Frequently Asked Questions - Departments

All employees, both U.S. and non-U.S. citizens, are hired via Human Resources – Employee Data Management. Most of your questions will be answered on the Human Resources – Employee Data Management website. Look for “International Employees” and “Employment Documents”.
 

All remaining questions should be directed to HR-EDM@fsu.edu

Before payment can be processed, the tax residency status of the foreign national student must be determined. Contact the Payroll Services Tax Department (CTL-Payroll-Tax@admin.fsu.edu) with the name and email address of your foreign student and we will utilize GLACIER to determine the individual’s tax residency status.
 

If it is determined that the foreign national student is a resident alien for tax purposes, the scholarship will be processed the same as a non-service scholarship for a U.S. citizen. Scholarships for resident aliens for tax purposes and U.S. citizens are not processed by Payroll Services.
 

If it is determined that the foreign national student is a nonresident alien for tax purposes, the non-service scholarship will be processed via the Payroll Services Tax Department after receiving the following information:
 

To be completed by the department:

Determine funding source:

 • University Funds/Sponsored Research:
     o Complete a Payroll NRA Payment Request Form.
          If using contract/grant funds, the form must be submitted to Sponsored Research for approval prior to submitting to Payroll Services.
          Non-Service Scholarships being funded on E&G require the approval from the Provost Office.
     o Submit approved request form and all supporting documents to Payroll Services, Tax Department, via a case in the FSU Service Center.
 

  • Foundation Funds:
     o Complete the foundation’s payment request form.
     o It is recommended you prepare a separate request form for nonresident aliens for tax purposes.
     o All FSU Foundation scholarship payment route to Student Business Services to be applied to tuition and qualified student expenses.
     o Any excess will then be forwarded from Student Business Services to the Payroll Services Tax Department for processing.
 

To be completed by the student:
  • Complete Direct Deposit Form
  • Complete GLACIER documents along with immigration document copies as listed on the GLACIER Tax Summary Report
 

If your department processes many non-servicescholarship payments to foreign national students, you may consider becoming an “Admin 3” in GLACIER. This will allow you to add new records in GLACIER for your foreign national students and monitor their status.
 

If you would like more information on becoming an “Admin 3”, please contact the Payroll Services Tax Department (CTL-Payroll-Tax@admin.fsu.edu).

Before payment can be processed, the tax residency status of the foreign national must be determined. Contact the Payroll Services Tax Department (CTL-Payroll-Tax@admin.fsu.edu) with the name and email address of your foreign visitor and we will utilize GLACIER to determine the individual’s tax residency status.
 

Please note that a record can be added in GLACIER no sooner than 30 days prior to the foreign visitor’s arrival date in the country.
 

If it is determined that the foreign national is a resident alien for tax purposes, the payment will be processed the same as a payment for a U.S. citizen, not via the Payroll Services Tax Department.
 

If it is determined that the foreign national is a nonresident alien for tax purposes, the payment will be processed via the Payroll Services Tax Department after receiving the following information via a case submitted through the FSU Service Center:
 • Completed Payroll Foreign Wire Request form (foreign national must sign form confirming he/she provided wire information)
     o When using FSU Research Foundation funds, please complete the foundation’s payment request form.
         FSU Research Foundation will then forward request and funds to Payroll Services to process payment.
 • A copy of the flier advertising the foreign visitor’s visit
 • Completed GLACIER documents along with immigration document copies as listed on the GLACIER Tax Summary Report
 

If the foreign visitor is represented by an agent, please contact the Payroll Services Tax Department (CTL-Payroll-Tax@admin.fsu.edu) to discuss taxation rules and payment.
 

NOTE: Please contact the Payroll Services Tax Department as soon as you have knowledge of your foreign national’s visit. There are certain Visa types that could limit or even prevent payments to the visitor.

GLACIER is a web-based nonresident tax compliance system designed to collect information about an individual’s immigration status, citizenship, residency and history of presence in the United States to determine an individual’s residency tax status (nonresident or resident alien for tax purposes) and eligibility to claim a tax treaty exemption and the nonresident social security tax exemption.
 

GLACIER presents easy to understand question and answer screens that allow Foreign Nationals to quickly and easily enter their information, calculate their substantial presence, and print their tax forms (provided as PDF documents on the final screen). Users will be required to print and sign their forms and submit them to FSU Payroll Services along with copies of their visa and immigration documents.

