Form W-7 (Rev. December 2024), updated 13 November 2026

Form W-7, line by line, without the guesswork

Form W-7 is the one-page application for an ITIN. The form is short; the rules behind it aren't. Picking the wrong reason box, or leaving one line empty, can cost you a rejection notice and another two months. Applying from ? Here's how to get it right first time.

8reason boxes, tick one

5exceptions to the return rule

9 to 11weeks from abroad

Find my reason box Go line by line

W-7Rev. 12-2024

Application for IRS Individual Taxpayer Identification Number

OMB No. 1545-0074

Apply for a new ITINRenew an existing ITIN

a-h

1aFirst, middle, last name as on passport

2Mailing address where notices go

3Foreign address your home country

4Date of birth, country, city

6aCitizenship full name, no abbreviation

6bForeign tax ID if any

6dDocument: passport, number, expiry, date of entry

6e-gOld ITIN or IRSN; school or company

Sign here: applicant, original signatureAcceptance agent use only

Before you start

Three checks before you fill in a single box

You can't get an SSN. If you have a Social Security number, or are eligible for one, don't file W-7. If the Social Security Administration has refused you one, attach its denial letter. With an SSN application still pending, wait.
You have a federal tax purpose. A US return to file, a treaty rate to claim, or another rule that needs your number. Not sure? Start with our ITIN guide, which has a four-question check.
You have the right revision. These steps follow the December 2024 Form W-7 and its instructions, which the IRS still links as current. The PDF is fillable: type, print, then sign by hand.

Owners of a US LLC living abroad rarely need this form for the company. The LLC's tax number is an EIN, issued on Form SS-4 with "Foreign" on line 7b. See the EIN without an SSN guide.

Reason you're submitting

Which reason box is yours?

Tick exactly one, even when renewing. If two fit, the IRS asks for the one that best explains why you're applying. Choose the line that sounds like you.

Lines 1 to 6g

Every line, in the order you meet it

One rule covers the whole form: write "N/A" in every section that doesn't apply. The instructions say don't leave any section blank; line 4 alone needs three separate entries.

TopApplication typeNew, or Renew. Choosing Renew means lines 6e and 6f must show the old number.

1aYour legal nameExactly as on your passport or other identity document, split into first, middle and last. This is the name your ITIN is set up under, so use it on the return too.

1bName at birthOnly if it differs from 1a, as on your birth certificate. Otherwise N/A.

2Mailing addressWhere the IRS sends your ITIN notice and returns your documents. A US Postal Service box is fine where mail isn't delivered; a box run by a private firm isn't. It only updates IRS records when a return is attached.

3Foreign addressYour full home address abroad, even when it's the same as line 2. No P.O. box. With reason b it must be a complete address, and a treaty claim needs the treaty country here.

4BirthDate as MM/DD/YYYY, country of birth, and city and state or province (city is optional; write N/A rather than leave it blank).

5GenderTick one box.

6aCitizenshipThe full country name, never an abbreviation. Dual citizens list both.

6bForeign tax IDThe tax number your country of tax residence gave you, if any. The IRS's own example: a Canadian resident enters the Social Insurance Number.

6cUS visaUS nonimmigrant visa only: type, number and expiry, for example "F-1/F-2 123456" and the date. Holders of I-20 or I-94 attach a copy. No visa: N/A.

6dIdentity documentTick the type (passport for most), then issuer, number, expiry and date of entry to the US. Never been to the US: write Never entered the United States. More than one document: list the first here, the rest on an attached sheet headed with your name and "Form W-7".

6eEarlier ITIN or IRSN?Yes if you were ever given an ITIN, or an IRSN (a number the IRS assigns when someone files without a TIN). No or don't know: tick that and skip 6f.

6fOld number and nameThe number and the exact name it was issued under. Renewals that miss this get delayed.

6gCollege or companyReason f: the school, its city and state, and your length of stay. In the US temporarily for business: the company you're dealing with, city and state, and how long you stay. Otherwise N/A.

Sign here

Who can sign, and how

You sign it yourself, with an original signature. A parent or court-appointed guardian may sign for a dependent under 18 who can't. Anyone else needs a Form 2848 power of attorney attached, and that includes a spouse signing for a spouse. Powers of attorney must be in English, or come with a certified translation. If you can't write your name, sign with a mark such as an X in front of a witness who also signs.

The box at the bottom marked "Acceptance Agent's Use ONLY" is for the agent's name, office code and EIN. Leave it to them.

No tax return attached

The five exceptions: apply without a tax return

Normally the ITIN is issued only with the return it's needed for. These five cases let you apply at any time with a supporting letter or contract instead. Tick box h (and box a or f for a treaty claim), then write the exception on the dotted line, for example "Exception 1d-Pension Income" or "Exception 3-Mortgage Interest". In every case the withholding or reporting must happen in the current tax year.

