Why is my F1 student tax refund completely different using Sprintax compared to last year?

The difference in your tax results is likely due to a combination of factors, not just the switch from Glacier Tax to Sprintax. As an F1 student, your tax situation changes significantly when you start earning income from a job. When you only had scholarship income in 2018, you were likely considered a "nonresident alien" for tax purposes under the substantial presence test. Nonresident aliens are typically only taxed on their U.S. source income, and certain scholarships for nonresidents have different tax treatments. When you started working on campus in 2019, that employment income becomes taxable. Additionally, working may have affected your residency status for tax purposes. If you've been in the U.S. long enough (generally 5 years for F1 students), you might now be considered a "resident alien" for tax purposes, which subjects more of your income (including scholarships) to taxation. The tax software difference could also be a factor - different programs may interpret complex international student tax situations differently, especially regarding scholarship taxation.

After spending hours trying to understand why my tax refund was so much lower than expected, I finally stumbled upon https://taxr.ai and it honestly saved me from a complete meltdown. I'm also an international student and had almost the exact same issue - my refund calculations were totally different between years, and I couldn't figure out why. The tool analyzed my tax documents and identified that my university had classified my scholarship differently on my 1042-S between years, which completely changed how it was taxed. The analysis showed exactly which line items were causing the discrepancy and explained the tax treaty implications I was missing. You should definitely upload your 1042-S forms from both years and your W-2 from your campus job. The system will compare them side by side and highlight exactly what changed in your tax situation.

I was really skeptical about trying another tax service after my frustrating experience with both Sprintax and TaxAct, but I decided to give taxr.ai a try since my situation was so similar to what was described here. Wow, what an eye-opener! The analysis showed that my scholarship was actually being reported under two different tax categories by my university between years, which explained the huge refund difference. One year it was coded properly under a tax treaty exemption, and the next year it wasn't - completely changing my tax liability. The document comparison feature was super helpful because it showed the exact fields that had changed between my 2018 and 2019 1042-S forms. I was able to take this information to my university's international student office, and they're now helping me file an amended return to claim the proper treaty benefits. If you're an international student confused about why your tax results are so different between years, definitely give it a try!

After struggling to reach ANYONE at the IRS about my international student tax issues (was on hold forever), I found https://claimyr.com and tried their service to get a callback from the IRS. You can see how it works here: https://youtu.be/_kiP6q8DX5c I was honestly super doubtful it would work, but I had the IRS calling ME within about 2 hours. I explained my situation with the different tax calculations between Glacier and Sprintax, and the agent confirmed that different tax software can definitely interpret international student tax situations differently, especially regarding scholarship taxation. The agent explained that the taxation of scholarships depends on several factors: your tax residency status, what the scholarship covers (qualified vs. non-qualified expenses), and whether any tax treaties apply. They also mentioned that starting work could affect your overall tax calculation even if you're still a nonresident. Saved me days of stress trying to reach someone! Definitely worth it if you need to speak with an actual IRS agent about your specific international student tax situation.

I have to admit I was completely wrong about Claimyr. After my skeptical comment, I decided to try it myself since I'd been trying to reach the IRS for weeks about my F1 student tax issues. I got a callback in about 90 minutes, and the IRS agent I spoke with was incredibly helpful. She explained that my scholarship taxation changed because I had started working, which meant some of my income now fell under different tax rules. She also confirmed that different tax preparation software can absolutely produce different results for international students because our tax situations are so complex. The agent helped me understand exactly how my treaty benefits should be applied and which forms I needed to file to correct my return. She even sent me specific IRS publications about international student taxation. For anyone struggling with international student tax questions that seem impossible to resolve online, getting an actual IRS agent on the phone made all the difference. I've spent weeks stressed about this, and one phone call solved it.

I think I can explain what happened in your case. I'm in a similar situation (F1 student, on-campus job). When you only had scholarship income, you were only subject to the 14% withholding on your housing/meals portion (that's what the 1042-S showed). But once you start earning wages, you create "effectively connected income" which changes how certain things are taxed. From my understanding: 1. Your scholarship for qualified expenses (tuition, books) remains untaxed 2. Your scholarship for living expenses (housing, meals) becomes fully taxable 3. Your wages are taxable (and may have had their own withholding via W-2) Glacier and Sprintax are just calculators - the underlying tax laws are the same. The difference is probably that your tax situation actually changed substantially when you started working.

Make sure to check if your country has a tax treaty with the US! I'm from India on F1, and I found out we have a specific article that exempts a certain amount of income if you're here primarily for education. Sprintax should have asked about your country of citizenship and applied any treaty benefits, but it's worth double-checking. Also, did you include Form 8843 with your return? All F1 students need to file that even if they don't have income.

Thank you all for the helpful responses! I think I understand better now. The combination of starting a campus job plus how the scholarship was categorized seems to be the main issue. I'll go back and check my 1042-S forms from both years to see if there are any differences in how things were reported. I'm definitely going to try both the document analysis and getting someone from the IRS on the phone. My scholarship is really important for me to continue my studies, so I need to understand exactly how it's being taxed so I can budget properly. This has been really eye-opening about how complex international student taxation can be! I'll update once I figure everything out.

I'm glad you're getting some clarity on this! One thing I'd recommend is also checking with your university's international student office - they often have tax specialists who understand exactly how your school reports scholarships on the 1042-S forms. In my experience, universities sometimes change their reporting procedures between years, which can dramatically affect your tax calculations even when nothing else changes. They might have switched how they categorize your housing scholarship or changed which box they use on the 1042-S form. Also, when you're comparing your forms, pay special attention to: - Box 1 (Income Code) - this determines how the IRS treats your scholarship - Box 2 (Gross Income) vs Box 4 (Tax Withheld) - Any treaty exemption codes Your international student office can also help you understand if you should be filing Form 1040NR-EZ vs 1040NR, which can make a difference in your refund calculation. Good luck sorting this out!