主要影响决定的是US-China treaty 文件, 不是报税文件

这个问题在我们申请绿卡的时候也特别关注过, 敲下来仅供切磋:


假设没有中美免税协议, 那么我们只要在美国呆的时间足够长, 满足另外个substantial presence test, 那么我们就应该按 residence 报.

现在有了中美免税协议 (我假设大家都是按 article 19, teacher / professor / researcher 的那栏报头三年的免税), 所以才有按照免税的要求, 照single, non-residence 的报法.

所以关键问题就在, 如果递交了140, 还可不可以拿到免税. 为此我特意到 H&R 问过, 得到的解释是, 照 Article 19, 照抄如下:

An individual who is, or immediately before visiting a Contracting State was, a resident of the other Contracting
State and is temporarily present in the first-mentioned Contracting State for the primary purpose of teaching, giving
lectures or conducting research at a university, college, school or other accredited educational institution or scientific
research institution in the first mentioned Contracting State shall be exempt from tax in the first mentioned
Contracting State for a period not exceeding three years in the aggregate in respect of remuneration for such
teaching, lectures or research.

既然我们交了 140, 表示我们已经有意愿放弃在中国的 residence 而拿到美国的permanent residence, 这样我们就不算在美国"temporarily present"了, 所以就不能申请免税, 也就必须按 resident 报了.

这里的决定因素并不是美国政府是否批准了我们的permanent residence 的申请, 而是在于我们是否想在美国 temporarily present 还是 permanently reside.

-- 这是我从 H&R 得到的解释, 当然不同人可能有不同解释.

链接: The green card test and substantial presence test:
http://www.irs.gov/businesses/small/international/article/0,,id=129390,00.html

US-China treaty:
http://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-trty/china.pdf

我记得IRS有哪个地方特意说明过如果填8833 申请免税就必须照 single, non-resident 报税的, 但我一下子找不到source了.