Tax year 20266 guides
Taxes on OPT, CPT and on-campus jobs
How wages from on-campus jobs, CPT, OPT and STEM OPT are taxed, and why FICA usually should not come out of your paycheck.
Pay from an on-campus job, CPT, OPT or STEM OPT is taxed like other wages for federal income tax in 2026, at rates of 10% to 37%, but nonresident F-1 students owe no Social Security tax (6.2%) or Medicare tax (1.45%) on it. Most states tax it too.
Start with OPT, STEM OPT and CPT taxes, which covers Form W-4, treaties and your sixth calendar year in student status, when you usually become a resident alien and Social Security and Medicare tax start. If you work on campus, check your pay stub: both of those lines should show $0. To put numbers on a salary, the OPT take-home examples work through $60,000, $90,000 and $120,000 in Texas and Illinois. On $90,000 with no tax treaty, a nonresident alien pays about $14,512 of federal income tax. Your wages go on line 1a of the 2026 draft Form 1040-NR, which is due Thursday, April 15, 2027.
Read in this order
OPT, STEM OPT and CPT taxes for F-1 students (tax year 2026)
OPT, STEM OPT and CPT pay is taxed like other wages for income tax in 2026, but nonresident F-1 students owe no Social Security or Medicare tax on it.
On-campus job taxes for F-1 students: what your pay stub should show
Nonresident F-1 students pay federal and usually state income tax on on-campus pay in 2026, but no Social Security or Medicare tax. Here is what to check.
How much tax will I pay on OPT? 2026 examples by salary
On $90,000 of 2026 OPT pay with no treaty, a nonresident F-1 pays about $14,512 of federal tax in Texas and no Social Security or Medicare tax.
How much of a campus job or TA paycheck do F-1 students keep?
On $20,000 of 2026 campus or TA pay in Texas, a nonresident F-1 student with no treaty owes about $2,152 of federal tax, no FICA, and keeps $17,848.
How to fill out Form W-4 as a nonresident alien (2026)
A nonresident F-1 or J-1 student fills in the 2026 Form W-4 under IRS Notice 1392: Single in Step 1(c), NRA below Step 4(c), and never claims exempt.
OPT vs STEM OPT vs H-1B: take-home pay on the same salary (2026)
OPT and STEM OPT pay are taxed alike in 2026. H-1B pay owes 7.65% Social Security and Medicare tax from day one; OPT pay owes it once you are a resident.
Questions these guides answer
OPT, STEM OPT and CPT taxes for F-1 students (tax year 2026)
- Do I pay income tax on OPT, STEM OPT and CPT pay?
- Do I pay Social Security and Medicare tax on OPT or CPT?
- How is CPT pay taxed?
- How do I fill out Form W-4 on OPT or CPT?
- Does my tax treaty cover OPT or CPT pay?
- Which state do I pay tax to on OPT or CPT?
All 6 questions in OPT, STEM OPT and CPT taxes for F-1 students (tax year 2026)
On-campus job taxes for F-1 students: what your pay stub should show
- What taxes come out of an on-campus paycheck?
- Why is no Social Security or Medicare tax taken from my pay?
- How do I fill out Form W-4 as a nonresident alien?
- Why is more federal tax withheld from me than from my American friends?
- Does my state take income tax from my campus job?
- Can a tax treaty stop federal withholding on my campus pay?
All 6 questions in On-campus job taxes for F-1 students: what your pay stub should show
How much tax will I pay on OPT? 2026 examples by salary
- How much tax do I pay on OPT at $60,000, $90,000 and $120,000?
- Why is tax on OPT different from a normal paycheck calculator?
- How is the federal tax on OPT pay worked out?
- How much state tax will I pay on OPT?
- What if I am from India?
- What changes in my sixth year on OPT?
All 6 questions in How much tax will I pay on OPT? 2026 examples by salary
How much of a campus job or TA paycheck do F-1 students keep?
- How much tax comes out of a $15-an-hour campus job?
- How much does my treaty save?
- Does my state tax campus pay?
- Will I get some of it back?
All 4 questions in How much of a campus job or TA paycheck do F-1 students keep?
How to fill out Form W-4 as a nonresident alien (2026)
- What goes in each step of Form W-4 for a nonresident alien?
- Can I claim exempt from withholding on my W-4?
- Do I give my employer Form W-4 or Form 8233?
- Why is more federal income tax withheld from me than from US coworkers?
All 4 questions in How to fill out Form W-4 as a nonresident alien (2026)
OPT vs STEM OPT vs H-1B: take-home pay on the same salary (2026)
- Is STEM OPT taxed differently from OPT?
- When does my take-home drop?
- Why does my sixth year on STEM OPT look like H-1B?
- What does an October 1 H-1B start do to my 2026 paycheck?
All 4 questions in OPT vs STEM OPT vs H-1B: take-home pay on the same salary (2026)