ISSS-BU News . 04 December 2006.  ISSS-BU News

Visit ISSS on the Web! http://isss.binghamton.edu

Editor's Note: On Wednesday, December 6, the Office of International Student and Scholar Services will be closed from 11:30am to 1:30pm for a worker appreciation luncheon. We apologize for any inconvenience.

We have a number of important articles in this week's ISSS-BU News, which is longer than usual. Please review the table of contents carefully for articles of interest to you.

CONTENTS:

1. National Holidays for the Month of December

The following countries are celebrating national holidays during December:

2. Are You Employed? File a New Withholding Form and You May Save Money on Taxes!

If you are employed, including all on-campus employment, there may be an opportunity to save yourself some money on taxes, and receive a larger paycheck each pay period. How is that possible? The U.S. government has changed its withholding rules for non-residents for tax purposes effective with tax year 2006. F-1 and J-1 students are considered non-residents if they have been in the United States in that status for five or fewer years. So, someone in F-1 or J-1 status who began their studies as a student in 2002 or later and has been a student in the United States continuously since that time is a non-resident for tax purposes for tax year 2006. J-1 scholars or J-1 faculty are considered non-residents if they have been in the United States in that status for two or fewer years. So, a J-1 scholar or J-1 faculty who began research or teaching in 2005 or later is a non-resident for tax purposes for 2006.

What is the change? Non-residents no longer have to list an additional amount of withholding on line 6 of the federal W-4 form. Instead, the new rules for non-residents are:

•  Form W-4 box 3: check “single” or “married but withhold at higher single rate” UNLESS you are a resident of Canada, Mexico or the Republic of Korea” or a student citizen of India with a spouse who does not earn any US income

•  Form W-4 line 5: claim only 1 allowance UNLESS you are a resident of Canada, Mexico or the Republic of Korea” or a student citizen of India with a spouse who does not earn any US income

•  Form W-4 line 6: write “non resident alien” or NRA on line 6

•  Form W-4 line 7: leave line 7 blank

To view a W-4 form, go to the following link, which is a pdf file: http://www.irs.ustreas.gov/pub/irs-pdf/fw4.pdf

If you have not yet submitted an updated W-4 form to your employer, you may do so by downloading the form above, filling it out, and bringing it your employer's human resources or payroll office.

If you are on the New York State payroll, you may have already heard from Mr. Fred Bucalos in Human Resources, who is responsible for international income tax matters for individuals on the New York State Payroll.

The ISSS will shortly be updating its web page information on tax matters.

3. Do You Know the New Baggage Limitation Rules for Air Travel?

ISSS-BU News has begun publishing its bi-annual series of travel articles. A total of four articles will appear over the next two weeks. We want to remind readers who will be traveling by airplane that there have been significant changes to the rules governing baggage, especially what can be hand-carried into the plane with you, since the last time you may have flown. These restrictions apply to domestic (within United States) as well as international flights.

If you plan to travel by airplane, we recommend that you familiarize yourself with the new procedures that may have been implemented since the last time you traveled. Detailed information on security, access requirements, checkpoints for passengers and baggage, permitted and prohibited items, and recommendations for travel preparation is available at
http://www.tsa.gov/travelers/airtravel/prohibited/permitted-prohibited-items.shtm
http://www.tsa.gov/311/index.shtm

Additional information on international travel may be found at:
http://www.tsa.gov/travelers/airtravel/assistant/duty_free_travel_alert.shtm

4. Are You a Citizen of the United States, Canada, Mexico or the Bahamas? New Travel Rules for Western Hemisphere Travel Start January 23, 2007

Citizens of the United States, Canada, Mexico and the Bahamas traveling by air from any part of the Western Hemisphere to enter or re-enter the United States will be required to present a passport beginning January 23, 2007.

U.S. citizens will need a passport to enter the United States by air from Canada, Mexico, Bermuda, South and Central America, and the Caribbean (otherwise known as the Western Hemisphere).

Also under this rule, citizens of Mexico, Canada, and Bermuda will now have to have a passport when entering the United States by air. Previously, such travel was permitted without a passport.

Readers should note that this new rule only applies to air travel between these countries. The next phase will be sea and land travel.

