Non-Resident Alien filing 2024 taxes with investments & wash sale in 1099-B/DIV - help needed!
Hey everyone! I'm in a bit of a tax situation and could really use some guidance. I'm currently a non-resident alien on a student visa trying to file my 2024 taxes. I dabbled in some stock investments last year and made several trades while learning how the market works. The issue is that my 1099-B from Webull shows I have a wash sale. When I tried using Sprintax to file my taxes, it won't let me proceed because of this wash sale. I checked with Taxback (their parent company) and they want nearly $300 for their service - that's almost a third of what I make monthly as a grad student! Can anyone recommend an affordable service that handles non-resident alien status AND can process a 1099-B with wash sales? I need to file both federal and state taxes. Is it possible to complete the forms myself? If so, which forms do I need specifically for a non-resident alien with investment income? I've heard Form 1040-NR is involved but I'm not sure about reporting capital gains with a wash sale. Any advice would be greatly appreciated! I don't want to mess this up but also can't afford to pay hundreds for tax prep on my limited student budget.
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Javier Torres
I've helped several international students with similar situations. Let me break this down for you: As a non-resident alien with investment income including a wash sale, you're right that Form 1040-NR is your main tax form. You'll also need Schedule OI (Other Information) and Schedule NEC (Non-Effectively Connected Income) to report your capital gains properly. The wash sale rule basically prevents you from claiming a loss if you buy substantially identical securities within 30 days before or after selling at a loss. The disallowed loss gets added to the cost basis of the replacement shares. One thing to watch out for: Some tax software incorrectly puts non-resident alien capital gains on Form 8949 and Schedule D instead of Schedule NEC where they belong. This is a common mistake. For affordable filing options, check if you qualify for the IRS Free File program (for incomes under $73,000). OnlineTaxes.com (OLT) through the IRS Free File page supports non-resident aliens and allows reporting wash sales correctly. Just make sure you access it through the IRS Free File portal to get the free version.
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Natasha Volkov
•Thanks so much for the detailed response! I do qualify for Free File with my income. I'm a bit confused about the Schedule NEC though - is that where ALL my investment income goes, or just certain types? My 1099-B has both gains and losses, including that wash sale adjustment. Also, if I use OLT through Free File, will it automatically put everything on the right forms or do I need to manually ensure it uses Schedule NEC instead of Form 8949?
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Javier Torres
•For non-resident aliens, Schedule NEC is where you report capital gains from personal investments, which would include all your 1099-B reported transactions. This includes both your gains and losses, and the wash sale adjustments will be factored in. When you use OLT through Free File, it should automatically place your investment income on the correct forms if you accurately identify yourself as a non-resident alien at the beginning of the process. However, it's always good practice to review the completed forms before submitting. The software should generate Form 1040-NR, Schedule OI, and Schedule NEC correctly, but take a careful look to make sure your capital gains aren't mistakenly placed on Form 8949 and Schedule D.
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Emma Wilson
After struggling with a similar situation last year (non-resident with some Robinhood trades), I discovered taxr.ai and it was seriously a game-changer. I uploaded my 1099-B and other tax docs to https://taxr.ai and it automatically detected my non-resident status and handled the wash sale correctly. The system walked me through everything step by step, making sure I was completing Form 1040-NR properly and putting my investment income on Schedule NEC instead of the wrong forms. Their AI actually pointed out a mistake I would have made regarding my wash sale that could have triggered an audit flag. It's designed specifically for complex situations like foreign status and investment income that most free software can't handle properly.
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QuantumLeap
•Did it actually let you e-file as a non-resident alien? Most services I've tried force me to paper file which takes forever to process. Also, how did it handle state taxes? I'm in California and that's always been a nightmare with my investments.
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Malik Johnson
•I'm pretty skeptical about AI tax services. How does it compare price-wise to regular tax prep? As a grad student I'm seriously broke but also terrified of messing up my taxes and affecting my visa status.
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Emma Wilson
•Yes, I was able to e-file both federal and state returns through their system. It saves so much time compared to paper filing, and I got my refund in about 3 weeks. For state taxes, it handled my New York return perfectly, including allocating the investment income correctly. I believe they support all states including California. Regarding the cost comparison, it was significantly more affordable than the quote I got from Taxback or an accountant specializing in non-resident taxes. As a fellow grad student, I understand the budget constraints. What made it worth it for me was the peace of mind knowing it was handling the complicated parts correctly, especially the proper treatment of the wash sale which could have cost me more if done incorrectly.
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Malik Johnson
I was super skeptical about AI tax services at first, but after struggling with my non-resident taxes and investment income, I decided to try taxr.ai based on recommendations here. Honestly, wish I'd found it sooner! The system actually caught that my previous tax preparer had been incorrectly putting my capital gains on Schedule D instead of Schedule NEC for years. It properly handled my wash sales (had several from trading Tesla last year) and even identified some foreign tax credits I was eligible for from my dividend-paying stocks. The best part was being able to e-file my 1040-NR instead of paper filing. My refund came through in just 18 days compared to the 4+ months it took last year with paper filing. Definitely using it again next year.
