A look at the PRC – USA Tax Treaty completes today’s foursome on the T. C. Memo. parade, as we have Zhongxia Ye, 2017 T. C. Memo. 216, filed 11/6/17. And that’s Dr. Ye, as Temple University gave her a Ph.D. in business administration.

Well, for the two years at issue, Dr. Ye was teaching at Kenesaw State University, and only went back to her native China once for a month, and to Canada for three days for a conference. She was tenure-track at Kenesaw, and got good evaluations toward that end.

Dr Ye didn’t bother paying China income tax or US Income tax either, claiming the Treaty Art. 19 teaching-lecturing-researching out. But the magic words there are “temporarily present.” That means a J or Q visa, not the H1B Dr. Ye had. And Dr. Ye clearly intended to stay, even though her five (count ‘em, five) lawyers claim that various contingencies could have caused her to return.

Too remote, says IRS, and Judge Nega agrees. She was tenure track at Kenesaw, got consistently good evaluations, and was clearly not going anywhere.

Too bad for Dr. Ye and her lawyers, among whom I find a gentleman I believe I met at the last USTC Judicial Conference, Juan F. Vasquez, Jr., Esq. It’s always tough to lose.