As early as January 1, 2008, U.S. citizens traveling between the U.S. and Canada, Mexico, the Caribbean, and Bermuda by land or sea (including ferries), could be required to present a valid U.S. passport or other documents as determined by the Department of Homeland Security in a forthcoming separate rule. However, an official deadline has not yet been set. The U.S. government is encouraging its citizens to apply for a U.S. passport if any Western Hemisphere travel is planned.

To read the U.S. State Department Announcement, visit: http://www.state.gov/r/pa/prs/ps/2006/76752.htm

To read a helpful Q & A published by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, visit:
http://www.dhs.gov/xnews/releases/pr_1164210249468.shtm

5. Students May Now Request a Letter of Certification On-Line!

Many BU international students request a “Letter of Certification” from the Office of International Student and Scholar Services (ISSS). This is a letter that confirms your enrollment at Binghamton University, lists your level and field of study, and states that you are maintaining valid non-immigrant status. The letter is most frequently used by students who are applying for U.S. visas abroad, or traveling to Canada and need a Canadian temporary resident visa for entry. However, it is also used by students who need to show proof of student status to their home government, or for parents who need to withdraw money from a home country bank for school purposes.

Letters of certification may always be requested by stopping by the ISSS during regular business hours. Such letters are usually ready within 3-5 business days. However, such letters may now be requested on-line, saving you a trip to the ISSS. The on-line link is: http://isss.binghamton.edu/forms/LOC.htm

Letters of invitation to invite family members, relatives or friends to visit the United States may also be requested on-line at: http://isss.binghamton.edu/forms/LOI.htm

The ISSS strives to improve its programs and services to serve an ever-growing population of international students. Many of the most common forms used by international students and scholars are available for downloading from the ISSS home page. Just go to http://isss.binghamton.edu and click on “essential forms.”

6. Holiday Closing Dates for International Student and Scholar Services

The Office of International Student and Scholar Services, along with most other university offices, will be closed for what is traditionally known at the University as the "holiday shutdown" period. We will close at 4:00pm on Friday, December 22, 2006 and will not re-open until Tuesday, January 2, 2007 at 8:30am. During this period, there will be no mail delivery into or out of the office. Voice mail, e-mail and fax will be monitored periodically, but not every day.

International students and scholars who have paperwork that needs to be processed by the ISSS should note these dates. It is strongly recommend that any requests for documents be made no later than December 15 to assure timely processing. Remember not to wait until the last minute, as doing so may require you to wait until after January 2nd for documents to be returned to you!

7. Practical Training Update from the ISSS

If you are graduating in January, are in F-1 status, and have been planning to apply for optional practical training post-graduation, but have not yet done so, do not delay! Fall 2006 graduates must send their completed applications to the USCIS Vermont Processing Center so that it arrives there before January 12, 2007, which is the completion date for Fall graduates.

Please keep in mind that the ISSS office will close at 4:00pm on Friday, December 22, 2006 and will not reopen until Tuesday, January 2, 2007.

We remind our F-1 students to allow 7-10 business days for the ISSS portion of the processing of OPT applications. Traditionally, the ISSS has advised students to allow 12 weeks for application processing by US Citizenship and Immigration Services. You are urged to consider these dates when submitting your paperwork. Applications are available in the ISSS.

Once you receive your EAD card, please bring it to the ISSS so that a copy can be made for your file. This will prove very useful to you in case the card is ever lost or misplaced. Remember: you cannot begin employment any earlier than the starting date on the EAD card.

8. SEVIS Compliance and Spring 2007 Registration

It's very important that all BU students in F or J status who will be registered for the Spring 2007 semester know the SEVIS rules for being in compliance.

SEVIS Registration Deadline
The SEVIS deadline for continuing students to be registered for the Spring 2007 semester is February 21, 2007 (30 days following the first day of classes). Although the University has a late registration deadline of February 2, 2007, some graduate students, especially those taking dissertation or thesis credit, may register later than the late registration date.

Graduate Students Who Can Be Certified Full Time
Graduate students who have completed all of their course work requirements and will be registering for fewer than 9 credits in a course rubric that can be certified as full time (including thesis, dissertation or project) must also submit to their department a "Certification of Full Time Status" form. This form can be downloaded from the web at: http://gradschool.binghamton.edu/documents/FTCForm.pdf (Note that this is a pdf file. You will need Adobe Acrobat Reader to download it.)