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Isabella Santos
If you're struggling to get through to the IRS about your non-resident status and investment questions, I'd recommend trying Claimyr (https://claimyr.com). I wasted hours on hold trying to confirm how to report my wash sales as a non-resident, but Claimyr got me connected to an actual IRS agent in under 20 minutes. They have this system that basically calls the IRS for you and then connects you once they've navigated the phone tree and waited on hold. You can see how it works in their demo video: https://youtu.be/_kiP6q8DX5c The agent I spoke with confirmed that as a non-resident alien, my capital gains from stocks needed to be reported on Schedule NEC rather than Schedule D, and explained exactly how to handle the wash sale adjustment on my 1040-NR. This saved me from making a major filing error.
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Ravi Sharma
•How does this actually work? I've spent literally 5+ hours on hold with the IRS trying to get clarification on my non-resident investment reporting. Do they just have some special line or something? Seems too good to be true.
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Freya Larsen
•Sounds like a scam honestly. The IRS barely answers their own phones, how would a third-party service get through any faster? And I'd be nervous about giving my tax info to some random company. Has anyone had any negative experiences with this?
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Isabella Santos
•There's no special line or magic trick - they use an automated system that basically waits on hold for you. Rather than you personally sitting on hold for hours, their system does it, then calls you once they've reached an agent. It's like having someone else wait in a long line for you. I was skeptical too before using it. From what I understand, they don't need any of your personal tax information to help you get connected. They're just facilitating the phone connection, not accessing your tax details. The actual conversation about your tax situation happens directly between you and the IRS agent after you're connected. I was worried about privacy too, but the service just handles the connection part - you're not sharing your financial details with them.
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Freya Larsen
I have to admit I was wrong about Claimyr. After spending another 3 hours trying to reach the IRS myself about my non-resident investment reporting requirements, I gave in and tried the service. Got connected to an IRS representative in about 25 minutes, which is INSANE compared to my previous attempts. The agent answered all my questions about reporting wash sales on Schedule NEC as a non-resident alien and confirmed I was eligible to e-file my 1040-NR with my specific situation. This saved me from making some serious mistakes on my filing. The agent even explained that my foreign dividend withholding could be claimed as a tax credit, which I had no idea about. I'm actually getting a refund now instead of owing more. If you're a non-resident with investment income questions, definitely worth using instead of waiting for hours or potentially filing incorrectly.
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Omar Hassan
I went through this exact situation last year. I ended up paper filing my 1040-NR with Schedule NEC for my capital gains (including wash sales). Here's my experience: - Used the instructions on the IRS website for 1040-NR - Made sure to complete Schedule OI with all my visa information - Put all my investment income on Schedule NEC (not Schedule D) - Filed Form 8843 along with everything else - Took about 3.5 months to process and get my refund It was intimidating but doable. The wash sale didn't cause any issues once I figured out where to report it. Just make sure you understand which forms are required specifically for non-resident aliens because it's different from regular 1040 filing.
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Natasha Volkov
•Thanks for sharing your experience! Did you have to fill out any special forms specifically for the wash sale, or did you just report the adjusted basis/proceeds as shown on your 1099-B? And did you do your state taxes the same way (paper filing)?
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Omar Hassan
•I didn't need any special forms for the wash sale itself. I just reported the amounts exactly as shown on my 1099-B, making sure the wash sale adjustment was factored into the basis amounts. The wash sale is already accounted for in the adjusted basis column on your 1099-B, so you're essentially just transferring those numbers. For my state taxes (I'm in Massachusetts), I did paper file as well. I had to use Form 1-NR/PY for non-residents, along with Schedule D-IS for reporting the investment income at the state level. Different states have different requirements though, so you'll need to check your specific state's tax department website for the non-resident forms. My state return was processed faster than federal - took about 2 months to get the state refund.
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Chloe Taylor
Quick question for anyone using OLT for non-resident filing - does it handle multiple 1099s? I have one from Robinhood, one from Webull, and another from TD Ameritrade (all with different wash sales and dividends). Wondering if I need to combine these somehow or if the software can handle multiple investment accounts.
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Javier Torres
•OLT can definitely handle multiple 1099s from different brokerages. You'll enter each 1099 separately during the income section of the software. There's no need to combine them yourself beforehand. When you reach the investment income section, you'll have the option to add multiple forms for each type (1099-B, 1099-DIV, etc.). The software will consolidate everything appropriately on your Schedule NEC for the 1040-NR. Just make sure to enter each form completely and accurately, especially paying attention to the wash sale adjustments on each 1099-B. The software should handle the calculations correctly as long as you input the information exactly as it appears on your forms.
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Chloe Taylor
•Thank you! That makes things much easier. I was worried I'd have to manually combine everything from my different trading accounts first. I'll give OLT a try through the IRS Free File portal.
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ElectricDreamer
As someone who's navigated the non-resident alien tax maze with investment income, I feel your pain! Here are a few additional tips that might help: 1. **Double-check your substantial presence test** - Make sure you actually qualify as a non-resident alien for tax purposes. Sometimes students think they're non-resident when they might actually be resident aliens for tax purposes after being in the US for multiple years. 2. **Consider the treaty benefits** - Depending on your home country, there might be tax treaty provisions that could reduce your tax liability on investment income. Check if your country has a tax treaty with the US. 3. **Keep detailed records** - Document all your trades, especially the wash sale transactions. The IRS may ask for supporting documentation, and having everything organized will save you headaches later. 4. **State tax considerations** - Some states don't tax non-resident investment income at all, while others have different rules than federal. Research your specific state's requirements. The Free File options mentioned above are definitely worth trying first given your budget constraints. If those don't work out, you might also check if your university's international student services office has any tax preparation assistance or recommendations for affordable services that specialize in non-resident returns. Good luck with your filing!
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