International Students See resources and policies specifically for international graduate students at UT Austin. This information is intended to organize resources. The first resource for all international students should be to speak with an advisor in the Texas Global Office and review the information on their website. Financial Assistance In addition to funding offered by the program, international students can apply for scholarships and other aid options here: https://global.utexas.edu/isss/advising-services/scholarships. Fees International students are billed fees for several items. This is automatic. More information can be found here: https://global.utexas.edu/isss/about/fees. Taxes on Scholarships and Fellowships For comprehensive information, see: https://global.utexas.edu/isss/advising-services/taxes. There is a mandatory 14% withholding taxes from scholarship and fellowship payments made to nonresident students with a valid F or J student visa. The withholding rate is 30% for students without an appropriate student visa. If the student is from a country that has a tax treaty with the U.S. and has completed the treaty benefit application process, no taxes will be deducted or taxes that have been deducted will be refunded. Eligibility for a tax treaty exemption is based on visa status, country of residence, and other criteria such as history of presence in the United States. To check eligibility for tax treaty benefits, contact iSSS. Insurance The Texas Board of Regents requires that all international students enrolled at UT in a visa status of F or J carry health insurance. Students are enrolled in and billed for insurance for their entire time in the program (fall, spring, and summer) unless they submit an insurance waiver by the requested deadline. Students are automatically enrolled: https://global.utexas.edu/isss/advising-services/insurance. Information Sessions regarding UT Health Insurance are offered during Fall Orientation. Insurance Advisor (for General Insurance-Related Inquiries): intlinsurance@austin.utexas.edu. Voluntary Insurance Enrollment – for other Visa Status Only students in an F or J visa status are required by University of Texas System Board of Regents to maintain health insurance and are automatically billed for insurance Students in any other visa category have the option to purchase the UT Student Health Insurance Plan during their studies at UT. There are deadlines each semester to purchase the Student Health Insurance Plan Employment International students may be employed based on their visa and work eligibility: https://global.utexas.edu/isss/immigration/on-campus-employment. Employment for F-1 visa students experiencing economic hardship Taxes Non-U.S. Citizen Tax Information: https://global.utexas.edu/isss/advising-services/taxes. Studetns can find information about the Glacier Non-resident Tax Compliance System here: https://afm.utexas.edu/tax-services/glacier. Please note that Glacier and Sprintax are two different softwares that serve two separate functions. Glacier is used to determine how to tax nonresident payments as they are issued from UT and is a separate processes form filing an annual tax return with the U.S. Internal Revenue Service (IRS). The UT accounting office only handles Glacier. Sprintax is a non resident tax preparation software that assists with filing nonresident tax return. Texas Global handles the Sprintax Software. Additional information regarding Nonresident taxes may be found here: https://afm.utexas.edu/tax-services/nonresident-taxes. Independent Study and Research LLILAS students are expected to conduct a year of fieldwork and research. If students must travel abroad during this time, they may enroll in Independent Study and Research (ISR) status. Students will still be categorized as full-time enrolled during this time, but should contact ISSS to ensure their visa will remain active. UT health insurance is still billed to the student during this time, which is a requirement per the U.S. federal government. If a student is doing required research for their degree and is on ISR or enrolled full-time in research or dissertation credits, UT can keep their F-1 SEVIS record active (just as if they were enrolled full-time and on campus at UT). To return to the U.S., students will need a valid travel signature on their immigration document, a valid, unexpired F-1 visa, and the other documents listed here. In addition, if they are returning to the U.S. after an absence of more than five months, they should also have a letter from their department stating the reason they were outside the U.S. for an extended period of time, explaining that the research is required for their academic program. This letter may be needed if the student has to renew their F-1 visa. It could also facilitate the student’s entry back into the U.S. (if Customs and Border Protection notice the length of the absence from the U.S. and questions the student about it).
