• SUNY RF
• Information For
• Employee Center
• Taxation & Reporting
• Determine Residency Status

Determine Residency Status

There are four IRS residency statuses:

• United States (U.S.) Citizen

• Permanent Resident - Non U.S Citizen that is a lawful “Permanent Resident” (With a valid “Green Card”)

• Resident Alien - Non U.S. Citizen that has been in the country long enough to meet the IRS “Substantial Presence Test” (SPT)

• Nonresident Alien – Non U.S. Citizen that is not a Permanent Resident or meets the SPT test

If you are NOT a United States Citizen

The RF will have to collect some basic information about your visit to the United States and evaluate your Internal Revenue Services (IRS) residency status.

To access pertinent information in this tool that applies to your IRS residency status – you must determine your IRS residency status for tax and reporting. There are separate and distinct rules on taxation and reporting if you are a permanent resident / resident alien versus a nonresident alien for tax purposes.

• Call the IRS Tele-Tax service at 1 800 829-4477 and listen to “Tax Topic” # 851 OR

• Go to “Determining Alien Tax Status” for non U.S. Citizen on the IRS website

If you will receive reportable income, you will need to provide the appropriate U.S. Taxpayer Identification Number (TIN)  or apply for a TIN if you do not already have one.

For Project Staff:
If you are planning to invite or you know a non United States (U.S.) citizen will be coming to the U.S. for RF activity, it is critical that you build in time to verify certain items such as:

• the proper visa is available and obtained for the visit and for the payment classification

• determine IRS residency status

• determination on payments and communicate to the recipient of any taxable and reportable payments that they should start the process to obtain a U.S. Taxpayer Identification number if they do not already have one.