1999
Department of the Treasury
Internal Revenue Service
Instructions for Form
1040NR-EZ
U.S. Income Tax Return for Certain Nonresident Aliens
With No Dependents
Section references are to the Internal Revenue Code unless otherwise noted.
May I Use Form 1040NR-EZ?
You can use Form 1040NR-EZ instead
of Form 1040NR if all nine of the
following apply.
1. You do not claim any dependents.
2. You cannot be claimed as a
dependent on another person's U.S. tax
return (such as your parent's return).
3. Your only U.S. source income was
from wages, salaries, tips, taxable refunds
of state and local income taxes, and
scholarship or fellowship grants.
Note: If you had taxable interest or
dividend income, you cannot use this
form.
4. Your taxable income (line 14 of
Form 1040NR-EZ) is less than $50,000.
5. The only adjustments to income
you can claim are the student loan
interest deduction or scholarship and
fellowship grants excluded.
6. You do not claim any tax credits.
7. If you were married, you do not
claim an exemption for your spouse.
8. If you itemize deductions, the only
deduction you claim is for state and local
income taxes.
9. The only taxes you owe are:
a. The tax from the tax table on pages
8 through 12.
b. The social security and Medicare
tax on tip income not reported to your
employer.
c. The household employment taxes.
General Instructions
What's New for 1999?
Student Loan Interest Deduction
If you paid interest on a qualified student
loan, you may be able to deduct up to
$1,500 of the interest on line 8. See the
instructions for line 8 on page 4 for
details.
What To Look for in 2000
Student Loan Interest Deduction
You may be able to deduct up to $2,000
of the interest you pay on a qualified
student loan.
Other Reporting
Requirements
If you meet the closer connection to a
foreign country exception to the
substantial presence test, you must file
Form 8840, Closer Connection Exception
Statement for Aliens. If you exclude days
of presence in the United States for
purposes of the substantial presence test,
you must file Form 8843, Statement for
Exempt Individuals and Individuals With
a Medical Condition. This rule does not
apply to foreign-government-related
individuals who exclude days of presence
in the United States. Certain dual-resident
taxpayers who claim tax treaty benefits
must file Form 8833, Treaty-Based
Return Position Disclosure Under Section
6114 or 7701(b). A dual-resident
taxpayer is one who is a resident of both
the United States and another country
under each country's tax laws.
Additional Information
If you need more information, our free
publications may help you. Pub. 519, U.S.
Tax Guide for Aliens, will be the most
important, but the following publications
may also help.
Pub. 552, Recordkeeping for Individuals
Pub. 597, Information on the United
States-Canada Income Tax Treaty
Pub. 901, U.S. Tax Treaties
Pub. 910, Guide to Free Tax Services
(includes a list of all publications)
These free publications and the forms
and schedules you will need are available
on request from the Internal Revenue
Service. If you have a foreign address,
send your order to the Eastern Area
Distribution Center, P.O. Box 85074,
Richmond, VA 23261-5074, U.S.A. You
may also download forms and
publications from the IRS Internet web
site at www.irs.gov. Also see Taxpayer
Assistance on page 7 for other ways to
get these forms and publications (as well
as information on receiving IRS
assistance in completing the forms).
Resident Alien or
Nonresident Alien
If you are not a citizen of the United
States, specific rules apply to determine
if you are a resident alien or a nonresident
alien for tax purposes. Generally, you are
considered a resident alien if you meet
either the green card test or the
substantial presence test for 1999. If
you do not meet either of these tests for
1999 but you meet the substantial
presence test for 2000, you may be able
to choose to be treated as a resident alien
for part of 1999. But you must have been
physically present in the United States for
at least 31 days in a row during 1999 to
do so. This choice does not apply if you
met either the green card test or the
substantial presence test for 1998. For
more details, see Pub. 519.
You are considered a nonresident alien
for the year if you are not a U.S. resident
under either of these tests. You are also
considered a nonresident alien if you
otherwise meet the substantial presence
test but you come under any of the three
exceptions described below.
For more details on resident and
nonresident status, the tests for residence
and the exceptions to them, see Pub.
519.
Green Card Test. You are a resident for
tax purposes if you were a lawful
permanent resident (immigrant) of the
United States at any time during 1999.
Substantial Presence Test. You are
considered a U.S. resident if you meet the
substantial presence test for 1999. You
meet this test if you were physically
present in the United States for at least:
1. 31 days during 1999, and
2. 183 days during the period 1999,
1998, and 1997, counting all the days of
physical presence in 1999 but only 1/3 the
number of days of presence in 1998 and
only1/6 the number of days in 1997.
Generally, you are treated as present
in the United States on any day that you
are physically present in the country at
any time during the day.
Exceptions:
1. Exempt individual. You do not
count days for which you are an exempt
individual. In general, an exempt
individual is an individual who is a:
Cat. No. 21718P
