The U.S. government is sending out a third round of Economic Impact Payments (EIP). However, since many international students and scholars are nonresidents for U.S. tax purposes, they are not eligible for the payment. As was the case with the first and second rounds of payments, if you were not a U.S. tax resident for 2020, you probably are not eligible for the payment. You must also have a social security number.
If you believe you are eligible for the economic impact payments
- These payments are being issued automatically. There is no need to contact the IRS to request the payment. However, you can check the status of your payment using the IRS Get My Payment tool.
If you received an economic impact payment in error:
- If you received any of the economic stimulus payments but are not eligible for them because you were a nonresident for U.S. tax purposes in 2020, you should follow these instructions to return the payment (s) to the IRS. Be sure to keep a copy of the check and of anything else that you send to the IRS.
- You should also confirm that your recent tax returns (2018 or 2019) were filed correctly. Most likely, you received the payment (s) because you incorrectly filed a resident tax form for 2018 or 2019 instead of a nonresident tax form. In that case, you should correct your error by filing an amended tax return. Glacier Tax Prep software includes detailed instructions for preparing an amended tax return form in the FAQs that you will see once you have logged into Glacier Tax Prep. All U-M/Ann Arbor international students can use Glacier Tax Prep free of charge.
- If you filed a resident tax form in error, this probably happened because you used tax software that is designed for residents, and that software prepared the resident tax form (Form 1040) instead of the nonresident form (Form 1040NR). One example of tax software designed for U.S. tax residents is TurboTax, but there are many others. In the future, be sure to use Glacier Tax Prep, the software that the International Center licenses for you, since it will prepare the correct nonresident tax form for you.
For more information: the IRS has posted a summary and detailed information and FAQs
Last Updated: 03/22/2021