# NRA dividends



## crisvic (Jan 25, 2020)

Hello good afternoon...would appreciate your clarification on this..
a NRA (84 years old) married to a u.s. citizen living in Spain..will this year collect a $600 dividend with 19% withholding from Banco Santander, Spain,s biggest bank. She also gets 4400$ U.S. S.S spousal benefits with a 25,5% witholding. She heard that as Banco Santander operates in the U.S.A she might have to file taxes next year because of the dividend??. it would be her first time. Husband files separatly. Must she really file?? Thanks so much.


----------



## Bevdeforges (Nov 16, 2007)

Are you asking about the need to file in Spain or in the US? Technically all US citizens are "supposed" to file - and for someone like your example, if she files as "married filing separately" the filing threshold is ridiculously low - something like $300 in income. However, the US SS may or may not generate any sort of tax obligation (for the US).


----------



## Nononymous (Jul 12, 2011)

If this is an NRA receiving money from a Spanish bank, then no, she no does not need to file US tax returns. It really doesn't matter that the bank operates in the US. (By that logic, half the world would need to file US tax returns.)


----------



## crisvic (Jan 25, 2020)

Nononymous said:


> If this is an NRA receiving money from a Spanish bank, then no, she no does not need to file US tax returns. It really doesn't matter that the bank operates in the US. (By that logic, half the world would need to file US tax returns.)


thanks to both of you.....


----------



## crisvic (Jan 25, 2020)

crisvic said:


> thanks to both of you.....


This lady is a spanish national NRA, married to a u.s. citizen, both living in Spain.. She gets spousal benefits from the u.s. S.S around 4.400$ a year with a 25,5% withholding. Never filed in the u.s. Files only her spanish taxes. But due to this year getting a $600 dividend from a spanish bank that has branches and operates in the U.S she was told to inquire wether she needs to file a u.s tax return next year.
Her U.S source income is only $4.400 with 25,5% withholding
Sorry if my previos message was not clear enough. Thanks again


----------



## Nononymous (Jul 12, 2011)

Told by whom?

If by the bank, she merely answers "I enquired. No I do not." and that is that.

Has she ever looked into filing US tax returns to potentially claim back some of that withholding? I have no idea whether that's possible in her situtation, but under normal circumstances one would not pay any tax on $4400 income, let alone 25.5 percent.


----------



## crisvic (Jan 25, 2020)

Nononymous said:


> Told by whom?
> 
> If by the bank, she merely answers "I enquired. No I do not." and that is that.
> 
> Has she ever looked into filing US tax returns to potentially claim back some of that withholding? I have no idea whether that's possible in her situtation, but under normal circumstances one would not pay any tax on $4400 income, let alone 25.5 percent.


thanks again


----------



## Moulard (Feb 3, 2017)

The source of dividend income is determined by the payer’s country of incorporation.

I would assume that a Spanish bank would be incorporated in Spain, and thus would not be reportable to the US by a NRA.



Nononymous said:


> normal circumstances one would not pay any tax on $4400 income, let alone 25.5 percent.


But we are talking about an NRA.. normal circumstances are different.

Normal circumstances for an NRA is that SSA is required to withhold a 30 percent flat income tax from 85 percent of the Social Security retirement, survivors, or disability benefits of an NRA. This results in a withholding of 25.5 percent of the monthly benefit.


----------



## Nononymous (Jul 12, 2011)

Moulard said:


> Normal circumstances for an NRA is that SSA is required to withhold a 30 percent flat income tax from 85 percent of the Social Security retirement, survivors, or disability benefits of an NRA. This results in a withholding of 25.5 percent of the monthly benefit.


Right, wasn't sure of that. And there's no way to reclaim that by filing a return?


----------



## Bevdeforges (Nov 16, 2007)

Moulard said:


> This results in a withholding of 25.5 percent of the monthly benefit.


OK - technically this is a withholding at a 30% rate that applies to only 85% of the benefit. (There is a 15% allowance factored in there.) And you're right, there is no way to get that back for an NRA - at least not on US SS.


----------

