6

I'm in a situation where I left the U.S. last year in April, 2015. I worked in the U.S. until March 2015, so I received a W2 for the year 2015 from my US employer.

But since April 2015, I'm back in India now, and I do not have a status in the U.S. any more.

So what should I do in this case? Should I pay a tax return? If yes, then on what basis? I mean, I don't even live in U.S. anymore.

So what address should I use for communication? Should I use my SSN even if I don't have any status in US right now? I don't even have a bank account, so if I'm eligible for a refund, then how will that work?

I'm confused as to how a return works for a non-U.S. citizen

I hope to get some answers from the community.

Thank you.

Improve this question
1
  • I helped my friend to file his taxes via HR Block who was in similar situation like yours. I mailed the refund checks to him.
    – John
    Commented Mar 3, 2017 at 18:49

2 Answers 2

Reset to default
13

You were US resident part of the year (or at least had US-sourced income, I'm assuming you were resident), so yes - you should be filing a tax return. Since you returned to India, this would be a dual-status year. You'll be filing as resident for the portion until you left and as non-resident for the rest of the year.

If you weren't US tax resident before you left - you'll file as non-resident for the whole year, but you still need to report, and pay taxes on, your US-sourced income.

What address you should use? Yours, I presume you are not currently homeless.

Should you use your SSN? Yes. SSN has nothing to do with your current status or location, it is your identification number. You'll keep it forever.

If you receive a refund - they'll mail you a check. To that same address from the first question.

Improve this answer
2
  • That's not true, he should review the IRS documentation regarding whether or not he actually classes as resident as that will affect what return form he needs to use. residency is also dependent on Visa status, not just number of days in the USA - a number of Visas result in an exemption for residency purposes.
    – Olipro
    Commented Mar 14, 2016 at 19:13
  • @Olipro What exactly is not true? I think I covered both cases. He's likely to be required to file either way, and I think my answer should give enough direction to start researching what exactly he might be needing.
    – littleadv
    Commented Mar 15, 2016 at 2:13
0

Consult an accountant or a tax professional. I'm pretty sure you will need to file two returns, one for India and one for the U.S. If you don't file a U.S. return you may hurt your chances of working there in the future. You may also get a refund. So, well worth it.

Improve this answer

You must log in to answer this question.

Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged .