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Set up your employee that isn’t a U.S. citizen

SOLVED•by QuickBooks•89•Updated January 25, 2024

Learn how to exempt your employee that isn’t a U.S. citizen from certain taxes based on their visa status.

If you hired an employee that isn’t a U.S. citizen, (referred to by the IRS as Nonresident Alien or NRA) they may be exempt from some payroll taxes.  The taxes they’re exempt from depend on the type of visa they have.

Step 1: Find out which payroll taxes your employee is exempt from

Your employee should fill out an I-9 form and give you the following info:

  • Copy of visa
  • A valid Social Security number.  If your employee has an Individual Taxpayer Identification Number (ITIN), they can’t be on payroll. An ITIN looks like a Social Security number, but starts with a 9. 

If you need help understanding which payroll taxes your employee is exempt from:

Step 2: Exempt your employee from payroll taxes

Select your product below.

Note: Not sure which payroll service you have? Here's how to find your payroll service.
  1. Go to Payroll, then Employees (Take me there).
  2. Select Add an employee. 
  3. Below the email address field, uncheck Ask this employee to enter their personal, tax, and banking info with QuickBooks Workforce. You’ll need to add their info. 
  4. Fill in the info for each section. 
  5. From Tax withholding, select Edit.
  6. Fill in the Federal Withholding info.  If your employee is exempt, from the Filing Status ▼, select Exempt.
  7. Fill in the State Withholding info. If your employee is exempt, from the Filing Status ▼, select Exempt.
  8. From Tax Exemptions, select the taxes your employee is exempt from. 
  9. When you’re done, select Save. 
  1. Select Employees.
  2. Select New Employee. 
  3. Fill in the info in each section.
  4. From the Payroll Info tab, select Taxes. 
  5. From the Federal tab, fill in the Federal W-4 info. If your employee is exempt, from the Filing Status ▼, select Exempt.
  6. From Subject To section, uncheck the taxes your employee is exempt from. 
  7. Select the State tab.
  8. Select the State Lived and State Worked. 
  9. If your employee is exempt from State Unemployment Insurance (SUI), uncheck the SUI box. 
  10. If your employee is exempt from State Withholding, from the Filing Status ▼, select Exempt.
  11. Select the Other tab. If your employee is exempt from any additional taxes listed here, highlight the tax, then select Delete. 
  12. When finished, select Ok. 

Contact us for help setting up your employee.

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