Yes—you may add a 1099 contract on non-STEM OPT if it directly relates to your degree and stays within your OPT authorization, and you must report its income on the federal return required by your tax-residency branch.

§7.2.1, page 17

All OPT employment, including post-completion OPT, must be in a job that is related to the student’s degree program. Work for hire. This is also commonly referred to as 1099 employment, where an individual performs a service based on a contractual relationship rather than an employment relationship. If requested by DHS, the student must be prepared to provide evidence showing the duration of the contract period and the name and address of the contracting company.

Anything the student cannot or does not report via the SEVP Portal, must be reported to their designated school official (DSO) within 10 days. Self-employed, Independent Contractor

Students and Exchange Visitors

You do not have to count the days you were present in the United States as a student during the first 5 years in determining if you are a resident alien under the substantial presence test. You must file Form 1040-NR if you are engaged in a trade or business in the United States, or have any other U.S. source income on which tax was not fully paid by the amount withheld.

You will not be an exempt individual as a student if you have been exempt as a teacher, trainee, student, Exchange Visitor, or Cultural Exchange Visitor on an "F, " "J, " "M, " or "Q " visa for any part of more than 5 calendar years, unless you establish to the satisfaction of the IRS that you do not intend to reside permanently in the United States, and you have substantially complied with the requirements of your nonimmigrant status. If you qualify to exclude days of presence as a student, you must file a fully-completed Form 8843, Statement for Exempt Individuals and Individuals with a Medical Condition with the IRS.

To meet this test, you must be physically present in the United States (U.S.) on at least: 31 days during the current year, and 183 days during the 3-year period that includes the current year and the 2 years immediately before that, counting: All the days you were present in the current year, 1/3 of the days you were present in the first year before the current year, and 1/6 of the days you were present in the second year before the current year.

Filing Requirements; When and Where Should You File?

You were a nonresident alien engaged in a trade or business in the United States during 2025. Gross income from a business means, for example, the amount on Schedule C (Form 1040), line 7; or Schedule F (Form 1040), line 9. If you were an employee and received wages subject to U.S. income tax withholding, file Form 1040-NR by the 15th day of the 4th month after your tax year ends. A return for the 2025 calendar year is due by April 15, 2026. If you did not receive wages as an employee subject to U.S. income tax withholding, file Form 1040-NR by the 15th day of the 6th month after your tax year ends.

Use Schedule C (Form 1040) to report income or loss from a business you operated or a profession you practiced as a sole proprietor.

Who Must File Schedule SE

You must file Schedule SE if: • The amount on line 4c of Schedule SE is $400 or more, or • You had church employee income of $108.28 or more. You must pay SE tax if you had net earnings of $400 or more as a self-employed person.

Self-Employment Tax

Nonresident aliens are not subject to self-employment tax unless an international social security agreement in effect determines that they are covered under the U.S. social security system. Resident aliens must pay self-employment tax under the same rules that apply to U.S. citizens.

Who Must Make Estimated Tax Payments; Payment Due Dates

In most cases, you must pay estimated tax for 2026 if both of the following apply. 1. You expect to owe at least $1,000 in tax for 2026, after subtracting your withholding and refundable credits. 2. You expect your withholding and refundable credits to be less than the smaller of: a. 90% of the tax to be shown on your 2026 tax return, or b. 100% of the tax shown on your 2025 tax return. If you also receive salaries and wages, you may be able to avoid having to make estimated tax payments on your other income by asking your employer to take more tax out of your earnings. To do this, file a new Form W-4, Employee’s Withholding Certificate, with your employer. 1st payment . . . April 15, 2026 2nd payment . . . June 15, 2026 3rd payment . . . Sept. 15, 2026 4th payment . . . Jan. 15, 2027

Purpose of This Package; Payment Due Dates

Generally, if you’re a nonresident alien, use this package to figure and pay your estimated tax for 2026. 1st payment . . . Apr. 15, 2026 2nd payment . . . Jun. 15, 2026 3rd payment . . . Sep. 15, 2026 4th payment . . . Jan. 15, 2027

Even if you don’t receive a form reporting income paid to you during the tax year, you should report the income on your tax return. Remember that you’re responsible for reporting all your income no matter the threshold amount required for issuance of the form.

For payments made in 2026, the reporting threshold is $2,000.

These nonresident alien students are exempt from Social Security Tax and Medicare Tax on wages paid to them for services performed within the U.S. To qualify for the exemption, the services performed need to be allowed by USCIS for these nonimmigrant statuses, and such services are performed to carry out the purposes for which such visas were issued to them.

A foreign person, including a U.S. branch of a foreign person that is treated as a U.S. person under Regulations section 1.1441-1(b)(2)(iv) or a foreign branch of a U.S. financial institution that is a QI, may not provide a Form W-9. Advise foreign persons to use the appropriateForm W-8 or Form 8233, Exemption From Withholding on Compensation for Independent (and Certain Dependent) Personal Services of a Nonresident Alien Individual.