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Participant Tax Service Information FAQ

* These FAQs are intended for participants whose IIE administered grant or scholarship covers the cost of tax preparation services

* Review Sprintax’s general FAQs here: https://www.sprintax.com/faq.html (please disregard any information about fees charged)

Q: What documents / information might I need to prepare my tax return?

  • Passport
  • US entry and exit dates for current and all previous visits to the US
  • All tax forms you’ve received (including Forms W-2, 1042-S and/or 1099, etc.)
  • Visa / Immigration Status information, including Form DS-2019
  • Social Security Number (SSN) or Individual Taxpayer Identification Number (ITIN) – don’t have that? See below. 

Q: My U.S host university has already provided me with a Sprintax account. Can I use the university’s account to file my taxes?

No, since IIE is your sponsor, you should file your tax return through IIE’s Sprintax account. IIE will cover the cost and you will be able to direct specific questions to IIE@Sprintax.com.

Q: What should I do if I still don’t have an ITIN when I need to submit my tax return? Note: if you already have a Social Security Number, you do not need an ITIN.

If you do not have an ITIN when completing your tax return, you should include your ITIN application when you mail your tax return to the IRS. 

When completing Sprintax Returns, you will be asked if you have a US tax identification number (ITIN/SSN). If you indicate “no,” you will be asked the following question, “Do you want Sprintax to prepare an ITIN application for you for $15.95?” IIE recommends that you select “yes.” The code that IIE provided for the cost of Sprintax Returns Tax Preparation service will also pay the fee for preparing your ITIN application so you will not be billed $15.95. 

Once you select “yes,” Sprintax will generate a Form W-7 and provide clear instructions on how to submit your ITIN application with your federal tax return. 

If you choose not to request Sprintax’s assistance with your ITIN application, please review IRS instructions on how to file your ITIN application with your tax return here: https://www.irs.gov/individuals/how-do-i-apply-for-an-itin and here: https://www.irs.gov/forms-pubs/about-form-w-7    

If you have a state tax return, then you’ll need to wait until you receive your ITIN number before you send off your state tax return. 

Q: I have already completed Sprintax Calculus profile, should I transfer my tax forms from Sprintax Calculus to Sprintax Returns?

Yes, to avoid any mistakes, IIE strongly recommends that you transfer your tax forms from Sprintax Calculus to Sprintax Returns when you first login to Sprintax. This will ensure that all your IIE forms are included in your tax calculations accurately. 

You will receive multiple copies of each IIE 1042-s form so if you are entering your income manually, rather than transferring from Sprintax Calculus, please make sure that you only enter the income from each 1042-s form once. 

If you do not include all your IIE 1042-s forms when reporting your income, you may be required to file an amendment at your own expense. 

Q: When I login to Sprintax Returns, I’m asked if I want to use a tax treaty. What should I do?

IIE strongly recommends that you apply the treaty to your tax return. Any federal or state tax due because you did not apply the treaty will be your own responsibility.  

Q: Sprintax told me I was a resident for tax purposes, and I cannot use Sprintax to complete my tax return. What do I do?

If you have been deemed a resident for tax purposes, the Sprintax software will stop you at the “Step 1- Residency” page and let you know that you have been deemed a resident for tax purposes. The page will outline that you can no longer use the Sprintax software and recommend you utilize TurboTax. Please double check that the information in the “Visiting the US” and “Visa Type/Visitor status” sections are correct. If they are, please follow the below instructions to have your resident returns prepared by Sprintax: 

1) Email iie@sprintax.com and in the subject line include “IIE Resident Return – Name, Email Address, and IIE identification number” 
2) The Sprintax team will send you a PDF tax questionnaire to fill out
3) Complete the questionnaire and return it to the iie@sprintax.com team and also include any non IIE income documents such as W-2, 1042-S, 1099 etc.
4) The Sprintax team will email you your tax return forms which you can then print, sign and mail to the tax authorities 

Q: I am completing my tax return through Sprintax Returns and I have been asked to provide an access code. Where can I find that code?

IIE emailed you a code either when you were notified that your Form 1042-S was ready or to introduce you to Sprintax if you were not issued a Form 1042-S by IIE. In that email which invited you to login to Sprintax Returns, the IIE Sprintax code was highlighted in red. Please consult that email for the code.  

Do not share the code IIE provided to you for completing your tax return with others. IIE will not cover the cost for non IIE participants and they will ultimately be responsible for the cost of their tax filing. 

Q: I am no longer in the US and need to mail my tax documents to the IRS. Where do I send them?

