Postdoctoral fellowships are typically granted to recipients of NIH NRSA fellowships or training grants and to postdocs who are direct recipients of other fellowship support and are thus not paid by the University.
Because postdoctoral fellows are not Brown employees, they are not eligible for a full range of employee benefits and are treated differently from employees for tax purposes.
Eligibility
Although postdoctoral fellows are not employees and therefore not eligible to participate in Brown employee benefits plans, Brown has made special arrangements with our insurance carriers to provide access to health (Blue Cross & Blue Shield) and dental (Delta Dental) plans to NIH fellows who are paid through Brown.
Brown's Contribution
IRS regulations require that Brown's contribution to health and dental premiums, and the postdocs' contribution to these, be treated differently for postdoctoral fellows than University employees. Regulations regarding the withholding of taxes from stipends and wages also differ. For postdoctoral fellows on NIH training grants, taxes will not be withheld or wages reported from stipend payments, while insurance subsidies from Brown may be taxed and reported via a 1099-MISC form.