Yes, migrant workers do pay taxes in the United States. Federal income tax, Social Security and Medicare, state and local income tax where it applies, and sales tax at the register all come out of migrant workers’ earnings and spending, whether the worker holds an H-2A agricultural visa, an H-2B temporary work visa, or has no formal work authorization at all. Filers using an Individual Taxpayer Identification Number alone paid roughly $15.7 billion in federal taxes in tax year 2023, and that figure leaves out payroll taxes and everything collected at the state and local level.1Taxpayer Advocate Service. IRS Processing of Individual Taxpayer Identification Numbers
What Comes Out of the Paycheck
For most migrant workers on a regular payroll, the deductions look the same as they do for any U.S. employee. The employer withholds federal income tax based on the Form W-4 the worker fills out.2Internal Revenue Service. Topic No. 753, Form W-4, Employees Withholding Certificate3Internal Revenue Service. Topic No. 751, Social Security and Medicare Withholding Rates4Social Security Administration. Contribution and Benefit Base
Immigration status does not switch off any of that. Undocumented workers on payroll, workers using an ITIN, and workers whose Social Security number does not match agency records all have federal income tax and FICA taken out of every check. Workers paid in cash or classified as independent contractors have no automatic withholding and are responsible for making estimated tax payments on their own.
Most states pull an additional layer of income tax from wages. Nine states impose no individual income tax; everywhere else, the employer withholds state tax alongside federal. State residency rules do not always track the federal tests, so a worker treated as a nonresident by the IRS can still be a state resident for state tax purposes based on days worked or where they were living.
The H-2A Exception on Payroll Tax
The one real carve-out sits with H-2A agricultural workers. Under 26 U.S.C. § 3121(b)(1), work performed by foreign agricultural workers admitted on a temporary basis is excluded from covered employment for FICA purposes, so neither the worker nor the employer pays Social Security or Medicare tax on those wages.5Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 26 USC 3121 – Definitions H-2A wages are also exempt from the Federal Unemployment Tax Act, which is a tax the employer alone would otherwise pay.6Internal Revenue Service. Aliens Employed in the U.S. – FUTA H-2A workers still owe federal income tax on their wages, and most states still tax them. The exemption applies only to payroll taxes, not income tax.
H-2B visa holders and other temporary workers do not get this exemption. Their wages are fully subject to FICA and FUTA.
Paying In Without Collecting Later
A large share of migrant workers pay into Social Security and Medicare for years without becoming eligible for benefits. Undocumented workers filing with ITINs or working under mismatched numbers have those taxes withheld from every paycheck, but retirement and disability benefits require a valid Social Security number and enough qualifying work credits. The money stays in the trust funds.
Workers from countries that have a totalization agreement with the United States have a partial route to recover some of that value. These agreements let workers combine credits earned in both countries toward benefit eligibility in either one, and they prevent the same wages from being taxed twice when someone would otherwise owe into two systems at once.7Social Security Administration. U.S. International Social Security Agreements If your home country is not among the roughly 30 with an agreement, the payroll contributions are effectively one-way.
Filing Without a Social Security Number
Workers who are not eligible for a Social Security number file federal taxes using an Individual Taxpayer Identification Number. The ITIN is a nine-digit number used only for tax filing. It does not authorize work, change immigration status, or create eligibility for Social Security benefits.8Internal Revenue Service. Individual Taxpayer Identification Number (ITIN)
To apply, submit Form W-7 with proof of identity and foreign status. The IRS accepts original documents such as a passport, or certified copies from the issuing agency. Applications can be mailed with the tax return, filed in person at an IRS Taxpayer Assistance Center, or handled through a Certifying Acceptance Agent who can verify documents so the passport does not have to be surrendered.
