Do You Need a Sailing Permit to Leave the US on F-1 or H-1B? Forms 2063 and 1040-C Explained

Most F-1 students leaving after OPT are exempt from the IRS sailing permit, most H-1B workers with US wages are not, and neither form replaces your final tax return.

Part of our guide to US taxes on F-1, OPT and H-1B.

A sailing permit is the everyday name for the IRS departing alien clearance: a certificate, issued after you file Form 2063 or Form 1040-C at an IRS office, showing you have settled your US income tax before you leave the country. As of November 1, 2026, the requirement is in effect and unchanged. Most F-1 students whose only US income was a study allowance, wages from authorized work such as OPT or CPT, or bank interest are exempt. Most H-1B workers with US wages are not, and the IRS says to get the permit no earlier than 30 days and at least 2 weeks before the flight. Neither form replaces your final 1040-NR or 1040.

Status line (as of 2026-11-01). The clearance rules are in effect: the IRS updated its Departing Alien Clearance (Sailing Permit) page on 2026-08-18 and revised the Form 1040-C instructions in January 2026; we found no proposed change. The immigration clocks that set your last day are separate. The F-1 60-day grace period still applies because the Duration of Status rule has been blocked by a federal court since 2026-09-14 (summary judgment briefed, DHS's appeal pending); USCIS says it "will proceed under the previous regulatory provisions" (USCIS Form I-539 page). The H-1B 60-day grace period still applies because DHS's plan to end it is only proposed; comments close 2026-11-10 and no final rule exists.

What is a sailing permit?

A sailing permit, also called a departing alien clearance or certificate of compliance, is an IRS certificate confirming you have met your US income tax obligations before you leave. You get it by filing Form 2063 or Form 1040-C at an IRS Taxpayer Assistance Center (TAC) before departure. It is a tax document, not a visa, I-94 or SEVIS record.

The requirement is statutory. Internal Revenue Code section 6851(d)(1) says "No alien shall depart from the United States unless he first procures from the Secretary a certificate" of income tax compliance, subject to exceptions set by regulation (26 U.S.C. 6851). The IRS calls the certificate "proof that you have settled your U.S. tax liabilities before a planned, long term or permanent departure."

Per the Instructions for Form 1040-C, "Your Form 1040-C copy of the signed certificate, or the one detached from Form 2063, is your sailing or departure permit." This post covers leaving for good, after OPT or after an H-1B job ends. The statute's wording is not limited to permanent moves, so ask the TAC or a tax professional about a short trip.

Who is exempt from the sailing permit?

Publication 519, chapter 11, lists six exempt categories. Two matter here: students, industrial trainees and exchange visitors, with their spouses and children, on F-1, F-2, H-3, H-4, J-1, J-2 or Q visas, and M-1 or M-2 students and their families, each with limits on US income. The other four cover diplomats; international-organization and foreign-government employees; short-term visitors, travelers in transit and military trainees with no taxable income; and Canadian or Mexican residents who commute to US jobs with tax withheld. H-1B, L-1 and O-1 are not exempt categories.

For the student category, the 1040-C instructions say you "must not have received any income from sources in the United States other than":

• allowances covering expenses incident to your study or training, including travel, maintenance and tuition;
• the value of services or accommodations furnished incident to that study or training;
• income from employment authorized under US immigration laws; or
• interest on deposits, only if it is not effectively connected with a US trade or business.

An exempt person must still "support your claim for exemption with proper identification or give the authority for the exemption" (Publication 519), so keep your status and work-authorization documents with your passport.

Do F-1 students need a sailing permit to leave the US?

Usually not. OPT, STEM OPT, CPT and on-campus jobs are employment authorized under immigration law, so those wages fit the list, as do scholarships covering tuition and living costs and ordinary savings interest.

You fall outside the exemption through income the list does not name. Freelance or gig income earned without work authorization is the obvious case, and it is an immigration question for your DSO or an immigration attorney as well as a tax one. Rental income is another. On our reading, dividends from US stocks are a third: the list names interest on deposits, not dividends. Any of these is taxable US income, which also closes Form 2063's no-taxable-income route, so the IRS text points to Form 1040-C unless you are a resident alien for tax (see below).

Do H-1B workers need departing alien clearance?

Generally yes, if you are leaving for good. No exempt category covers H-1B, and US wages are taxable income, so Form 2063's no-taxable-income route is closed. That leaves Form 1040-C, or Form 2063 through its second route, which is only for resident aliens.

That second route matters. H-1B days count toward the substantial presence test, so a worker here most of a year is often a resident alien for tax purposes (our reading; your own day count decides it). A resident with taxable income can use Form 2063 if "the Area Director has decided that your leaving will not hinder collecting the tax." The IRS decides at the appointment, so bring everything a 1040-C needs. If a layoff is why you are leaving, our H-1B 60-day grace period guide covers the immigration side.

