Get an Individual Taxpayer Identification Number ITIN to file your tax return

There’s also a comprehensive IRS tax guide with FAQs and links to the proper tax forms. With TurboTax Live Full Service, a local expert matched to your unique situation will do your taxes for you start to finish. Or, get unlimited help and advice from tax experts while you do your taxes with TurboTax Live Assisted. And if you want to file your own taxes, you can still feel confident you'll do them right with TurboTax top-down and bottom-up planning as an important aspect in epm as we guide you step by step.

But the IRS breaks that group down even further into resident and nonresident aliens. And they all may need to get an ITIN so they can follow tax laws and file federal tax returns. An adoption taxpayer identification number, or ATIN, is a temporary TIN issued by the IRS to a child whose adoption is pending.

Taxpayers with an ITIN can complete the registration process to access their IRS online account, which provides balance due, payment history, payment plans, tax records, and more. The IRS has an online tool to determine if someone is eligible to receive an ITIN. Before using the tool, it’s a good idea to have some information on hand, like the reason you might need an ITIN and what type of visa—if any—you have.

ITIN vs. SSN: What are the key differences?

Adoptive parents need an ATIN when they can’t get the child’s regular SSN in time to file their federal tax return. With an ATIN, a parent could claim the child as a dependent and, if eligible, get the child tax credit and other dependent-related tax benefits. If they can’t get an SSN, the IRS says spouses or dependents of nonresident or resident aliens also typically need ITINs. That’s because they might either have to file their own federal tax returns or be identified on the nonresident or resident tax returns.

What is taxable income?

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. If questions 11 through 17 on Form SS-4 do not apply to the applicant because he has no U.S. tax return filing requirement, such questions should be annotated "N/A".

More In File

1. 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.
2. 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).
3. Acceptance Agents are entities (colleges, financial institutions, accounting firms, etc.) who are authorized by the IRS to assist applicants in obtaining ITINs.
4. Refer to Employer ID Numbers for more information.The following form is available only to employers located in Puerto Rico, Solicitud de Número de Identificación Patronal (EIN) SS-4PR PDF.
5. PTINs help the IRS track tax return preparers and their compliance with current tax laws and regulations.
6. In subsequent years, when you have an ITIN, you will file your tax return as directed in the form instructions.

If you want to check the status of your ITIN application, you can call the IRS numbers listed above. To be considered a resident alien by the IRS, someone needs to meet the criteria of either the green card test or the substantial presence test. They’re a set of conditions that have to be met to qualify for resident alien status for U.S. are sales an asset or liability if so why tax purposes. There are also some cases where people can override the need for these tests. The above article is intended to provide generalized financial information designed to educate a broad segment of the public; it does not give personalized tax, investment, legal, or other business and professional advice.

The IRS issues a preparer tax identification number (PTIN) to paid tax preparers aged 18 years or older. All individuals who prepare or assist with preparing federal tax returns in exchange for compensation must include their PTIN on clients’ returns. PTINs help the IRS track tax return preparers and their compliance with current tax laws and regulations.

It doesn’t authorize you to work in the U.S. or make you eligible for Social Security benefits. You how to handle sales commissions in financial statements can file Form W-7, Application for IRS Individual Taxpayer Identification Number (ITIN), with your federal income tax return. You must also include original documentation or certified copies from the issuing agency to prove identity and foreign status. 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.

People who aren’t U.S. citizens still may have to file a federal tax return in the U.S. And ITINs are the tax processing and identification numbers that let people who can’t get an SSN do just that. Plus, people might also be able to use ITINs instead of SSNs as part of banking and credit applications. 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.