Can confirm! Filed on January 20th this year claiming EITC and my return still shows "processing" in the tracker. Super frustrating when you need the money.

I filed with EITC too and the delay is because of the PATH Act. The IRS legally can't issue refunds for returns with these credits before mid-February, no matter how early you file.

Not Brazilian, but I'm from Mexico and had a similar issue. The withholding rate depends on the specific type of payment and your status. For example, fellowship stipends for study/training are often eligible for a reduced treaty rate (usually 0-15%), while other types of income might be subject to the standard 30% NRA withholding. If the university misclassified your payment type or didn't properly apply the treaty benefit, they might have withheld at the default 30% rate. When you file your return with the correct treaty article cited, you should get the excess withholding refunded.

@d03ec506ad7d mentioned TaxAct through Free File - I actually used this last year for my situation as a postdoc from the UK. The treaty benefits section was pretty straightforward once I found it. You select your country from a dropdown, and it walks you through the relevant articles. For Canada-US treaty, it should automatically recognize the common fellowship/scholarship exemptions under Article XX. One tip: make sure you have your exact income classification ready when you go through the treaty section. The software will ask whether your fellowship was for study, research, or training, and the treaty benefits can vary slightly depending on how it's classified. Also keep your 1042-S handy since you'll need to verify that the income codes match what you're claiming treaty benefits for. @4c9bd1943bf6 - definitely double-check that Form 8833 requirement. For Canadian residents, it's usually required when you're claiming treaty benefits that would otherwise result in a reduction of withholding. Since you mentioned a research fellowship, you'll likely need it.

I used TaxAct through the Free File portal for my German situation last year, and it did handle the treaty benefits reasonably well. You have to manually select the treaty article that applies to your income type, but it walks you through the common scenarios. For Canada-US treaty, Article XX (Students and Trainees) is probably what you'll need for fellowship income - it typically provides exemption from US tax for qualifying educational payments. The software prompted me to attach Form 8833 when I claimed treaty benefits, so it should catch that requirement for you too. Just make sure you have your treaty article number and the specific provision you're claiming ready when you go through the interview process. One heads up though - even with the treaty provisions properly applied, I still had to wait about 10 weeks for my refund because the IRS manually reviews most treaty-based returns. But it did come through eventually with the full amount I was expecting.

Thanks for clarifying! That makes sense that it's still US-source income. I think I do qualify for the Physical Presence Test since I was outside the US for 330+ days last year. Just to be clear - in FreeTaxUSA, I should first enter my 1099-NEC income as self-employment, then separately go to the Foreign Income section to claim the exclusion on that same income? I don't want to accidentally report the same income twice.

Exactly right! You'll first enter your 1099-NEC income on Schedule C as self-employment income in FreeTaxUSA. Then you'll go to the Foreign Income section and complete Form 2555 for the Foreign Earned Income Exclusion. The software will automatically coordinate between the two - it won't double-count your income. When you complete the FEIE section, you'll indicate that you're excluding self-employment income that you already reported elsewhere in your return. FreeTaxUSA will then reduce your taxable income by the exclusion amount (up to the limit for 2022, which was $112,000). Just make sure you have good records of your travel dates to prove you meet the Physical Presence Test - you'll need to show you were outside the US for at least 330 days during a consecutive 12-month period. The IRS can be pretty strict about this requirement.

Yes, with $15,000 in your Singapore account, you would need to file the FBAR since it exceeded the $10,000 threshold. However, you likely wouldn't need to file Form 8938 because $15,000 is well below the $200,000 threshold that applies when you're living abroad as a single filer. The key difference is that FBAR looks at the highest balance at any point during the year (your $15,000), while Form 8938 looks at year-end balances or highest balances during the year but with much higher thresholds. Since you were living abroad for most of 2022, the higher thresholds would indeed apply to you for Form 8938 purposes. Just remember that FBAR is filed separately through the FinCEN website (fincen.gov) and has a different deadline - it's due by April 15th but there's an automatic extension to October 15th. It's completely separate from your tax return filing.

Yes, with $15,000 in your Singapore account, you would need to file the FBAR since you exceeded the $10,000 threshold. However, you likely wouldn't need to file Form 8938 because as someone living abroad for most of 2022, the higher threshold of $200,000 would apply to you, and your $15,000 account balance is well below that. Just remember that FBAR has to be filed separately through the FinCEN website (BSA E-Filing System) by April 15th (with an automatic extension to October 15th), while Form 8938 would be filed with your regular tax return through FreeTaxUSA if it were required. The FBAR filing is completely separate from your income tax return. Make sure to keep good records of your account statements showing the maximum balance during the year, as that's what the FBAR requires you to report.

Does that session approach work for online betting too? Like if I'm betting on multiple sports books in the same day, is each website considered a separate session? And do I need to provide all these session details when I file or just have them available if asked?

Yes, it works for online betting too. Each gambling platform/website would typically be considered its own session for that day. So if you use DraftKings, FanDuel, and BetMGM all on the same day, that would be three separate sessions. You don't submit all these details with your tax return. On your actual return, you'll report the total gambling winnings and then deduct losses (if you itemize) up to the amount of your winnings. The session records are what you keep for your own documentation in case the IRS ever questions your return. Most tax pros recommend keeping these records for at least 3 years after filing, which is the standard IRS audit window.

How much is considered "significant" for quarterly payments? I'm doing some low-level advantage play (maybe $5-8k profit this year) and haven't been making quarterly payments.

Generally, you need to make quarterly estimated payments if you expect to owe $1,000 or more in taxes when you file your return. With $5-8k in profit, you're probably looking at owing somewhere in the $1,200-2,400 range depending on your tax bracket and other income. The safe harbor rule is that if you pay at least 90% of this year's tax liability OR 100% of last year's tax liability (whichever is smaller) through estimated payments and withholding, you won't get hit with penalties. If your adjusted gross income was over $150k last year, you need to pay 110% of last year's liability. I'd recommend calculating your expected tax liability now and making a payment for Q4 if you haven't been doing quarterlies. Better to be safe than deal with underpayment penalties later.

With rental property income in addition to interest, you'll still file Form 1040-NR, but you'll also need to include Schedule E for the rental income. Rental income is treated differently for non-resident aliens - it's considered "effectively connected income" (ECI) taxed at graduated rates rather than the flat 30% (or lower treaty rate) for interest. You can also deduct expenses against the rental income.