Students Graduating in May 2007 Who Will Be Less Than Full-Time
Undergraduate students who will be graduating at the end of the Spring 2007 semester and plan to register for less than a full-time course load because they need fewer than full-time credits to graduate must complete a "Request for a Reduced Course Load Due to Course Completion" form, available in the ISSS or by downloading the form from the web at: http://isss.binghamton.edu/forms/study_comp.pdf

Graduate students who are graduating at the end of Spring 2007 and are registered for a course rubric that cannot be certified as full time must also complete this form.

9. SEVIS Compliance for Students Not Returning for Spring 2007

Students not returning to Binghamton University for the Spring 2007 semester need to complete a departure form with the ISSS, unless they will be on optional practical training. The departure form is available on the ISSS website. Visit: http://isss.binghamton.edu/forms/depForm.html

A paper version of the departure form is available in the ISSS. Those needing to complete a departure form include:

*those who are graduating in Fall 2006 but who will not be pursuing optional practical training
* exchange students who are completing their programs
* those who have decided to stop their Binghamton studies and either return to their home country or transfer to a new U.S. school
*anyone withdrawing or terminating their studies as of the end of the Fall 2006 semester

10. Tax Time Is Coming!

At the end of the month, many of you will receive in the mail annual statements from your bank or credit union, listing your 2006 interest earnings "for tax purposes." Those of you who filed tax forms last year may receive new forms in the mail from both the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) and New York State. By the end of January, those of you who were employed in the U.S. during 2005 will receive a wage and tax statement for 2006, also known as a W-2 form.
What does all this mean, and what should you do with these forms?

What follows is an introduction to U.S. income tax basics:

ALL students in F and J status are required to file tax returns, even if you have earned no income in the United States. The ISSS will have both federal and state tax forms available in late January, and will provide information on how to complete the forms. Watch future issues of ISSS-BU News for details. During December, the ISSS will be updating the Taxes section of the ISSS web site, http://isss.binghamton.edu/taxes/index.html

The ISSS provides free income tax compliance software, known as CINTAX, to all international students, international faculty and scholars, and international alumni who are eligible to be considered as non-residents for tax purposes (see the next paragraph for information on what qualifies someone to be a non-resident. CINTAX provides an easy to use web interface for entering information regarding your income tax liability, and then enters the information onto the required forms so that you can print them. CINTAX is password-protected so that only you have access to the information. Do not attempt to complete your income tax forms using the e-filing options recommended by the Internal Revenue Service. It is not possible to e-file tax returns if you are a non-resident for tax purposes. Information about how to access and use CINTAX will be announced in January.

International students in F or J status for 5 years or less (since 2002 or later) and their dependents, file tax forms as non-residents. Research scholars or faculty in J-1 status for 2 years or less (since 2005 or later) also file as non-residents.

If you did not earn any U.S. income during 2006 other than bank or credit union interest, then you need only file form 8843, Statement for Exempt Individuals and Individuals with a Medical Condition. The purpose of the 8843 is to verify that the non-resident qualifies to exempt days of presence, and thus shields the non-resident from being taxed as a resident. Being taxed as a U.S. resident allows the IRS to tax your world-wide income.

The deadline for filing tax forms is April 15, 2007. International students who have been in for F or J status for more than 5 years, research scholars and faculty who have been in J-1 status for more than 2 years, or those who are in other non- immigrant statuses, are generally eligible to file as residents for tax purposes, and must use different forms.

ISSS-BU is a listserv owned and managed by the Office of International Student and Scholar Services, Division of Student Affairs, at the State University of New York at Binghamton. It is the publisher of ISSS-BU News. Permission is granted to freely distribute the information posted to this list as long as its contents remain unchanged.

To sign on to ISSS-BU from an e-mail account on the Binghamton.edu server, send an e-mail message to listserv@listserv.binghamton.edu

Leave the subject line blank. In the message text, type:
subscribe ISSS-BU first name last name
Replace “first name last name” with your name.

If your e-mail account is on a server other than Binghamton.edu,
send an e-mail message to isss@binghamton.edu
In the message text, type: Please subscribe isss-bu, your e-mail address, your first and last name.

If you are a registered student and don't have an e-mail account, you may claim an e-mail address and password from http://busi.binghamton.edu/welcome.html Be sure to read and follow the instructions carefully. If you encounter difficulty, visit the Help Desk in the lobby of the Computer Services building.