Information for Administrative Staff and Faculty

Many of Vanderbilt’s international students, scholars, and researchers are considered nonresident aliens (NRA) for tax purposes. People who are nonresident aliens for tax purposes are generally taxed at much higher rates on all income from U.S. sources than resident aliens and citizens are. Therefore, NRAs must have a basic understanding of the U.S. tax system and how to minimize over-taxation. It is important for the departments that are paying NRAs to have a basic understanding as well. For example, if a department sets up a service free stipend (SFS) for an international student but does not identify them as “ international” to People Experience (PE) or the International Tax Office (ITO), the student may not have the appropriate amount of tax withheld from their payments and may unexpectedly owe hundreds of dollars to the IRS at tax time.

Common payments to students		Common Payments to Visitors/Guests See also Getting a Guest/Visitor Paid
Stipend Payments Student Travel Reimbursement Prizes and Awards to Nonresident Aliens		Speaker or Consultant Fees Honorarium Payments Payments to Conference Attendees, Speakers and Panelists Payments to Human Subject Participants Professional Athletes and Entertainers

Other Types of Payments and Payees		Getting a Guest/Visitor paid
Miscellaneous Payments Services or Work Outside the USA Goods & Services		Business Visitors: Tax Compliance Requirements Payments to Foreign Vendors or Businesses Reimbursement Of Travel Expenses for Visitors/Employees

IRS Information		Employment Topics
FICA Tax & Exemptions Forms W-2 and 1042S Forms W-8 (Series) and W-9 Substantial Presence Test (SPT) Tax Treaties, the Saving Clause & Exception to the Saving Clause Tax Treaties (Link to IRS website) Special W-4 Requirements for Nonresident Aliens		Wages and Salary for International Employees Working without a Social Security Number Hiring International Students
		General Information
		International Tax Overview & GLACIER Tax Compliance System Key Terms and Definitions

Hiring an International Student?

Please complete the PHN/Glacier Access Request Form if your student has not been previously employed at Vanderbilt. The PHN will be their VU Student Admission number (begins with a 9). It is imperative that your student obtain a Social Security Number. After they obtain a Social Security Number, they need to update their GLACIER account and notify the ITO that they have done so. The ITO in turn will update Payroll. The student also needs to notify the Registrar and the ISSS office. They will also need to update their information in Oracle Cloud.

What Is GLACIER?

GLACIER is an online tax compliance system that enables the ITO to collect information, make tax residency and income tax treaty determinations, and file reporting statements with the IRS.

When the ITO sends your student access to GLACIER an email will come from support@online-tax.net. Your student will need to create a profile in GLACIER in order for the ITO to accurately withhold taxes and apply any applicable tax treaty benefits. The student will be required to print the forms that generate from GLACIER and submit those forms along with their immigration information to the ITO.

Failing to request GLACIER access can potentially cause large tax liabilities for students when they are not taxed appropriately.

Information for Administrative Staff and Faculty

Presentations