Thanks for mentioning this! He's from Argentina, so I'll definitely check Publication 901. Do you know if I can still claim a treaty benefit even though taxes were already withheld on the 1042-S? And would I need to file any additional forms to claim this?

Yes, you can absolutely still claim treaty benefits even if taxes were already withheld! This happens frequently when students don't complete Form W-8BEN with their university at the beginning of their studies. The university withholds at the standard rate, but you can claim the treaty benefits when you file your return. For Argentina, check Article 22 of the US-Argentina tax treaty. You'll likely need to file Form 8833 (Treaty-Based Return Position Disclosure) along with your tax return to claim the benefit. TurboTax should prompt you for this form when you indicate you're claiming a treaty benefit.

Completely agree! I used to work at one of those tax prep chains, and we received almost no training on international forms. When I got a client with a 1042-S, I had to google it just like everyone else. CPA firms that advertise international tax services are definitely worth the extra money in these situations.

Exactly. Those national chains typically provide their preparers with only about 60-80 hours of training, which simply isn't enough to cover complex international tax situations. Most of that training focuses on common scenarios like W-2 income, child tax credits, and standard deductions. International taxation requires understanding tax treaties, foreign tax credits, and special forms like 8833 and 8843 that most preparers rarely encounter. A specialized CPA might charge more upfront but can prevent expensive mistakes or missed opportunities for tax savings.

Thanks for bringing this up - I had no idea they could just file a return for me! Do you know how long it typically takes before they do that? I'm trying to get all my paperwork together and I'm hoping I haven't hit that point yet.

It varies, but they typically start the SFR process 1-3 years after the return was due. Since your 2021 return would have been due in April 2022, they might be preparing an SFR soon if they haven't already. You can find out by requesting an account transcript from the IRS website. If you see a code 150 with "Substitute for Return" next to it, that means they've already filed one for you. But even if they have, you can still file your own return which will replace their SFR and potentially reduce what you owe significantly.

Be very careful with those tax relief companies. What they're referring to is an Offer in Compromise (OIC), which is legitimate but rarely approved. In 2020, only about 30% of OICs were accepted. These companies often charge thousands of dollars upfront with no guarantee of results. They're essentially offering what you can do yourself by filling out Form 656. To qualify for an OIC, you generally need to prove you can't pay through an installment agreement AND the full amount would cause financial hardship. For someone with steady salary income like the original poster, an OIC is unlikely to be approved unless there are significant other financial hardships.

Thanks for the additional information! I'm actually on a J1 as a researcher, so I guess the 2-year exempt individual rule would apply to me. Does that mean I'm automatically considered a nonresident alien for tax purposes regardless of how long I've been here?

As a J1 researcher, you're considered an "exempt individual" for 2 out of the last 6 calendar years. This means that during those "exempt" years, your days of presence in the US don't count toward the substantial presence test. So if this is your first calendar year in the US, you would generally be considered a nonresident alien for tax purposes regardless of how many days you've been physically present. However, being married to a US citizen gives you a special option: you can elect to be treated as a US resident for tax purposes by filing a statement with your tax return (using the Form 8833 that others have mentioned). This is almost always financially beneficial because it allows you to file jointly with your spouse and access more favorable tax rates and certain credits that aren't available to nonresidents.

I tried using TurboTax last year in this exact situation and it was a disaster. The software kept getting confused with the residency election forms. It couldn't handle the treaty benefits properly either. I ended up having to get help from a CPA who specializes in international taxation and he had to correct a bunch of mistakes the software made.

Ugh, that's what I was afraid of. I've always done my own taxes with TurboTax but this J1/marriage situation seems way more complicated. Did the CPA cost a fortune? I'm on a pretty tight budget with my research stipend.

That's a really good point that I hadn't considered. Luckily, I don't have any other traditional IRA accounts - I've only been doing these backdoor Roth contributions the last few years. Does the pro-rata rule apply to 401k accounts too, or only to IRA accounts? I have an old 401k from a previous employer that I haven't rolled over.

The pro-rata rule only applies to IRA accounts (Traditional, SEP, and SIMPLE), not to 401(k)s. So your old 401(k) won't affect your backdoor Roth strategy as long as you leave it where it is. This is actually why some people with existing traditional IRA balances will do a "reverse rollover" - moving their pre-tax IRA funds into their current employer's 401(k) if the plan allows it. This removes those funds from the pro-rata calculation, making the backdoor Roth process clean again. Something to keep in mind if your situation changes in the future.

TurboTax can handle backdoor Roth transactions, but you need to make sure you enter everything in the right order and answer the questions correctly. First enter your non-deductible traditional IRA contribution, then separately enter the Roth conversion. Make sure you indicate the traditional IRA contribution was non-deductible. When it asks about the conversion, be sure to enter any earnings that might have accrued between contribution and conversion (even if it was just a few dollars or cents). TurboTax should then generate Form 8606 correctly.

Thanks! That's helpful. I contributed and converted on the same day, so I think there weren't any earnings. But I'll check my statements just to be sure. Do you happen to know which section in TurboTax I need to go to? I've been poking around but can't seem to find where to enter the non-deductible contribution specifically.

Quick question - if the county website shows a different amount than what's on my mortgage statement, which one should I use for my tax return? My county site shows $4,120 but my mortgage escrow statement shows $3,985.

You should use the amount that was actually paid during the tax year, regardless of what was billed. The difference you're seeing is likely due to timing - maybe your mortgage company paid part of one year's taxes in the previous or following calendar year. Look at the payment dates on your county website. If you're filing taxes for 2024, you want to report the total property tax payments that were actually made during calendar year 2024 (January 1 - December 31), regardless of which tax year they were applied to by the county.

Thank you everyone for all the helpful advice! I managed to find exactly what I needed by checking my escrow statements online. Turns out my lender does include the property tax info on the 1098, but it's split between two different boxes and labeled weirdly. For anyone else struggling with this: definitely check your online mortgage account for the escrow analysis or year-end statement, which breaks everything down clearly. And the county tax website was super helpful too!