CGE partners with Sprintax to aid international students
As tax season looms, confusion and frustration are common emotions in many American households. But for Augustana’s international students, April 15 is a uniquely stressful day.
However, a partnership between the university’s Center for Global Engagement (CGE) and Sprintax, a tax-filing platform designed specifically for nonresidents, could help ease the burden.
“[Sprintax] is really the go-to program for international students who need to file their taxes and can’t really use normal tax software,” Joseph Edmonson, assistant director of international programs at the CGE, said. “It functions a lot like TurboTax, for instance. You go through, plug in all the necessary information, and then depending on your answers, it lets you know what kind of tax forms you need to fill out.”
The CGE’s announcement comes at a moment when many international students are navigating the complexities of the U.S. tax system for the first time. Unlike domestic students, they are subject to a unique set of rules, residency classifications and form requirements from the Internal Revenue Service (IRS).
Potential filing and noncompliance mistakes only add to the stress. International students may face future visa issues, refund delays and other penalties if tax returns are filed incorrectly.
Freshman Alice Gomes, an international student from Brazil, is experiencing the anxieties of filing nonresident taxes as a newcomer.
“It’s very stressful because it’s different from what I’m used to back at home,” she said. “I don’t know the process very well. The hardest part is knowing exactly what I need to do and how to get the information filled correctly.”
This year marked her first time using the Sprintax platform to file.
“The website is clear about what you need to do,” Gomes said. “They get your information and they help you fill out the forms.”
The 1040-NR is the primary tax return for nonresidents, but it is often a secondary form that causes many international students the most trouble. Unlike the 1040-NR, Form 8843 must be filed by every international student, even if they did not earn income in the United States this past year.
The U.S. government uses Form 8843 as an official statement from international students, clarifying that while they may be present in the United States, they should not be treated as a resident for tax purposes. Many international students assume that if they do not earn income, they need not file taxes.
Sophomore Roji Parajuli did not earn income her freshman year, but she experienced the difficulties of filing in an unfamiliar system.
“It wasn’t very fun,” she said. “I remember working on it with another international friend. We watched a YouTube instruction video, but I was worried about missing certain information or steps in the process.”
Sprintax helps avoid errors like this by generating a variety of common and specialized tax forms, including Form 8843 and the 1040-NR. According to Edmonson, the benefits of this platform stretch beyond generating tax forms.
He described a handful of additional resources the company provides to its users, ranging from video guides and webinars to a blog, a discussion platform and round-the-clock assistance via the website’s chat function.
“It’s pretty robust and functions well,” Edmonson said.
The CGE provides international students who are interested in using the platform with access codes that cover the cost of filing basic tax returns. They need only to visit the Sprintax website, create an account, begin answering questions in the form and enter that code once all questions have been answered.
