All F1 students are treated as an "exempt individual" for a total of five years. Therefore, you will have to file 1040NR. If you have already spent a total of five years as an exempt individual (filed 1040NR), you can go ahead and file 1040 as US residents do. I am not very much familiar with H1B status tax filing. But looking at the instructions in 1040 you can file 1040 if you meet one of the "substantial presence test" or the "green card" tests. That means, if you have already spent more than 183 days in H1B status by the end of tax year, you meet the "substantial presence test" and you can file 1040. [However, look at the part year resident tax instructions if you meet this substantial presence test- that is you may need to file two forms 1040NR for part of the year and 1040 for the rest] I will explore the green card test later as it is not directly related in this thread yet.