Passive income with withholding or a treaty rate

1a partners in a partnership investing in the US; 1b and 1c interest-bearing US bank deposits; 1d pensions, annuities, rents, royalties or dividends paid to you.

Send with itThe partnership agreement page with its EIN, or a signed letter on letterhead from the bank or withholding agent.

Wages, grants, gambling

2a wages or honoraria at a treaty rate; 2b and 2c scholarships and grants; 2d gambling winnings at a treaty rate.

Send with itEmployment letter or contract and Form 8233; award letter; for 2d, apply through the casino's gaming official acting as acceptance agent.

A US home mortgage

You hold a home mortgage loan on property in the US and the lender reports the interest.

Send with itThe sale contract or similar papers showing the mortgage.

Selling US real estate

You're a party to a sale of US real property by a foreign person, where the buyer withholds.

Send with itForm 8288, 8288-A or 8288-B, plus the sales contract, settlement statement or closing disclosure.

T.D. 9363 e-filing

You're the non-US representative of a foreign corporation who needs an ITIN to meet its e-filing duties.

Send with itA signed letter on company letterhead naming you as responsible for its IRS reporting. Write "Exception 5, T.D. 9363".

If you have to file a federal return anyway, Exception 1 isn't open to you: attach the return instead. The IRS publishes filled-in examples for each exception in Publication 1915.

Supporting documents

Build your envelope

Answer three questions and the list writes itself. Everything comes from the instructions' "How To Apply" and supporting documentation sections.

What are you sending as ID?

Original or copy?

Attaching a tax return?

Documents must be current when you submit; the postmark date decides. A passport that expires while the IRS is still processing your application still counts, because the date you submitted it is what matters. A copy is certified only when the issuing agency, or a US embassy or consulate, certifies it with an official seal. A notary's stamp doesn't qualify, except for spouses and dependents of US military personnel overseas.

Where to apply

Where Form W-7 goes

By post to Internal Revenue Service, ITIN Operation, P.O. Box 149342, Austin, TX 78714-9342. By courier to Internal Revenue Service, ITIN Operation, Mail Stop 6090-AUSC, 3651 S. Interregional, Hwy 35, Austin, TX 78741-0000. Staple the W-7 to the front of the return. Leave the SSN box on the return empty; the IRS writes the ITIN in.

In person at an IRS Taxpayer Assistance Center in the US that offers ITIN document review, by appointment on 844-545-5640. Through an agent: a Certifying Acceptance Agent, in the US or abroad, can review the form and your passport and hand the passport straight back. The ITIN guide compares the four routes and shows whether the IRS lists agents in your country.

Allow 7 weeks for a reply, or 9 to 11 weeks from abroad or between 15 January and 30 April. The IRS's processing status page said on 6 November 2026 that it was working on W-7s received in October 2026.

Common mistakes

Eight mistakes the instructions warn about

Blank boxesWrite N/A instead. A form with gaps looks incomplete.

No reason ticked on a renewalRenewals need a reason box too.

Box a without box hA treaty claim needs h, the exception number and the treaty country and article.

A country-only line 3 with a P.O. box on line 2The instructions say this may get the application rejected.

A notarised photocopyOnly the issuing agency or a US consulate can certify a copy.

An abbreviated countryLine 6a wants "United Kingdom", not "UK".

A different name on the returnUse the line 1a name on every IRS form, or processing slows down.

Mailing to the 1040-NR addressThe whole package goes to the ITIN unit in Austin.

Questions

Questions about Form W-7

Can I file Form W-7 online?

No. It goes on paper by post or courier, through an acceptance agent, or at an IRS office in the US.

Do I need Form W-7 to get an EIN for my LLC?

No. The EIN comes from Form SS-4, and the responsible party can write "Foreign" on line 7b without any SSN or ITIN.

Which box do I tick if I'm filing Form 1040-NR?

Reason b, "Nonresident alien filing a U.S. federal tax return", with a complete foreign address on line 3.

Can I send a scan or a photocopy of my passport?

Only a copy certified by the passport office or a US embassy or consulate. Otherwise send the original, or show it to a Certifying Acceptance Agent or an IRS office.

Is there a fee for Form W-7?

The IRS charges nothing. Acceptance agents set their own fees.

How do I renew with Form W-7?

Tick "Renew an existing ITIN", tick a reason box, fill in lines 6e and 6f, and attach the return that needs the number.

Do you need an ITIN?The four-question check and the routes W-8BEN-E or W-8BENThe forms US payers ask for next Lost your EIN letter?CP 575, 147C and how to get one from abroad

Also useful: US LLC for founders abroad, Form 5472 and tax ID numbers by country.

Changelog

13 November 2026: first published, from Form W-7 and its instructions (both Rev. December 2024), the IRS ITIN pages of October 2026 and the processing status page of 6 November 2026.

Your US company

The company side needs no W-7 at all.

We form your Wyoming LLC for US$181.40 in year one, all in, and apply for its EIN with no SSN or ITIN.

See the Wyoming LLC Compare US states