Applying for an ITIN with Form W-7: the documents the IRS requires

The ITIN, or Individual Taxpayer Identification Number, is the IRS tax number for people who can't get a Social Security Number. You apply with a single form, Form W-7, but the IRS is strict about the documents. An expired ID, a copy not certified by the issuing agency or a missing tax return is all it takes for an application to fail. This page walks through what the IRS requires under the law, 26 U.S.C. § 6109(i), and the instructions for Form W-7. If you need the number before your first tax return, for example for a bank account, a card or a contract, read our ITIN Express page.

1Who needs an ITIN and who doesn't

You need an ITIN if you have a US tax purpose and can't get a Social Security Number. According to the IRS, you have a tax purpose if you must file a federal tax return, if you want to claim a refund, an allowable tax benefit or income on a return, if you are claimed as a spouse or dependent for a benefit, or if you must provide a number for some other tax reason. Typical cases for readers from Europe include:

• nonresidents filing Form 1040-NR, for example for rent from US property or income from a US partnership,
• nonresidents claiming a tax treaty benefit for which the payer requires an ITIN,
• spouses of US citizens or residents filing jointly with them,
• residents under the Substantial Presence Test without work authorization who file Form 1040.

US citizens, green card holders and anyone eligible for an SSN cannot get an ITIN, and that includes anyone working in the US on a work visa. If an SSN application is pending, you don't apply for an ITIN. Once you have an SSN, you use only that.

The ITIN is for tax purposes only. It doesn't authorize you to work, doesn't change your immigration status, doesn't entitle you to Social Security benefits and isn't a form of ID outside the tax system. For how the ITIN, EIN and SSN differ, see the guide EIN, ITIN, SSN, TIN: which US number is for what.

2The basic rule: Form W-7 goes with the tax return

The IRS usually issues the ITIN while processing a tax return. You attach Form W-7 to the front of the return you need the number for, leave the tax ID field blank, and the IRS fills in the ITIN itself once it's assigned. If your spouse or children are also applying, each person needs their own Form W-7 attached to the same return.

You should file by the return's due date. If you need more time, request an extension with Form 4868; you don't need an ITIN for that, just write "ITIN TO BE REQUESTED" on the form. Returns for prior years and applications under an exception can be filed at any time. For some credits, the ITIN must already be issued by the return's due date, including extensions.

Two practical consequences: you can't e-file a return with an ITIN issued in the current calendar year. Your first return with a new ITIN therefore goes on paper, and you can attach several years to one Form W-7. And it isn't mailed to the address in the Form 1040-NR instructions but to the IRS ITIN unit in Austin, which forwards the return once the number is issued.

3The exceptions without a tax return

Without a tax return, you can only apply under one of the five exceptions in the instructions. They cover cases where a third party, usually a payer with reporting or withholding obligations, requires an ITIN from you: passive income subject to withholding or a treaty benefit, wages or fees with a treaty benefit, mortgage interest on US property, the sale of US property by a foreign person, and the reporting obligations of representatives of foreign companies. Instead of the return, you include supporting documentation, such as a letter from the payer on letterhead confirming that it needs the number for payments in the current year.

The limits matter. If you must file a return anyway, you can't use the first exception. If you are paid for work in the US or hold a visa that allows you to work, you must apply for an SSN first and can only get an ITIN with the Social Security Administration's rejection letter. You enter the exception in box h of Form W-7 with its number and letter, and for a treaty benefit with the country and article.

4Form W-7 line by line

Form W-7 is one page. At the top, you check whether you're applying for a new ITIN or renewing an existing one. Below that, you pick the reason, exactly one, the one that best fits your situation:

• a nonresident who needs an ITIN for a treaty benefit, always together with h and the exception,
• b nonresident filing a federal tax return, even if only for a refund,
• c resident under the Substantial Presence Test filing a return,
• d dependent of a US citizen or resident,
• e spouse of a US citizen or resident,
• f nonresident student, professor or researcher,
• g dependent or spouse of a nonresident holding a US visa,
• h other, with a precise description, such as one of the exceptions.

Next come your personal details. Line 1a is your name exactly as it appears on your identification documents, 1b your name at birth if different. Line 2 is the mailing address where the IRS returns your originals and sends its notices. Line 3 is your full foreign address in the country where you permanently live; for a treaty benefit, it must be the treaty country. Line 4 is your date of birth in US format: month, day, year. In 6a, list all your citizenships, spelled out. In 6b, enter the tax ID number your country of residence has issued you for tax purposes. Line 6c is only for a US visa, line 6d for your identification document with issuer, number, expiry date and date of entry into the US; if you have never entered, write "Never entered the United States". In 6e and 6f, you state whether you have ever had an ITIN or an IRSN. For business stays, line 6g asks for the name of the company you deal with in the US, its location and the length of your stay. Fill in fields that don't apply with "N/A" rather than leaving them blank.

