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Form 8833 - Tax Treaty Return
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To enter a description and an amount for Line 8 of Schedule 1 (Form 1040) to reduce the taxable wage amount from Form 1040 U.S. Individual Income Tax Return Line 1, if that is appropriate in your situation, go to our Form 1040 - Other Income FAQ.


Per the IRS Claiming Tax Treaty Benefits webpage:

If a tax treaty between the United States and your country provides an exemption from, or a reduced rate of, withholding for certain items of income, you should notify the payor of the income (the withholding agent) of your foreign status to claim the benefits of the treaty. Generally, you do this by filing Form W-8BEN, Certificate of Foreign Status of Beneficial Owner for United States Tax Withholding or W-8BEN-E, Certificate of Status of Beneficial Owner for United States Tax Withholding and Reporting (Entities) or Form 8233, Exemption from Withholding on Compensation for Independent (& Certain Dependent) Personal Service of a Nonresident Alien Individual with the withholding agent.


Per IRS Publication 519 U.S. Tax Guide for Aliens, page 48:

Reporting Treaty Benefits Claimed

If you claim treaty benefits that override or modify any provision of the Internal Revenue Code, and by claiming these benefits your tax is, or might be, reduced, you must attach a fully completed Form 8833 to your tax return. See Exceptions below for the situations where you are not required to file Form 8833.

You must file a U.S. tax return and Form 8833 if you claim the following treaty benefits.

  • You claim a reduction or modification in the taxation of gain or loss from the disposition of a U.S. real property interest based on a treaty.
  • You claim a credit for a specific foreign tax for which foreign tax credit would not be allowed by the Internal Revenue Code.
  • You receive payments or income items totaling more than $100,000 and you determine your country of residence under a treaty and not under the rules for residency discussed in chapter 1.

These are the more common situations for which Form 8833 is required. For additional provisions, see the Form 8833 instructions.


To access Form 8833 Treaty-Based Return Position Disclosure Under Section 6114 or 7701(b) in the TaxAct program:

Online Navigation Instructions
  1. From within your TaxAct Online return, click the Tools dropdown, then click Forms Assistant.
  2. Click + next to the Forms and Schedules manila folder (if that section is not already expanded).
  3. Click Form 8833 - Treaty-Based Return Position Disclosure Under Section 6114 or 7701(b).
  4. Click + Add to create a new copy of the form, or click Form to edit one that you already created.
  5. Now you can enter your information directly onto the form.
Desktop Navigation Instructions
  1. From within your TaxAct Desktop return, click Forms in the options bar to view the Forms Explorer (if it is not already visible).
  2. Click Federal from the dropdown in forms explorer, then click the Forms and Schedules dropdown.
  3. Scroll down and click Form 8833, and the form will appear in Forms View. If you already entered information on this form, the one that appears in Forms View will already have that information.  If you want to create a new form, click + Add New in the new dropdown that appeared below Form 8833 in the Forms Explorer.
  4. Now you can enter your information directly onto the form.

Per IRS Publication 901 U.S. Tax Treaties:

Introduction

This publication will tell you whether a tax treaty between the United States and a particular country offers a reduced rate of, or possibly a complete exemption from, U.S. income tax for residents of that particular country.

CAUTION! You should use this publication only for quick reference. It is not a complete guide to all provisions of every income tax treaty.

Page 2:

Application of Treaties

Treaty provisions generally are reciprocal (apply to both treaty countries); therefore, a U.S. citizen or resident who receives income from a treaty country may refer to the tables in this publication to see if a tax treaty might affect the tax to be paid to that foreign country.


Go to the IRS Tax Treaties webpage for more information.


Note that any link in the information above is updated each year automatically and will take you to the most recent version of the webpage or document at the time it is accessed.