How to fill out Form W-7

Who needs this form

You file Form W-7 if you must have a US taxpayer ID for federal tax purposes and you are not eligible for a social security number (SSN). The ITIN is for federal tax only. It does not give you the right to work, change your immigration status or qualify you for social security benefits.

Typical applicants:

• A nonresident alien who must file a US federal tax return, or files one to get a refund.
• A nonresident alien who needs an ITIN to claim a tax treaty benefit.
• A resident alien under the substantial presence test who files a return and can't get an SSN.
• The spouse or dependent of a US citizen or resident alien, claimed for an allowable tax benefit (a joint return, head of household, the credit for other dependents, and similar) or filing their own return.
• A nonresident student, professor or researcher, and the spouse or dependent of a nonresident visa holder.
• Anyone renewing an expired ITIN that will go on a federal tax return. An ITIN expires on December 31 of the third year in a row it was not used on a federal return.

If you are eligible for an SSN, you don't use this form. You apply for the SSN with Form SS-5 at the Social Security Administration (ssa.gov). If an SSN application is pending, wait. A business needs an EIN instead: see Form SS-4.

What to have ready

• The federal tax return the ITIN is for, with the SSN space left blank for each applicant. You skip the return only if you meet one of the exceptions in the instructions' Exceptions Tables, and then you send that exception's documents instead.
• Identity and foreign status documents, as originals or certified copies from the agency that issued them. Notarized copies are not accepted, except for spouses and dependents of US military personnel applying from overseas. Every document must be current.
• A passport, if you have one. It is the only document that proves both identity and foreign status on its own. Without it, you send at least two documents from the IRS list of 13, and at least one must have your photo (not required for a dependent under 14, or under 18 if a student).
• Dependents' extra papers. A dependent usually must prove US residency too: a passport with a US date of entry, or a US school record, medical record (under 6), state ID, driver's license or visa. A dependent under 18 without a passport needs a birth certificate.
• US entry date and visa details, if you have them, plus a copy of any I-20 or I-94.

The 13 accepted documents are: passport, USCIS photo ID, US visa, US driver's license, US military ID, foreign driver's license, foreign military ID, national ID card, US state ID, foreign voter's registration card, civil birth certificate, medical records (dependents under 6) and school records (dependents under 24, if students).

Step by step

1. Choose new or renew in Application type

   Check Apply for a new ITIN or Renew an existing ITIN. If you renew, you must also answer Line 6e and give the ITIN on Line 6f.

2. Check one reason box, Box a to Box h

   Check the one box that best fits, even for a renewal. Box b is a nonresident filing a return. Box c is a resident alien by days present, and needs an entry date on Line 6d. Box d and Box e are a dependent or spouse of a US citizen or resident alien: enter that person's full name and SSN or ITIN on the dotted line, and for Box d the relationship (parent, child and so on). Box g needs a copy of the visa and an entry date.

   Box a (treaty benefit) always requires Box h too. Box f requires it when you claim an exception. On the dotted line next to Box h, write the exception as the instructions word it, for example "Exception 1d-Pension Income". Then enter the treaty country and article number on the line below. Box h alone is for any other reason: describe it in detail and attach proof.

3. Enter your name on Line 1a and Line 1b

   Line 1a is your legal name exactly as it appears on your documents, split into first, middle and last. Use the same name on your tax return. Line 1b is your name at birth, only if it differs.

4. Give your mailing address on Line 2

   The IRS mails your ITIN notice and returns your original documents here. Use a US Postal Service box only if mail isn't delivered to your street. Private mailbox companies are not accepted.

5. Give your foreign address on Line 3

   Enter your full non-US address, even if it repeats Line 2. If you moved to the US and have no home abroad, enter only the country where you last lived. With Box b, give the full address of your last foreign home. A treaty country must match this country.

6. Enter birth details on Line 4

   Date of birth (MM/DD/YYYY), country of birth, and city and state or province. The instructions say to enter "N/A" in any part of a line that doesn't apply, instead of leaving it blank.

7. Check Male or Female on Line 5

   The December 2024 form offers only these two boxes.

8. Complete Line 6a to Line 6g

   • Line 6a: each country of citizenship, written in full.
   • Line 6b: your home country's tax ID number, if it issued one.
   • Line 6c: US nonimmigrant visa only: classification, number and expiration date, for example "F-1/F-2 123456" and the date.
   • Line 6d: check the type of the first ID document, then the issuer, number, expiration date and US date of entry. List more documents on a separate sheet headed with your name and "Form W-7". If you never entered the US, write "Never entered the United States".
   • Line 6e: Yes if you ever had an ITIN or an IRS number (IRSN). Otherwise No/Don't know.
   • Line 6f: the old ITIN or IRSN and the name it was issued under. A name change needs proof, such as a marriage certificate.
   • Line 6g: for Box f, your school, its city and state, and length of stay. Business visitors give the company instead.

9. Sign in Sign Here

   The applicant signs with an original signature, adds the date and a phone number. A parent or court-appointed guardian may sign for a dependent under 18 who can't. Anyone else, including a spouse, signs only with a Form 2848 attached. The delegate prints their name and checks Parent, Power of attorney or Court-appointed guardian. A guardian attaches the court papers.

10. Leave Acceptance Agent's Use ONLY blank

    Only an IRS acceptance agent fills in this section.

Common mistakes

Where it goes

You don't give Form W-7 to an employer or payer. You send it to the IRS with your tax return (or exception documents) and your identity documents.

By US mail:

• Internal Revenue Service, ITIN Operation, P.O. Box 149342, Austin, TX 78714-9342

By private delivery service:

• Internal Revenue Service, ITIN Operation, Mail Stop 6090-AUSC, 3651 S. Interregional, Hwy 35, Austin, TX 78741-0000

Don't use the address in your tax return's instructions: the return is processed from this package.

To keep your originals, apply in person. A Certifying Acceptance Agent, in the US or abroad, can verify passports and most documents and hand them back right away. Designated IRS Taxpayer Assistance Centers do the same by appointment only (844-545-5640).

Allow 7 weeks for the IRS to tell you the result, or 9 to 11 weeks from January 15 to April 30 or from overseas. Mailed originals come back to your Line 2 address. If they haven't arrived after 60 days, call the IRS. Keep a copy of everything you send.