5The documents: originals, certified copies and the passport

Your documents prove two things: your identity and your foreign status. Dependents must also prove US residency, with exceptions. The IRS accepts thirteen documents. Only one is enough on its own: the passport. Without a passport, you need at least two documents that together prove both, one of them with a photo. A European national ID card counts as a national identification card if it shows your name, photo, address, date of birth and expiry date.

Three rules trigger follow-up questions most often:

• Original or a copy certified by the issuing agency. For the IRS, a certified copy is one issued by the agency that issued the original, bearing its seal. A copy certified by anyone else doesn't meet this definition. According to the instructions, US embassies and consulates abroad also offer certification; services vary by country, and the IRS advises checking with the American Citizen Services section first.
• Valid on the day you file. Passports and ID cards must still be valid when you submit them; the postmark usually counts. Birth certificates are always considered valid.
• The same details everywhere. Name, date of birth and citizenship on your documents must match lines 1a, 1b, 4 and 6a of Form W-7.

The IRS returns originals to the address on line 2, within 60 days by its own account. You may include a prepaid express or courier envelope. If you need your passport during that time, for travel for example, choose one of the routes where your documents are checked in person. Foreign-language documents may require a certified translation if the IRS asks for one.

6How to get your application to the IRS: mail, Taxpayer Assistance Center, Acceptance Agent

By mail. You send Form W-7, your tax return or proof of the exception, and your documents to the IRS ITIN unit in Austin, Texas: by regular mail to the P.O. box, or by courier to the street address given in the instructions.

In person in the US. Selected IRS Taxpayer Assistance Centers review Form W-7 and most documents free of charge and hand them back at the end of your appointment. Visits are by appointment only, and getting one can take a few weeks.

Through an Acceptance Agent. The IRS authorizes two types of agents, both in the US and abroad, and lists them by state and country. An Acceptance Agent helps you fill out the form, checks your documents for completeness and sends the package to the IRS, originals or certified copies included. A Certifying Acceptance Agent can also authenticate the documents of the applicant and spouse directly (for dependents, the passport and birth certificate) and returns the originals right away; they may not review foreign military IDs. Both can resolve questions with the IRS, and a Certifying Acceptance Agent receives copies of the notices. Agents set their own fees.

The law, 26 U.S.C. § 6109(i)(1), expressly provides that applicants living outside the US can apply by mail or in person with IRS staff, an authorized Certifying Acceptance Agent, or an IRS-designated office at a US embassy or consulate. Whether and when an embassy in your country offers such appointments, the embassy can tell you.

7Processing time, notices and costs

The IRS says you will hear about your application within seven weeks. During peak season, from January 15 to April 30, and for applications from abroad, it takes nine to eleven weeks; according to Pub. 1915, mail from abroad can take considerably longer. If you hear nothing in that time, you can contact the IRS; from abroad, call +1 267 941 1000 (not toll-free).

The answer arrives as a notice. CP565 means your ITIN has been assigned. CP566 means the IRS needs more information. CP567 means the application was rejected and must be filed again. The assignment date is usually the day the IRS received your complete application.

The instructions list no IRS fee for the application, and an appointment at a Taxpayer Assistance Center is free. Acceptance Agents and Certifying Acceptance Agents set their own fees. On top of that come postage and, where applicable, the issuing agency's fee for a certified copy.

An ITIN does not last forever. If it is not used on a tax return for three consecutive tax years, it expires; our guide Renewing an ITIN and expired ITINs explains how to renew it.

8When you need the number sooner

Applying with a tax return works if you have to file one anyway. But many people need an ITIN earlier, because a bank, a card application, a purchase agreement or a business partner asks for it, and they have neither a return due nor one of the five exceptions. That is what ITIN Express is for: a special procedure we developed together with the attorneys on the firm's team that does not require a prior tax return. IRS processing time stays the same, and the IRS alone decides whether to issue the number. If you can wait, we apply for the ITIN together with your US tax return. To see how the ITIN and your return fit into your other US tax obligations, read our pillar guide US tax obligations for Europeans.

In short

• You need an ITIN if you need a number for US tax purposes and cannot get a Social Security Number; it is used for tax purposes only.
• Form W-7 is generally attached to the tax return you need the number for; without a return, you can only apply under one of the five IRS exceptions.
• Your passport, original or a copy certified by the issuing agency, is the only document that is enough on its own; all documents must be valid.
• You can apply by mail, at a Taxpayer Assistance Center in the US or through an Acceptance Agent; a Certifying Acceptance Agent verifies most documents directly and returns them to you right away.
• The IRS quotes seven weeks, or nine to eleven weeks in peak season or for applications from abroad.

How we help you

• ITIN ExpressYour ITIN through our special procedure, no tax return needed.
• Your US Tax ReturnForm 1040 or 1040-NR, handled in English.
• US Tax ConsultationYour US tax question, answered by people who know both sides.