ITINs expire. If an ITIN is not used on a federal return for three consecutive years, it expires on December 31 of that third year. Renewal is a fresh Form W-7 with current identity documents. Filing with an expired ITIN does not stop the return from being processed, but the IRS will hold any refund until renewal is complete.9Internal Revenue Service. How to Renew an ITIN
Resident or Nonresident Alien: Why It Changes Your Return
The IRS sorts non-citizen filers into “resident alien” and “nonresident alien” for tax purposes, and the label decides which form you file and which rules apply. Classification runs on the substantial presence test, which counts days of physical presence in the U.S. over a three-year window.10Internal Revenue Service. Substantial Presence Test
A resident alien files the same Form 1040 U.S. citizens use and reports worldwide income. A nonresident alien files Form 1040-NR and reports only income connected to U.S. work or business.11Internal Revenue Service. About Form 1040-NR, U.S. Nonresident Alien Income Tax Return Workers who arrive or leave mid-year sometimes fall into both categories for different parts of the year and file a dual-status return.12Internal Revenue Service. Instructions for Form 1040-NR
One detail catches many seasonal workers off guard. Nonresident aliens cannot claim the standard deduction. Deductions must be itemized on Schedule A of Form 1040-NR, and only deductions tied to U.S.-connected income count. The narrow exception is for students and business apprentices from India under a specific treaty provision.13Internal Revenue Service. Nonresident — Figuring Your Tax
If your home country has a tax treaty with the U.S., some income may be taxed at a reduced rate or exempt from withholding. Nonresident aliens claim treaty benefits by giving the employer Form 8233 before wages are paid; without it, the employer withholds at the standard rate and the money has to be recovered by filing a return.14Internal Revenue Service. Nonresident Aliens
The Credits Most Migrant Workers Cannot Claim
Federal tax law creates an asymmetry worth understanding: migrant workers owe the same taxes as anyone else, but the credits that reduce what other low- and middle-income taxpayers owe are largely closed off.
The Earned Income Tax Credit requires a valid Social Security number and U.S. citizen or resident alien status for the full tax year. ITIN filers cannot claim it. The one narrow opening is when a nonresident alien is married to a U.S. citizen or resident alien, they file jointly, and both elect to be treated as residents for the full year.15Internal Revenue Service. Who Qualifies for the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC)
The Child Tax Credit requires the taxpayer, any spouse on a joint return, and each qualifying child to have a valid Social Security number issued by the return’s due date.16Internal Revenue Service. Child Tax Credit Parents filing with an ITIN generally cannot claim it. They may qualify for the smaller Credit for Other Dependents, where the dependent is allowed to have an ITIN. In practice, many migrant families with U.S.-born children miss out on the larger credit because the parent lacks an SSN, even though the child has one.
Sales, Excise, and the Taxes No One Files For
Every migrant worker pays sales tax on everyday purchases in the vast majority of states. Combined state and local rates run from zero in a handful of states with no sales tax to just over 10% in the highest jurisdictions. Sales tax applies at the register regardless of immigration status, visa type, or whether the buyer has any tax identification number.
Excise taxes on gasoline, tobacco, and alcohol are built into the price at the pump or shelf. They are paid without paperwork and without exception. Across millions of workers, these small, constant payments add up to a steady stream of revenue for federal and state governments.
Refunds, Deadlines, and Why Filing Still Matters
Seasonal workers frequently have more federal income tax withheld than they owe, and filing a return is the only way to get it back. Nonresident aliens file Form 1040-NR by April 15, the same deadline U.S. citizens face. For tax year 2025, that means April 15, 2026.
Missing the deadline has real consequences even for workers who have already left the country. The failure-to-file penalty is 5% of unpaid tax per month, up to 25%. Returns filed more than 60 days late have a minimum penalty, for returns due after December 31, 2025, of $525 or the full unpaid tax, whichever is less. A separate failure-to-pay penalty runs 0.5% per month on any balance due, and interest compounds daily on top of that.17Internal Revenue Service. Failure to File Penalty
Refunds tied to withholding reported on Form 1042-S, which is common for nonresident aliens, take longer. The IRS advises allowing up to six months.12Internal Revenue Service. Instructions for Form 1040-NR Workers who have already gone home can still receive a refund through a foreign bank with a U.S. correspondent account or by check mailed to an international address listed on the return.18Internal Revenue Service. Helpful Tips for Effectively Receiving a Tax Refund for Taxpayers Living Abroad Refund claims can generally be made within three years of the original due date of the return.
Filing matters beyond the refund itself. Immigration applications and visa renewals routinely ask about tax compliance, and an unresolved balance with the IRS can complicate those processes. A filed return, even one showing nothing owed, creates a record that works in the worker’s favor if they later seek to return, extend status, or adjust to a different immigration category.