I'm also an international student and cryptos are taxed weirdly in US. 2 important things to understand - your TAX RESIDENCY status is completely different from your IMMIGRATION status. You could be nonresident for immigration (F1 student) but still be resident for tax purposes if you stay in US long enough (substantial presence test). This affects which form you fill - 1040 vs 1040NR. Also even if youre nonresident, ANY crypto you sell while physically present in US is US-sourced income taxable here. Doesnt matter if your exchange thinks your foreign or not, you still gotta report it!

As someone who went through a very similar situation last year, I completely understand your confusion! The key thing to remember is that the forms you receive from different platforms don't determine your actual tax filing requirements - your immigration and tax residency status does. Since you're an international grad student, you'll most likely need to file Form 1040NR (not 1040) regardless of what Coinbase provided you. The reason TD Ameritrade sent you 1042S is because they correctly identified you as a non-resident alien, while Coinbase may not have your status properly documented in their system. Here's what I'd recommend: First, determine your tax residency status using the substantial presence test (but remember F-1 students have an exemption for the first 5 calendar years). Then file 1040NR and report all your crypto transactions using Form 8949, just like you would attach it to a regular 1040. The most important thing is accurate reporting on your actual tax return - don't worry too much about the inconsistency in the forms you received from different platforms. What matters is that you report all your US-source income correctly as a non-resident alien.

Here's a simple example to help understand blended/effective tax rates: Let's say you're married filing jointly with $250,000 taxable income. Your marginal rate is 24% (based on 2023 brackets), but you don't pay 24% on all $250,000. You pay: - 10% on first $22,000 = $2,200 - 12% on next $67,450 = $8,094 - 22% on next $101,300 = $22,286 - 24% on final $59,250 = $14,220 Total tax: $46,800 Blended/effective rate: $46,800 ÷ $250,000 = 18.7% Your "tax bracket" is 24% but you're actually paying 18.7% overall!

I feel like high schools should teach this basic tax info! I went years thinking I was being taxed at my highest bracket rate on ALL my income. Literally nobody explained the progressive system to me until I was 30.

Has anyone dealt with leaving a company but negotiating an extension on the exercise period? Most standard option agreements only give you 90 days after leaving to exercise, but I've heard some companies are flexible on this, especially when options are underwater.

One additional consideration that might help with your decision - if you're planning to leave the company anyway, you could potentially negotiate with your employer to extend the exercise window beyond the typical 90-day post-employment period. This would give you more time to see how the company performs with that Q3 product launch you mentioned. Also, make sure you understand exactly what type of options you have (ISO vs NSO) as this affects the tax treatment. With ISOs, you generally have better tax advantages if you hold the stock for at least one year after exercise and two years after grant date to qualify for long-term capital gains treatment. Given that you're essentially guaranteed a loss if you exercise now, it might be worth having a conversation with your company about either repricing the options to current FMV or extending your exercise window. Many companies are becoming more flexible about this, especially in situations like yours where the employee would be financially penalized through no fault of their own.

11 Has anyone here actually been audited because of stock stuff? I'm paranoid I'm going to mess up reporting my vested RSUs and get in trouble.

The key thing to understand is that the IRS treats stock compensation as income when you receive something of economic value, not when you convert it to cash. With RSUs, the moment they vest, you legally own shares worth their current market value - that's considered compensation just like your salary. Think of it this way: if your employer gave you a $1000 bonus but paid it in gold bars instead of cash, you'd still owe taxes on that $1000 even if you kept the gold. The IRS sees vested stock the same way. The system actually makes sense from a policy perspective - otherwise people could defer taxes indefinitely by never selling their shares. But I totally get why it feels unfair when you're suddenly owing taxes on "paper gains" that you can't easily access! Pro tip: Most companies will automatically sell some of your shares at vesting to cover the tax withholding, so you won't be completely stuck paying out of pocket.

I'm so glad you posted this question because I was literally in the exact same boat just a few months ago! Got a Treasury check completely out of the blue and spent days worrying it was some kind of elaborate scam. After reading through all these responses, it sounds like you're dealing with a completely legitimate IRS adjustment refund. The fact that it has proper security features, your correct name and address, and came from the US Treasury are all really good signs. What really convinced me when I was in your situation was learning that the IRS processes literally millions of these adjustment checks every year - it's way more common than most people realize. They're constantly running automated reviews of past returns and catching errors that work in taxpayers' favor. My advice would be to go ahead and deposit it, but definitely keep copies of everything and watch for that explanation notice everyone's mentioned. From what I've read here, it should arrive within 2-3 weeks and will tell you exactly what was adjusted and why. The peace of mind you'll get from finally understanding what the check is for will be totally worth the short wait for the paperwork!

This is such a reassuring thread to read! I actually received an unexpected Treasury check about 2 months ago and went through the same anxiety you're experiencing right now. Mine turned out to be completely legitimate - the IRS had reviewed my 2022 return and found I was eligible for additional education credits that I hadn't claimed. What really put my mind at ease was doing a few quick verification steps before depositing: I checked all the security features (watermarks, microprinting, etc.), confirmed my personal information was correct, and verified the check format matched legitimate Treasury checks I could find examples of online. The explanation notice (CP11 in my case) arrived about 2 weeks after I received the check, just like everyone else has described. It clearly explained which tax year was adjusted, what credits were recalculated, and even included the interest they added for the processing delay. Based on everything you've described - proper security features, correct personal information, and it being from the US Treasury - this sounds exactly like the routine adjustment refunds that the IRS processes constantly. I'd recommend going ahead and depositing it, but definitely keep documentation of everything. The explanation paperwork will arrive soon and clear up any remaining questions you have about where the refund came from!