The answers here are helpful but don't forget there's a difference between having to file and actually owing tax. A lot of states require filing even if you don't end up owing anything. Or they might have minimum tax amounts even with losses.

This is such a timely discussion - I'm dealing with a similar multi-state nexus nightmare right now. One thing I'd add is to make sure you're also considering franchise tax obligations, not just corporate income tax. Some states like Delaware and Texas have franchise taxes that can apply even when you don't have income tax nexus. Also, for anyone using remote workers, keep detailed records of where they're actually performing work versus where they're "based." I learned the hard way that some states care more about where the work is physically performed than where the employee officially resides. Our tax advisor said this documentation could be crucial if we ever get audited on our nexus determinations. The economic nexus thresholds are changing so frequently that whatever resource you use, make sure it's updated at least quarterly. I've seen states lower their thresholds mid-year without much fanfare.

Just a heads up that the Swiss-US tax treaty has specific provisions for dividend withholding that you should be aware of. The standard withholding rate from Switzerland is 35%, but under the treaty, US partnerships can often get this reduced to 15%. If you've had the full 35% withheld, your partners might be getting more foreign tax credits than they're actually entitled to. The IRS can disallow "excess" foreign tax credits if you could have taken steps to reduce the foreign tax but chose not to. Make sure you're applying the treaty rate correctly.

I've been dealing with similar foreign dividend reporting issues for our partnership. One thing that really helped me was creating a detailed spreadsheet to track all the foreign dividends by country, date, and tax withheld. This made it much easier to complete the K-2/K-3 forms accurately. For Swiss dividends specifically, make sure you're checking whether your ETFs qualify for the reduced treaty withholding rate. Some Swiss ETFs are structured in ways that don't qualify for the full treaty benefits, which affects how much foreign tax credit your partners can actually claim. Also, double-check that your brokerage statements are correctly identifying which portions of the dividends are qualified vs ordinary. I found some discrepancies in our statements that would have caused issues with our K-2 reporting. The foreign tax needs to be allocated proportionally between qualified and ordinary dividends, so getting this right is critical for your partners' Form 1116 calculations. ProSeries should handle the K-2/K-3 generation once you input the data correctly, but the key is making sure all your source data is properly categorized before you start entering it into the software.

As someone who's dealt with payroll system errors before, I'd recommend also checking your state tax withholdings if applicable. Sometimes when the federal SSN is wrong, it can cascade to state systems too, especially if your employer uses integrated payroll software. You should also verify that your employer's EIN (Employer Identification Number) is correct on your paystubs. If they've been reporting your wages to the wrong SSN, you want to make sure they're at least using the right employer ID so the IRS can potentially match things up later if needed. One more thing - if you have direct deposit, double-check that your bank account information in their system is correct. Sometimes when there are data entry errors in one field, there might be mistakes in others. Better to catch everything now rather than discover more issues at tax time.

I went through something similar a few years ago when my employer's payroll department made a typo in my SSN. Here's what I learned from that experience: 1. Get everything in writing from your HR department about the correction timeline. Don't just rely on verbal promises that it will be fixed. 2. Request a printout or screenshot of your corrected employee profile once they update it in their system. This serves as proof that the correction was made. 3. Follow up in December to confirm your W-2 will be generated with the correct SSN. Sometimes corrections get made in one system but don't carry over to the tax document generation system. 4. If you're concerned about your Social Security earnings record, you can create a my Social Security account at ssa.gov and monitor it periodically. While there's a delay in reporting, you'll eventually be able to see if your 2024 earnings are properly credited to your account. The good news is that since you caught this in October, you have plenty of time to get it resolved before W-2s are issued. Most employers are pretty responsive to fixing these types of errors once they're aware of them, especially when it affects tax reporting.

I work in international student services at a university and see this question frequently. There's one important detail no one has mentioned yet - the "substantial presence test" counts days differently for F1 students. For the first 5 calendar years you're in the US in F1 status, you're considered an "exempt individual" and those days don't count toward the substantial presence test. After that 5-year period, your days start counting, and many F1 students who've been here longer actually do qualify as residents for tax purposes. When exactly did you arrive in 2021? If it was early in the year, you might be approaching that 5-year mark where your status could change.

I'm also on F1 OPT and went through a similar confusion last year! Your tax consultant seems to be mixing up different concepts. There's no way to just "choose" to be a resident for tax purposes when you're on F1 status and haven't met the substantial presence test yet. What they might be thinking of is the Section 6013(g) election, which allows a non-resident alien married to a US citizen or resident to elect to be treated as a resident for tax purposes. But this only works if ONE spouse is already a US citizen or resident - since you're both on F1 visas, this doesn't apply. The substantial presence test exemption for F1 students is very clear - you're exempt for your first 5 calendar years in F1 status, and there's no way around that. Filing incorrectly could cause serious problems with USCIS later when you apply for status changes. I'd strongly recommend getting a second opinion from a CPA who specializes in international taxation, preferably one recommended by your university's international student office. The potential tax savings from joint filing aren't worth the risk of immigration complications down the road. Also, don't forget that as F1 students, you may be eligible for certain tax treaty benefits depending on your country of citizenship that could reduce your tax liability even as non-residents.

This is such a helpful thread! I'm in a similar situation and was completely lost about how to handle my scholarship money for apartment rent. Reading through everyone's experiences really clarifies things. One thing I'm still wondering about though - what if you receive scholarship money in one tax year but use it for expenses in the next year? Like if I got a scholarship disbursement in December 2024 but used it to pay spring semester tuition and rent in January 2025, which year do I report the taxable portion on? Also, for anyone still struggling with the calculations, I found it helpful to start with your total scholarship/grant amount, then subtract out your qualified expenses in this order: tuition first, then required fees, then required books/supplies. Whatever's left over after covering those qualified expenses is what you'd report as taxable income, regardless of whether you actually spent it on rent or just kept it in savings. The record-keeping advice from Molly is spot on - I wish I had started tracking everything more carefully from the beginning of the school year instead of trying to reconstruct it all at tax time!

This thread has been incredibly helpful! I'm a graduate student dealing with a similar situation and wanted to share what I learned from my university's financial aid office that might help others. One important detail that hasn't been mentioned yet - if you're a graduate student receiving a stipend or assistantship that covers housing costs, the tax treatment can be slightly different than undergraduate scholarships. Graduate stipends are often considered taxable income regardless of how you use them, and you should receive a 1099-MISC rather than having it reported on a 1098-T. Also, for anyone using tax software like TurboTax or H&R Block, most of them have specific sections for reporting scholarship income that walk you through the qualified vs. non-qualified expense calculations. It's usually under the "Education" section and asks you to enter your total scholarships/grants and then your qualified education expenses. One last tip - if you're claiming education credits (like the American Opportunity Credit), be strategic about which expenses you use for the credit versus which ones you use to reduce your taxable scholarship income. You can't "double-dip" by using the same expenses for both purposes, but you can optimize to minimize your overall tax liability. The apartment rent situation is definitely taxable income though - that part is clear regardless of whether you're undergraduate or graduate level!