All non-U.S. citizen employees are required to use GLACIER. Once a non-U.S. citizen has been hired via Human Resources, an email will be generated containing a link to the GLACIER website, and a temporary User ID and password.
 

Upon initial login to GLACIER, users will immediately be prompted to create a new User ID and password to use in the GLACIER system. Users must remember these because they will need them to return to GLACIER in the future to update their information in GLACIER.

Florida State University is required to comply with U.S. federal tax law when making payments to or on behalf of non-U.S. citizens. In addition to tax regulations, certain payments are only allowable based on an individual’s immigration status pursuant to immigration law.
 

Since FSU is required to comply with these laws when making payments to its foreign visitors, Payroll Services utilizes GLACIER to determine an individual’s tax residency status.

Resident aliens for tax purposes are taxed using the same rules as U.S. citizens. Nonresident aliens for tax purposes are subject to special tax withholding rules. There are also special rules that apply specifically to F-1 students, J-1 students and scholars and H-1 employees who are nonresident aliens for tax purposes.

U.S. tax law requires that a nonresident alien for tax purposes be taxed in the following manner:
 

- If you receive Compensation (salary or wages), you are generally required to complete Form W-4 as “Single” (regardless of your actual marital status). Since federal withholding tax is a graduated tax, the percentage of tax you will pay is dependent on the amount of income you earn.
 

- If you receive a Scholarship or Fellowship (for which NO services are required), your scholarship or fellowship may consist of nontaxable items (tuition, book allowance, required registration fees and mandatory health insurance) or taxable items (including, but not limited to room and board, living allowance, travel payment/reimbursement). If you are present in the U.S. under an F, J, M, or Q immigration status, the applicable rate of tax withholding is 14%; if you are present in the U.S. under any other immigration status, the applicable rate of tax withholding is 30%.
 

- If you receive an Honorarium, Guest Speaker Fee, Consultant Fee, Royalty, or any other type of income, the applicable rate of tax withholding is 30%.

The U.S. maintains income tax treaties with many countries. Certain taxable payments made to foreign nationals may be exempt from U.S. tax based on an income tax treaty entered into between the U.S. and their country of tax residence. The existence of a tax treaty does not automatically ensure an exemption from tax withholding; rather, the foreign national must meet the requirements of the exemption outlined in the tax treaty and provide all required GLACIER forms and immigration documents listed on the GLACIER Tax Summary Report.

All non-U.S. citizen employees are required to use GLACIER. Once a non-U.S. citizen has been hired via Human Resources, an email will be generated containing a link to the GLACIER website, and a temporary User ID and password. Until all signed GLACIER tax forms and immigration documents have been submitted to Payroll Services, the non-U.S. citizen employee will be taxed at the highest rate (single) for federal income tax and will be charged social security and Medicare.
 

All non-U.S. citizens receiving payments in the form of nonqualified scholarships, fellowships, or grants; honoraria; royalties; or artist/performer fees are required to use GLACIER. Once a request for payment has been properly submitted to Payroll Services, an email will be generated containing a link to the GLACIER website, and a temporary User ID and password. Until all signed GLACIER tax forms and immigration documents have been submitted to Payroll Services, non-employee payments will not be made to non-U.S. citizens.

Form 1042s is a year-end federal tax document given to a nonresident alien who:
 

1. Received wages exempted from federal tax withholding by a tax treaty; and/or
 

2. Received a non-qualified taxable scholarship (Any amounts received for incidental expenses or by a non-degree candidate are taxable scholarships. Incidental expenses include room and board, travel, and expenses for equipment and other items that are not required for either enrollment or for attendance, or in a course of instruction); or
 

3. Received an Honorarium, Guest Speaker Fee, Consultant Fee, Royalty, or any other type of income. The 1042s has an income code, which describes the type of income being reported. In certain cases, a foreign national may receive a W-2 form in addition to a 1042s. The form is typically sent electronically, by the end of February, to the email address entered in GLACIER. For those who did not agree to receive their 1042s form electronically, a paper form will be mailed no later than March 15th.

Please direct questions concerning 1042s forms to CTL-Payroll-Tax@admin.fsu.edu.
 

They should Include their name and birth date for identification purposes along with the details of their question.