What about H-4, F-2 and J-2 family members?

F-2 and J-2 spouses and children with no US income fall in the exempt category. H-4 is listed too, but the exception is for "a student, an industrial trainee, or an exchange visitor, or the spouse or child of such an individual," and an H-1B worker is none of those, so an H-4 spouse of an H-1B worker should not assume it fits (our reading). If both spouses are aliens and both are leaving, Publication 519 says "both of you must go to the TAC office," and in a community property state you bring your spouse's documents either way.

Form 2063 vs Form 1040-C: which one do you file?

Form 2063 is a short statement with no tax computation. Form 1040-C is a return that reports income through your departure date and figures the tax. Both require that every past return you owed is filed and its tax paid.

Form 2063 vs Form 1040-C, as of 2026-11 (sources: About Form 1040-C, About Form 2063, 1040-C instructions)

On Form 1040-C, nonresidents follow the Form 1040-NR instructions and residents the Form 1040 instructions. File an original and one copy.

Which situation are you in? A decision checklist

Decision checklist, as of 2026-11 (our reading of the IRS rules; the TAC makes the call)

How far in advance do I apply for a sailing permit?

At least 2 weeks before you leave, and no earlier than 30 days before. In the instructions' words: "You should get your sailing or departure permit at least 2 weeks before you plan to leave. You cannot apply earlier than 30 days before your planned departure date."

Every TAC works by appointment, booked at 844-545-5640 from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. local time, and the IRS says to call well before the window opens. It suggests an office near where you worked; the Contact your local IRS office page lists them.

How to get a sailing permit, step by step

1. Check your category against the IRS Departing Alien Clearance page and Topic 858. If you are exempt, keep your status documents with your passport and stop here.
2. Pick Form 2063 or Form 1040-C from the table above and download the current edition from irs.gov.
3. Call 844-545-5640 to book a TAC appointment no earlier than 30 days and at least 2 weeks before your flight.
4. Collect your passport with visa or green card, US returns for the past 2 years (or since arrival), receipts for tax paid, records backing deductions and dependents, a wage-and-withholding statement from each current-year employer, estimated-tax receipts, records of property or investment sales, scholarship and treaty documents, your airline ticket, and your SSN card or IRS CP 565 notice showing your ITIN.
5. Complete Form 1040-C (original and one copy) or Form 2063.
6. Bring certified funds if tax will be due, or ask the TAC about posting a bond.
7. Attend together if you and your spouse are both aliens and both leaving (Publication 519).
8. Keep the signed certificate with your travel documents.
9. File your annual Form 1040-NR or Form 1040 after the year ends, claiming the 1040-C payment as a credit.

Worked example: an H-1B layoff and a December flight

Meera (hypothetical) is an H-1B engineer whose last day of employment is Friday, October 23, 2026. She decides to move home and books a flight for Saturday, December 19. H-1B is not an exempt category and she has 2026 wages with withholding, so she needs a permit.

If she cashes out her 401(k) first, that money is 2026 income on her Form 1040-C, and before age 59 1/2 it can carry a 10% additional tax unless an exception applies (IRS Topic 558). Our guide to what happens to your 401(k) when you leave the US compares the options.

Compare Ana, also hypothetical, on F-1 OPT. Her EAD ends November 30, 2026, her F-1 grace period runs to about January 29, 2027 (our arithmetic), and she flies on January 10. With only OPT wages and savings interest, she is exempt. Had she also collected US stock dividends in 2026, she would, on our reading, need a permit, with a window of December 11 to 27, 2026. The 1040-C instructions add that someone leaving between January 1 and April 15 must also file an annual return and pay its tax; the January 2026 edition names 2026 for both years, which looks like an error (our reading), so she would ask the TAC which return it needs.

Does Form 1040-C replace my final tax return?

No. The IRS says "Form 1040-C is not an annual U.S. income tax return." You still file Form 1040-NR or Form 1040 after the year ends, claiming the 1040-C payment as a credit. The IRS "cannot provide a refund at the time of departure"; a 1040-C overpayment comes back only through that final return. And "The issuance of a certificate of compliance is not a final determination of your tax liability."

For tax year 2026, Form 1040-NR is due 2027-04-15 with withheld wages and 2027-06-15 otherwise (our arithmetic; the 2026 Instructions for Form 1040-NR are not yet posted). The 1040-C instructions note that "The most common dual-status tax years are the years of arrival and departure"; our guide to a dual-status return in your first year explains the mechanics, which run in reverse when you leave. See also 1040 vs 1040-NR for F-1, OPT, H-1B and H-4 filers and our checklist for the final US tax return after leaving OPT or H-1B.

Is the sailing permit checked when you leave?