For international taxpayers filing from outside of US who are NOT including a payment with their returns, use this mailing address:
Internal Revenue Submission Processing Center
3651 South Interregional Highway 35
Austin, TX  78741

You can use certain private delivery services designated by the IRS to meet the “timely mailing as timely filing/paying” rule for tax returns and payments. These private delivery services include only the following:
• DHL Express (DHL): DHL Same Day Service.
• Federal Express (FedEx): FedEx Priority Overnight, FedEx Standard Overnight, FedEx 2Day, FedEx International Priority, and FedEx International First.
• United Parcel Service (UPS): UPS Next Day Air, UPS Next Day Air Saver, UPS 2nd Day Air, UPS 2nd Day Air A.M., UPS Worldwide Express Plus, and UPS Worldwide Express. 

Q: I am completing my tax return and I owe state taxes. What do I do?

If you owe state taxes because of your USG funds disbursed by IIE, you may be eligible to receive a refund from IIE. First you must submit your state tax return with the taxes owed directly to the state. Then you can submit a request for reimbursement to IIE. You must include a copy of your state tax return and documentation of payment (copy of check or copy of bank statement). 

This reimbursement request can be submitted to tax@iie.org or if you are a Fulbright participant you may upload this request through your participant self service portal. You must include documentation verifying that you paid the states taxes and a copy of the state tax return verifying the owed amount.  

If approved, you can expect reimbursement within 6-8 weeks of submitting your request. If it is urgent, please indicate that in the request. 

You should not owe Federal taxes on your IIE-administered scholarship. However, you may owe Federal taxes from another source of income such as a university scholarship. If you have questions about why you owe taxes, please contact the source of your other income.  

Q: I need to indicate on my tax return where the IRS should send my refund. What should I do?

If you anticipate having an open U.S. bank account for the next several months, IIE strongly encourages you to provide your US bank account information so that your refund can be deposited directly into your account.  

If you currently do not have an open US bank account or are concerned about receiving or depositing a check from the IRS in your home country, there is an option to set up a temporary US bank account through an independent third party. For more information, please review this blog from Sprintax (specifically #3): http://blog.sprintax.com/get-tax-refund-without-us-bank-account/. Please note that IIE does not have an affiliation with this bank and cannot assist with this process.  

Do not provide IIE’s mailing address to the IRS as IIE will not be able to deposit your refund and it will cause long delays for you to receive your refund. 

Q: How are the taxes owed or the tax refund allocated between my funds disbursed by IIE and other sources of income?

It is critical to report your IIE and non-IIE income on one tax return. Please note that the tax equalization is prepared by isolating the funding you received from IIE as though you did not have any other income such as wages and non IIE scholarship. IIE budgets each grantee’s scholarship funding account based on the assumption that you will not have any other taxable income. If too much taxes were withheld from any income you earned, the excess taxes will be returned to you in the form of a tax refund. When your tax return is completed, an equalization will be done. The equalization isolates your IIE income and calculates the tax on it to reach an amount of your sponsor’s refund. This will then be used to calculate your refund. As an example, let’s say IIE’s expected refund (due to too much taxes withheld by IIE) is $100, but the tax return’s refund is $500. This would mean your refund is $400. 

Q: I have received a refund on my IIE disbursed scholarship – do I get to keep it?

While you may be eligible to keep a portion of your tax refund that results from non IIE income such as scholarships from your host institution, IIE will request that you return to IIE the portion of your tax refund that is due to your IIE administered scholarship including any expenses that IIE paid on your behalf as part of your scholarship. After the federal tax deadline, IIE will email you to request a specific amount of your refund (if applicable). You may send the IIE portion of your tax refund to IIE via PayPal, check, ACH or wire. More details will be included in the email request after the IRS deadline. 

Q: Why do I have multiple 1042-S forms from IIE?

If during the calendar year you participated in a sponsored activity in another state than your US residence, you may receive an additional 1042-S form for funds that IIE spent on that activity. For example, if you went to a program seminar, orientation or participated in an Outreach Lecturing Fund opportunity, the funds spent on that activity are considered taxable income so taxes may be owed to the state where the event or activity took place. IIE has provided separate 1042-S forms for each state where you have received funds to make it easier for you to file state tax returns through Sprintax Returns.

Q: I have questions that are not answered in this document. Where do I go?

Contact IIE’s Participant Tax Services team (tax@iie.org or ITIN@iie.org), if you have questions about the following:  
• ITIN application submitted to IIE 
• IIE-issued Form 1042-S or tax withholding amounts 
• Returning IIE’s portion of your federal tax refund 
• Requesting a reimbursement for states taxes 

Contact Sprintax (via live chat or IIE@sprintax.com) if you have questions about the following:  
• Completing the Sprintax Calculus profile 
• Form W-8 BEN 
• Completing Sprintax Returns
• Tax Documents issued through Sprintax including Form 1040-NR and Form 8843, etc.