aliens should not use TurboTax: it prepares Form 1040, not 1040-NR. What to use for 2026, and when TurboTax fits.
Never filed Form 8843 or a tax return? How F-1 students catch up
File each missed year on that year's Form 8843. A late 1040-NR has no penalty if you are owed a refund, but the refund is lost after three years.
F-2 and J-2 dependents: Form 8843, ITINs and taxes on J-2 work
Each F-2 or J-2 spouse and child files their own 2026 Form 8843, with no ITIN needed. A J-2 who works usually owes FICA and files Form 1040-NR.
Can F-1 students claim the earned income credit or other tax credits for 2026?
F-1 and J-1 students who are nonresident aliens generally cannot claim the earned income or education credits for 2026. Few can claim the child tax credit.
Can a free IRS VITA site prepare your 2026 Form 1040-NR?
Some IRS VITA sites prepare a 2026 Form 1040-NR and Form 8843 free for F-1 and J-1 students, but only with a volunteer certified for foreign students.
Can F-1 students take the standard deduction? Who gets $16,100
Most F-1 students get no standard deduction on a 2026 Form 1040-NR and deduct state tax. Students from India and single full-year residents get $16,100.
F1TaxReturn vs Sprintax: which fits your 2026 return?
Sprintax says it e-files 1040-NR for eligible filers and takes 1042-S. F1TaxReturn's 2026 paper 1040-NR is free; CA, NY, IL or MA forms are $30 plus $2.
International student tax return examples for 2026: eight cases
Eight 2026 examples for F-1 students: with wages, Form 1040-NR and 8843 by April 15, 2027; with none, by June 15; in a sixth year, usually Form 1040.
No US income on an F-1 visa? What counts as income and what to file
A nonresident F-1 student with no taxable US income files only Form 8843 for 2026, by June 15, 2027. Family money and US bank interest are not taxed.
Questions these guides answer
How to file US taxes as an international student (tax year 2026)
- Do international students have to file a US tax return for 2026?
- Am I a nonresident alien for tax year 2026?
- What do I file if I had no US income in 2026?
- Which income goes on Form 1040-NR?
- How much federal tax will I pay on my wages?
- Can a tax treaty lower my US tax?
All 6 questions in How to file US taxes as an international student (tax year 2026)
Tax deadlines for international students in 2027
- What are the tax dates for international students in 2027?
- Is my Form 1040-NR due April 15 or June 15, 2027?
- When will my W-2, 1042-S and 1099 forms arrive?
- When is the Form 8843 deadline in 2027?
- How do I get more time to file, and do I get more time to pay?
- When are state tax returns due in 2027?
All 6 questions in Tax deadlines for international students in 2027
What's new for international students' taxes in tax year 2026
- Which 2026 tax changes affect international students?
- What is the new work authorization question on Form 1040-NR?
- Did the standard deduction and tax brackets change for 2026?
- Can I claim no tax on tips or overtime on Form 1040-NR?
- What else changed on the 2026 forms?
- Do I pay the new 1% remittance tax when I send money home?
All 6 questions in What's new for international students' taxes in tax year 2026
Tax software for international students compared (2027 filing season)
- Which tax software can prepare Form 1040-NR?
- Which option fits my situation?
- What do Sprintax, Glacier Tax Prep and F1TaxReturn each cover?
- Sprintax or Glacier Tax Prep: which should I use?
- Is there a free way to file a nonresident tax return?
- When is an IRS volunteer (VITA) site a good choice?
All 6 questions in Tax software for international students compared (2027 filing season)
Is Sprintax free? What your university code covers
- What does a university Sprintax code cover?
- How much does Sprintax cost without a code?
- What if my school has no code, the codes ran out, or I graduated?
- Do I need software if Form 8843 is my only form?
- What are the other ways to file, and what do they cost?
- What does Sprintax do that F1TaxReturn does not?
All 6 questions in Is Sprintax free? What your university code covers
Can F-1 students use TurboTax? What to use instead
- Why is TurboTax the wrong tool for a nonresident student?
- What goes wrong if a nonresident files Form 1040?
- How much difference does the wrong form make?
- What can F-1 students use instead of TurboTax?
- What if you already filed with TurboTax?
- When is TurboTax the right tool for an F-1 student?
All 6 questions in Can F-1 students use TurboTax? What to use instead
Never filed Form 8843 or a tax return? How F-1 students catch up
- Which forms do I owe for each missed year?
- What happens if I never filed Form 8843?
- How do I file Form 8843 for an earlier year?
- How do I count my US days for a year that is long past?
- What does a late Form 1040-NR cost?
- How long do I have to claim a refund from a missed year?
All 6 questions in Never filed Form 8843 or a tax return? How F-1 students catch up
F-2 and J-2 dependents: Form 8843, ITINs and taxes on J-2 work
- What does each family member file for 2026?
- Why does my F-2 or J-2 spouse or child need their own Form 8843?
- When and where does a family member mail Form 8843?
- Can F-2 and J-2 family members work in the US?
- Does a J-2 who works pay Social Security and Medicare tax?
- How does a J-2 with wages file Form 1040-NR?
All 6 questions in F-2 and J-2 dependents: Form 8843, ITINs and taxes on J-2 work
Can F-1 students claim the earned income credit or other tax credits for 2026?
- Which tax credits can I claim for 2026?
- Can F-1 students get the earned income credit?
- Can international students claim the child tax credit?
- Do F-1 students get education credits?
- What is Schedule 3-A on the 2026 draft forms?
- When can I claim more credits?
All 6 questions in Can F-1 students claim the earned income credit or other tax credits for 2026?
Can a free IRS VITA site prepare your 2026 Form 1040-NR?
- Which VITA sites prepare Form 1040-NR?
- Who qualifies for free help at a VITA site?
- What can a VITA site not do for me?
- What should I bring to a VITA site?
- VITA, Sprintax or F1TaxReturn: which fits me?
All 5 questions in Can a free IRS VITA site prepare your 2026 Form 1040-NR?
Can F-1 students take the standard deduction? Who gets $16,100
- Who gets the standard deduction for 2026?
- Can students from India take the $16,100?
- What can I deduct instead on Form 1040-NR?
- Why is so much tax withheld from my paycheck?
All 4 questions in Can F-1 students take the standard deduction? Who gets $16,100
F1TaxReturn vs Sprintax: which fits your 2026 return?
- When is Sprintax the better choice?
- How do the prices compare?
- What does each one prepare?
- Can either one prepare my 2026 return?
- When is a 2026 Form 1040-NR due?
All 5 questions in F1TaxReturn vs Sprintax: which fits your 2026 return?
International student tax return examples for 2026: eight cases
- What do the eight example returns look like side by side?
- What does a first-year student with no US income file?
- What do students with a campus job or assistantship pay?
- What does a full year on OPT look like?
- What if you graduated and left the US in 2026?
- What if your only income was a fellowship on Form 1042-S?
All 6 questions in International student tax return examples for 2026: eight cases
No US income on an F-1 visa? What counts as income and what to file
- Which money counts as US income on an F-1 visa?
- Is money my parents send me income?
- Does a tuition scholarship count as income?
- My bank sent a Form 1099-INT: do I file Form 1040-NR?
- I arrived in August with no job: what do I file?
- What if my spouse or child is on F-2?
All 6 questions in No US income on an F-1 visa? What counts as income and what to file