The rule says yes. IRS Topic 858 says the permit "must be presented at the point of departure." The IRS pages we read do not describe how or how often that happens, and we found no official data on it; accounts from people who say they were never asked at the airport are anecdotal and unverified.

Misconception: "Nobody checks, so the sailing permit doesn't apply to me." Correction: Whether anyone checks does not change who the rule covers, and an unfiled final return or unpaid balance stays your obligation after you leave. If you are exempt, you need only proof of your status; if you are not, the permit is how the IRS settles your account before you go.

Your CBP departure record is a separate system; if your I-94 never shows you left, here is how to prove you left when your I-94 departure is missing.

Common mistakes

• Treating the permit as an immigration document. It does not extend your stay, close your SEVIS record or record your departure with CBP.
• Assuming every student is exempt. The exemption turns on the type of US income; dividends (on our reading), rent and unauthorized work fall outside it.
• Booking outside the window. No permit more than 30 days before departure; the IRS asks for at least 2 weeks. Weekends and holidays shrink it.
• Treating Form 1040-C as your final return. The 1040-NR or 1040 is still due (with Form 8843 if you exclude student days), and any refund comes only through it.
• Bringing a personal check. The instructions ask for certified funds (a cashier's check or a certified bank or postal money order) or cash; check your TAC's payment options.

Frequently asked questions

What is a sailing permit?

A sailing permit, also called a departing alien clearance or certificate of compliance, is an IRS certificate showing you have settled your US income tax before you leave the country. You get it by filing Form 2063 or Form 1040-C at an IRS Taxpayer Assistance Center before you depart. As of November 2026 the requirement is in effect and unchanged, and it is a tax document, separate from your visa, I-94 and SEVIS record.

Do F-1 students need a sailing permit to leave the US?

Usually not. The IRS exempts students and their families on F-1, F-2, J-1, J-2 and a few other visas whose only US-source income was study allowances, wages from employment authorized under immigration law such as OPT or CPT, and bank interest not tied to a US business. Income outside that list, such as freelance or gig work done without work authorization, rent or, on our reading, dividends from US stocks, can take you out of the exemption. You still file Form 1040-NR and Form 8843 if they are required.

Do H-1B workers need departing alien clearance?

Generally yes, if you are leaving the US for good. H-1B is not one of the exempt categories the IRS lists, so a worker with US wages files Form 1040-C, or Form 2063 if the worker is a resident alien for tax purposes and the IRS decides the departure will not hinder tax collection. The IRS says to get the permit no earlier than 30 days and at least 2 weeks before your flight, at a Taxpayer Assistance Center appointment booked through 844-545-5640.

How far in advance do I apply for a sailing permit?

The IRS says to get the permit at least 2 weeks before you leave, and you cannot apply earlier than 30 days before your planned departure date. All Taxpayer Assistance Centers work by appointment, which you book at 844-545-5640 between 7 a.m. and 7 p.m. local time. For a flight on December 19, 2026, that window runs from November 19 to December 5, 2026, a Saturday, so in practice to Friday, December 4.

Does Form 1040-C replace my final tax return?

No. The IRS says Form 1040-C is not an annual US income tax return, so you still file Form 1040-NR or Form 1040 after the year ends. Tax you pay with Form 1040-C counts as a credit on that return, and any refund comes only through it. For tax year 2026, a 1040-NR with withheld wages is due April 15, 2027, and otherwise June 15, 2027 (our arithmetic).

Who to ask

Your DSO handles your F-1 or OPT end date, grace period and SEVIS record. A licensed immigration attorney handles H-1B status, grace-period strategy and any pending petition. A tax professional who prepares nonresident and dual-status returns is the right person for Form 1040-C, Form 2063 and your final return.

Sources

• IRS, Departing Alien Clearance (Sailing Permit), updated 2026-08-18
• IRS, Topic no. 858, Alien tax clearance, updated 2026-10-26
• IRS, Instructions for Form 1040-C (Rev. January 2026) and About Form 1040-C
• IRS, About Form 2063
• IRS, Publication 519 (2025), U.S. Tax Guide for Aliens, chapter 11
• IRS, Instructions for Form 1040-NR and Topic no. 558
• 26 U.S.C. 6851 (Cornell LII)
• USCIS, Form I-539 page (Duration of Status rule enjoined)
• Federal Register, Eliminating the Discretionary 60-Day Grace Period (proposed rule)

How we checked this: we read the IRS departing alien page, Topic 858, the January 2026 Form 1040-C instructions, the Form 2063 and 1040-C pages and Publication 519 in early November 2026, and took immigration status labels from our facts brief dated 2026-11-01.

This is general information, not legal or tax advice; your own I-20, I-94 and approval notice, your DSO, your immigration attorney and your tax professional govern your situation.

If you would rather keep searching for a sponsoring employer before your grace period runs out, F1Jobs works with F-1, OPT and H-1B job seekers on exactly that.