Form 1042-S en Español: Boxes, Deadlines, and Corrections

Form 1042-S reports U.S. source income paid to a foreign person and the federal tax withheld from that payment. If you are a non-resident alien or foreign entity that received U.S. income, this is the form you use to report the income and claim credit for any tax already sent to the IRS on your behalf. You will receive one even if a tax treaty reduced your withholding rate to zero.

What the Form Reports

Form 1042-S documents two things: how much U.S. source income a withholding agent paid you, and how much federal tax was deducted before the money reached you. The form covers payments subject to withholding under Chapter 3 (IRC sections 1441–1443) and Chapter 4 (the FATCA provisions in IRC sections 1471–1474).1Internal Revenue Service. Instructions for Form 1042-S (2026) The withholding agent is usually a U.S. business, financial institution, or university that made the payment.

Even when a treaty benefit brought your rate down to 0%, the withholding agent still issues a Form 1042-S for the payment.2Internal Revenue Service. Withholding and Reporting Obligations For each distinct type of income you receive, the withholding agent must issue a separate form. If you got both dividends and scholarship income from the same university, expect two forms with different income codes.

Common payments reported on Form 1042-S include dividends and interest from U.S. corporations or banks, royalties from copyrights or patents used in the U.S., taxable scholarship and fellowship grants, and compensation for personal services such as honoraria or independent consulting fees. These fall under what the IRS calls fixed, determinable, annual, or periodical (FDAP) income.3Internal Revenue Service. Fixed, Determinable, Annual, or Periodical (FDAP) Income

The Boxes That Matter When You File

A handful of boxes carry the information you actually transfer to your tax return.

  • Box 1 (Income Code) is a two-digit number identifying the type of income. Code 16, for example, covers scholarship or fellowship grants. The code determines which treaty article, if any, applies.4Internal Revenue Service. Instructions for Form 1042-S, Foreign Person’s U.S. Source Income Subject to Withholding
  • Box 2 (Gross Income) is the total amount paid to you before tax was taken out. This is the figure you report as income.
  • Box 3b or 4b (Tax Rate) is the rate that was applied. The default statutory rate on U.S. source income paid to foreign persons is 30%. A treaty or a statutory exception can reduce it. For qualified scholarships paid to non-resident alien students on an F, J, M, or Q visa, the rate drops to 14%, and a treaty can bring it lower.5Internal Revenue Service. Tax Withholding Types6Internal Revenue Service. Withholding Federal Income Tax on Scholarships, Fellowships, and Grants Paid to Nonresident Aliens
  • Box 7a (Federal Tax Withheld) is the amount your withholding agent sent to the IRS. This is your credit, and it decides whether you owe more or get a refund.

When You Should Receive It

Withholding agents must file Form 1042-S with the IRS and furnish a copy to you by March 15 of the year after the payment.1Internal Revenue Service. Instructions for Form 1042-S (2026) When March 15 falls on a weekend or holiday, the deadline moves to the next business day. For income paid during 2025, the deadline is March 16, 2026, because March 15 is a Sunday.

Withholding agents can request an automatic 30-day extension using Form 8809. If yours does, your form may not arrive until mid-April. Plan for that if you want to file early.

How Form W-8BEN Shapes What You Receive

Before making payment, your withholding agent will ask you to complete Form W-8BEN. The form confirms your foreign status and lets you claim a reduced withholding rate under a tax treaty between the U.S. and your home country.7Internal Revenue Service. Instructions for Form W-8BEN (10/2021)

If you never submitted a W-8BEN, the agent had to withhold at the full 30% statutory rate. If you did submit one and claimed a valid treaty benefit, the lower rate appears on Form 1042-S.8Internal Revenue Service. Federal Income Tax Withholding and Reporting on Other Kinds of U.S. Source Income Paid to Nonresident Aliens Missing the W-8BEN does not mean you lose the treaty benefit forever. You can still claim it on your tax return and request a refund of the excess withholding.

Filing Your Tax Return With Form 1042-S

You use Form 1042-S to complete Form 1040-NR, the U.S. Nonresident Alien Income Tax Return.9Internal Revenue Service. Taxation of Nonresident Aliens Filing is how you report the income, claim credit for the tax already withheld, and request a refund if too much was taken. Non-resident aliens who were over-withheld often get money back, especially when a treaty reduces the rate to zero.

Filing Deadlines

Your deadline depends on the income you received. If any of your U.S. income was wages subject to income tax withholding, Form 1040-NR is due by the 15th day of the fourth month after the tax year ends, which is April 15 for calendar-year filers. If you had no such wages, the deadline moves to the 15th day of the sixth month, June 15.9Internal Revenue Service. Taxation of Nonresident Aliens You can request more time with Form 4868, available in Spanish as Formulario 4868(SP).

What to Attach

Attach Form 1042-S to the front of your Form 1040-NR.10Internal Revenue Service. Instructions for Form 1040-NR (2025) Transfer the gross income from Box 2 and the federal tax withheld from Box 7a onto the corresponding lines. If you received more than one Form 1042-S, attach all of them.

Taxpayer Identification Number

You need either a Social Security Number or an Individual Taxpayer Identification Number (ITIN) to file Form 1040-NR. Non-resident aliens without work authorization typically do not have an SSN and must apply for an ITIN using Form W-7, which you can submit with your return. Missing this step is one of the most common reasons returns are rejected or delayed.

If the Form Has Errors

Mistakes happen: a wrong income code, an incorrect withholding amount, a misspelled name. Contact the withholding agent directly and request a corrected form. The agent is responsible for issuing the correction to both you and the IRS.

Do not wait past your filing deadline. If the withholding agent is unresponsive, you can file Form 1040-NR using the information you know to be correct and attach a written explanation. You can also contact the IRS for help resolving discrepancies. Withholding agents that fail to furnish a correct and timely Form 1042-S face escalating per-form penalties, capped in the millions of dollars for large filers, which is useful leverage when you are pushing an unresponsive agent to send a correction.11Internal Revenue Service. Penalties Related to Form 1042-S

Recursos del IRS en Español

Form 1042-S itself is not published in Spanish, but most of the forms and guidance you need to file your return around it are.12Internal Revenue Service. Forms, Instructions and Publications The most useful resources for recipients:

  • Publicación 519(SP), Guía de Impuestos Estadounidenses para Extranjeros, is the full Spanish-language guide to U.S. tax rules for non-resident aliens, including how to report income shown on Form 1042-S.13Internal Revenue Service. Publicacion 519 (2025), Guia de Impuestos Estadounidenses para Extranjeros
  • Formulario 1040-NR(SP) is the Spanish version of the non-resident alien return, with Spanish instructions and the supporting schedules (Schedule A, Schedule NEC, and Schedule OI).
  • Formulario 4868(SP) is the Spanish extension request.

The IRS also runs a Spanish-language international taxpayer portal at irs.gov/es/individuals/international-taxpayers.14Internal Revenue Service. Los Impuestos a Extranjeros No Residentes For phone help in Spanish, call 800-829-1040.15Internal Revenue Service. Let Us Help You Free in-person tax preparation is available in Spanish at many Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) sites nationwide.