Please review this page and the rest of our website if you have any questions regarding the tax filing process and any complications that may result.

Who is eligible to access our services

Our mission is to provide tax services to international students, scholars, teachers, and researchers. Generally, this means individuals that are present in the U.S. on an F, J, M, or Q visa who are nonresident aliens. To provide these services, we operate an IRS VITA (Volunteer Income Tax Assistance) tax clinic. We provide free access to tax software, tools, guides, and assistance by IRS trained and certified volunteers.

We grant free, no cost membership to individuals who:

  • Have an email address that ends in .edu, or

  • Support another IRS VITA tax clinic that assists international students, scholars, etc.

Our services are made available thanks to grants from the IRS and Minnesota Department of Revenue. We cannot provide the general public with access due to IRS/TaxSlayer restrictions. We limit access by requiring individuals to request membership, and grant it to those who meet the above requirements. Please note that not all individuals who qualify for membership may be in scope for tax assistance.

Confirm your federal tax residency for 2021

The easiest way to do this is to use our free Am I A Nonresident Alien? tool.

  • To use this tool you will need your visa and U.S. entry and exit dates. You can download your travel history based on your passport here: https://i94.cbp.dhs.gov/I94/#/home. You should double check this as it may not be complete, but it will give you a good start.

    • You’ll need your passport, visa, and entry/exit info for your return, too.

If you are a resident alien, you can request a membership and use our software to prepare your return. However, we do not provide any guides or other assistance to help you prepare your return. If you would like more assistance, here are two organizations that provide free tax preparation:

Clinic Scope

Out of Scope Situations

Unfortunately we are not able to provide assistance for all situations. The following is a list of some of the situations that are out of scope for our assistance. If you have a question about if your situation is within scope, please contact us at: taxassistance@nrvtap.com. If you have out of scope income you can still use TaxSlayer to prepare your return, but we will not be able to provide guidance about how to do so.

  • Income over $73,000 Note: this is a software limit, and you won’t be able to prepare a return if your income is over this amount.

  • Resident aliens (Free software or tax clinics are available for those who qualify)

  • Other state income tax returns (we support Minnesota and California returns, the software supports the other states, but we can’t help you do them)

  • Treaty benefits for income types other than wages, scholarships, dividends, and capital gains

  • Self-employment income (1099-NEC or 1099-MISC)

  • Income earned outside of the US

  • Amended returns

  • Prior year (2020 or earlier) returns

  • Cryptocurrency

The University of Minnesota International Student & Scholar Services group has put together some additional information that you might find helpful here: UofM ISSS Taxes