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GLACIER

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What GLACIER is

GLACIER is an online tax compliance system for institutions that host or pay foreign nationals. It helps determine tax residency and treaty eligibility, manage paperwork, and prepare IRS reporting. The system calculates the substantial presence test, reviews applicable income tax treaties for possible exemptions, and prepares relevant withholding and treaty forms, plus year-end Forms 1042 and 1042-S for paper or electronic submission. Federal e-filing is supported, and recipient delivery is available both ways. Administrators can invite foreign nationals to enter information directly; GLACIER tracks missing details and sends email reminders. Standard and ad-hoc reports can cover treaty exemption dates, residency changes, missing SSNs or ITINs, and immigration status expirations. The maker describes it for universities, colleges, research institutes, hospitals, foundations, exchange organizations, and government agencies. It runs in a current web browser and needs internet access and a printer, with no client installation. Arctic says it uses TLS, database encryption, firewalls, daily backups, and weekly offsite backup rotation. Pricing is available on request; plans are billed annually on a calendar-year basis, with a one-time setup fee and annual tax training also applying. A free trial is offered, with no duration stated.

Who it suits

GLACIER is intended for institutions that host or pay foreign nationals, including educational, research, healthcare, nonprofit, exchange, and government organizations. It suits administrators who need to collect information, manage tax paperwork, and prepare IRS reporting.

What it does well

  • Calculates the substantial presence test and reviews treaties.
  • Tracks missing information and sends email reminders.
  • Prepares Forms 1042 and 1042-S.
  • Supports federal e-filing and both delivery methods.
  • No client software installation is required.

What to know first

  • Pricing is available only on request.
  • Plans also involve setup fees and annual tax training.
  • Each foreign national needs an Individual Record retained for the calendar year.
  • An administrator must participate in training during each of the first two years.

Plans

PlanBilled and limitsPrice
MediumAnnual license fee on a calendar-year basis; one-time setup fee and annual tax training also apply. · 100 - 499 Individual RecordsOn request
JumboAnnual license fee on a calendar-year basis; one-time setup fee and annual tax training also apply. · 2500 – 3999 Individual RecordsOn request
MiniAnnual license fee on a calendar-year basis; one-time setup fee and annual tax training also apply. · 1-49 Individual RecordsOn request
LargeAnnual license fee on a calendar-year basis; one-time setup fee and annual tax training also apply. · 500 - 1499 Individual RecordsOn request
UnlimitedAnnual license fee on a calendar-year basis; one-time setup fee and annual tax training also apply. · 4000 or more Individual RecordsOn request
SmallAnnual license fee on a calendar-year basis; one-time setup fee and annual tax training also apply. · 50-99 Individual RecordsOn request
XLargeAnnual license fee on a calendar-year basis; one-time setup fee and annual tax training also apply. · 1500 - 2499 Individual RecordsOn request

As arcticintl.com lists them, read 9 Oct 2026. The maker's own page has the final word.

Verdict

GLACIER brings foreign-national tax information, treaty review, forms, and reporting into a web-based system for institutions. Consider its record-retention and administrator-training requirements, as well as the annual licensing and setup costs, when assessing fit.

Facts from GLACIER's own pages

Access and requirements
GLACIER is web-based and requires a current web browser, internet access, and a printer, with no client software installation required. · arcticintl.com, 9 Oct 2026
Forms and reporting
GLACIER prepares applicable withholding and treaty forms and year-end Forms 1042 and 1042-S for paper or electronic submission. · arcticintl.com, 9 Oct 2026
Headquarters
Austin, Texas, United States · arcticintl.com, 28 Sept 2026
Institutions served
The maker describes GLACIER as suited to universities, colleges, research institutes, hospitals, foundations, exchange organizations, and government agencies that host or pay foreign nationals. · arcticintl.com, 9 Oct 2026
Purpose
GLACIER is an online tax compliance system for institutions that collect information, determine tax residency and income tax treaty eligibility, manage paperwork, and file reporting statements with the IRS. · arcticintl.com, 9 Oct 2026
Record limit
Each foreign national needs an Individual Record, and the record must be retained for the full calendar year to support year-end reporting and tax-file maintenance. · arcticintl.com, 9 Oct 2026
Reports
GLACIER generates standard and ad-hoc reports, including reports on treaty exemption dates, residency changes, missing SSNs or ITINs, and immigration status expirations. · arcticintl.com, 9 Oct 2026
Security
Arctic says GLACIER uses TLS, database encryption, firewalls, daily backups, and weekly offsite backup rotation. · arcticintl.com, 9 Oct 2026
Support
The maker says GLACIER support is provided at no additional fee by tax professionals, IT staff, and software engineers, with online help on each screen. · arcticintl.com, 9 Oct 2026
Tax calculations
The system calculates the substantial presence test and reviews applicable income tax treaties for potential exemptions. · arcticintl.com, 9 Oct 2026
Training requirement
At least one Institution Administrator from each client must attend or participate in at least one ARC Training session during each of the first two years. · arcticintl.com, 9 Oct 2026
Trial
The maker says institutions can try GLACIER for free, but does not state a trial duration. · arcticintl.com, 9 Oct 2026
Workflow
Administrators can invite foreign nationals to enter information directly, and the system tracks missing information and sends email reminders. · arcticintl.com, 9 Oct 2026

Where GLACIER stands on Freedom251

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