About Form W-7, Application for IRS Individual Taxpayer Identification Number Internal Revenue Service

Many applicants have reported that IRS lost their passports or other valuable and hard-to-replace identification documents. Consider getting certified copies or using one of the application methods listed below, rather than mailing original identification documents to the IRS. To obtain an ITIN, you must complete IRS Form W-7, IRS Application for Individual Taxpayer Identification Number. The Form W-7 requires documentation substantiating foreign/alien status and true identity for each individual.

Government information

1. If you’re required to file a tax return and aren’t eligible for a Social Security number, you need to apply for an ITIN (See the What should I do? section, above).
2. The ITIN is not valid for employment, but can be used to file your taxes, open a bank account, access credit and loans, and is a start to your financial footing in the United States.
3. At a minimum, you should complete Form W-7 when you are ready to file your federal income tax return by the return’s prescribed due date.
4. You will usually file an ITIN application, Form W-7, Application for IRS Individual Taxpayer Identification Number, with your first tax return, which you must file as a paper return, not electronically.
5. USA.gov is the new centralized place for finding government benefits for health care, housing, food, unemployment, and more.

The staff can help you complete an application and will submit it for processing. Applicants who meet one of the exceptions to the requirement to file a tax return (see the Instructions for Form W-7) must provide documentation to support the exception. Low Income Taxpayer Clinics (LITCs) are independent from the IRS and TAS. LITCs represent individuals whose income is below a certain level and who need to resolve tax problems with the IRS. LITCs can represent taxpayers in audits, appeals, and tax collection disputes before the IRS and in court. In addition, LITCs can provide information about taxpayer rights and responsibilities in different languages for individuals who speak English as a second language.

The Application

You may either mail the documentation, along with the Form W-7, to the address shown in the Form W-7 Instructions, present it at IRS walk-in offices, or process your application through an Acceptance Agent authorized by the IRS. Form W-7(SP), Solicitud de Número de Identificación Personal del Contribuyente del Servicio de Impuestos Internos is available for use by Spanish speakers. Internal Revenue Service (IRS) to individuals who are required for U.S. federal tax purposes to have a U.S. taxpayer identification number but who do not have and are not eligible to get a Social Security number (SSN). If you’re required to file a tax return and aren’t eligible for a Social Security number, you need to apply for an ITIN (See the What should I do? section, above). You can apply for an ITIN by bringing your completed forms (Including the completed Form W-7) and documentation to any IRS Taxpayer Assistance Center office.

Certain offices can verify passports and national identification cards and return them immediately. A list of these in-person Document Review Taxpayer Assistance Centers is available on IRS.gov. This allows you to avoid mailing your original documents, or certified copies, to the IRS. A certified copy is one that the original issuing agency provides, and certifies as an exact copy of the original, and contains an official stamped seal from the agency.

Did you know there is a Taxpayer Bill of Rights?

The Individual Tax Identification Number, or ITIN, allows taxpayers who don’t have a Social Security Number (SSN) to file income tax returns. Unlike other forms of ID, ITINs only have one purpose—tax filing and reporting. Having an ITIN number won’t make you eligible for benefits, such as Social Security or earned income credits that provide refunds to some low-income filers. When a significant natural disaster hits – such as a hurricane, earthquake, tornado, flood, wildfire, blizzard, or the like – the IRS will extend upcoming federal tax deadlines for affected taxpayers if a federal disaster is declared. The extended due dates apply to most federal tax returns and payments, including those for income taxes (including estimated tax payments), payroll taxes, and excise taxes. If you’re impacted by a natural disaster, check our IRS Disaster Relief page to see if you qualify for an automatic tax filing or payment extension.

How to file your federal tax return using an ITIN

Even if you have a PTIN but you received it prior to September 28, 2010, you must apply for a new or renewed PTIN by using the new system. If all your authentication information matches, you may be issued the same number. You must have a PTIN if you, for compensation, prepare all or substantially all of any federal tax return or claim for refund. An ITIN may be assigned to an alien dependent from Canada or Mexico if that dependent qualifies a taxpayer for a child or dependent care credit (claimed on Form 2441). The Form 2441 must be attached to Form W-7 along with the U.S. federal tax return. Both taxpayers and their dependents may qualify for an ITIN, allowing for individuals to report their income, claim dependents, claim tax credits, and refunds if they are eligible.

All the exceptions are listed in the ITIN application instructions. All Form W-7 applications, including renewals, must include a U.S. federal tax return unless you meet an exception to the filing requirement. Beginning January 1, 2011, if you are a paid tax preparer you must use a valid Preparer Tax Identification Number (PTIN) on returns you prepare. If you do not have a PTIN, you must get one by using the new IRS sign-up system.

An Individual Taxpayer Identification Number or ITIN is a tax processing number that the IRS issues to tax filers who are ineligible for a social security number. The ITIN is not valid for employment, but can be used to file your taxes, open a bank account, access credit and loans, and how to calculate the provision for income taxes on an income statement is a start to your financial footing in the United States. You can apply for an ITIN any time during the year when you have a filing or reporting requirement. At a minimum, you should complete Form W-7 when you are ready to file your federal income tax return by the return’s prescribed due date. If the tax return you attach to Form W-7 is filed after the return’s due date, you may owe interest and/or penalties. You will usually file an ITIN application, Form W-7, Application for IRS Individual Taxpayer Identification Number, with your first tax return, which you must file as a paper return, not electronically.