The variety of prestigious academic programs at the University attracts students from all over the world. This year alone, we have over 9,800 international students, which account for 22 percent of our student population. Coming to the United States is a great way for students to explore new areas and contribute to the diversity on campus, and with the influx in international students over the years, it is clear that these students are taking advantage of learning abroad.  

However, part of being an international student studying in the U.S. means filing tax forms every year. Filing tax forms is a process that can be confusing and strenuous for all students, not just those from outside of the U.S., and it can be grueling if you don’t understand the process.

Because of this sometimes painful affair, the International Student and Scholar Services at the University is working to make process of understanding and filling out tax forms as easy and simple as possible for international students. Through the organization’s purchased licence agreement with GLACIER Tax Prep, a web-based tax return preparation system, they are able to provide the information and resources needed to help international students fill out all of their tax forms.

This program is a convenient way to organize tax return forms and make sure they are all filled out on time. Previously, this service was only available for “active” international students or scholars (or those who received relatively large income on or off campus), according to The Daily Illini. However, now all international students will have access to GLACIER Tax Prep. 

ISSS also makes it clear that international students should check the International Department of Revenue website in order to be sure students are filling out all relevant forms. 

Having access to programs like GLACIER Tax Prep work to connect international students to helpful information services, which is imperative to make the experiences of these students easy, understandable and efficient.  

The ability for international students to have access to various services such as GLACIER Tax Prep is also a great example of a way in which ISSS is helping integrate students from abroad. Essentially, these types of integration efforts should continue to happen in the future to help international students, especially when other issues exist for these students such as finding jobs and internships, obtaining visa extensions and other road bumps that come with studying overseas. 

Continuing to improve the experiences of international students is something we fully support, especially on a campus that prides itself on diversity and inclusion.