ITIN Application

[justdandy81 0]

Good day,

I am an US citizen residing in the state of Maryland and I got married last October. My wife is from the Philippines and she’s not an US resident. This year, I need to file my taxes  and they ask for my wife’s SSN or ITIN, which she does not have. About two months ago, I spoke to an IRS agent and he said that I needed to apply for her ITIN number by filling out form W7, and I needed to have either her passport or a certified copy of it. Since I already had scheduled a trip to the Philippines, i thought I could just get the certified copy during my trip and bring it back to the US. Unfortunately, the agency that issues the passports in the Philippines claims that they do not do certified copies of passports so I am going to bring my wife’s original passport with me along with the filled and signed W7 form. Do I need to have her signature on the form notarized? I wouldn’t want the IRS to question the authenticity of her signature and also, do i need to mail it out or can I stop by my local IRS office? and, is there any other form or piece of documentation I need to bring besides the w7 and her passport?

 

Thank you!

[JeanneAdil 6,191]

Passport is the only "stand alone " document needed for ID the following site will give u info on other documents to prove ID (like photo of DL foreign license or National ID with photo)

see chart near bottom of the page 

 

i would never send original passport and i was informed by UPS store that they could not do a color copy of passports to get them certified so before you bring her back here,   ask about doing this ?  Getting it back to her may be an issue 

 

along with one of those a marriage certificate is needed 

 

https://www.irs.gov/instructions/iw7

Edited April 20, 2022 by JeanneAdil

[justdandy81 0]

Thank you for the info! When I called the IRS a few months ago, they said I could get a certified copy at the same agency that issued her passport in the Philippines but apparently they don't do that there. So, I am planning to take her original passport along with the W7 form to my local IRS office but I am not sure if I would need to get the form notarized here in the Philippines so there's no doubt that she actually signed it. After I get her passport back from the IRS, I will send it back to her via FedEx. 

[arken 4,197]

11 hours ago, justdandy81 said:

This year, I need to file my taxes  and they ask for my wife’s SSN or ITIN, which she does not have.

You can file as Married Filing Separately, without your wife's SSN or ITIN.

 

26 minutes ago, justdandy81 said:

So, I am planning to take her original passport along with the W7 form to my local IRS office but I am not sure if I would need to get the form notarized here in the Philippines so there's no doubt that she actually signed it.

I doubt the IRS TAC centers will help apply for an ITIN application for someone not physically applying in person. But you can mail your tax return and W7 application to IRS directly for sure.

You then have the risk of IRS delays and not getting passport on time and then the risk of passport getting lost during international shipping. Not worth the risk.

 

 

 

My suggestion: Just file Married Filing Separately. 

Edited April 20, 2022 by arken

[Wuozopo 4,285]

11 hours ago, justdandy81 said:

Unfortunately, the agency that issues the passports in the Philippines claims that they do not do certified copies of passports so I am going to bring my wife’s original passport with me along with the filled and signed W7 form.

There is one Certifying Acceptance Agent listed in the Philippines who is supposed to be able to certify her passport. She would have to be there in person if that would work out for you. https://www.irs.gov/individuals/international-taxpayers/acceptance-agents-philippines

 

11 hours ago, justdandy81 said:

Do I need to have her signature on the form notarized? I wouldn’t want the IRS to question the authenticity of her signature and also, do i need to mail it out or can I stop by my local IRS office? and, is there any other form or piece of documentation I need to bring besides the w7 and her passport?

 

You will mail the following to the IRS Center in Austin, TX that processes all ITINs. 

• Your joint Tax return (both sign, leave her SSN field blank)
• A statement electing for her to be treated as a resident alien for tax purposes (both sign)
• Form W7 (she signs, not notarized)
• Her passport (or a certified copy if you go to the Acceptance Agent in the Phils)

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

 

If you go to the Acceptance Agent in the Philippines with all of the documents above, they may also provide the service of sending everything to the IRS for you. Or you can bring the certified passport copy home and mail it all to Austin yourself.

 

 

 

 

Edited April 20, 2022 by Wuozopo

[seekingthetruth 1,218]

15 minutes ago, Wuozopo said:

There is one Certifying Acceptance Agent listed in the Philippines who is supposed to be able to certify her passport. She would have to be there in person if that would work out for you. https://www.irs.gov/individuals/international-taxpayers/acceptance-agents-philippines

 

 

You will mail the following to the IRS Center in Austin, TX that processes all ITINs. 

• Your joint Tax return (both sign, leave her SSN field blank)
• A statement electing for her to be treated as a resident alien for tax purposes (both sign)
• Form W7 (she signs, not notarized)
• Her passport (or a certified copy if you go to the Acceptance Agent in the Phils)

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

 

If you go to the Acceptance Agent in the Philippines with all of the documents above, they may also provide the service of sending everything to the IRS for you. Or you can bring the certified passport copy home and mail it all to Austin yourself.

 

I hope the OP will be near Angeles City or does not mind to travel there.  That is where the IRS Acceptance Agent is.  Jim Boyd is the head of RAO (Retired Activities Office) Angeles and he is the Acceptance Agent, but he has a staff that helps.  We got my wife's ITIN there and they were great!  There is a fee but it was reasonable.  You don't have worry about mailing the return to Austin because they will do it all.  They are an authorized USPS facility.  Their U.S. mail is shuttled back and forth between the U.S. Embassy in Manila, and travels to the U.S. via diplomatic pouches.

 

This is from their website:

IRS CERTIFYING AGENT FOR ITIN'S: WE ARE THE IRS CERTIFYING AGENT FOR THE PHILIPPINES AND CAN PROCESS YOUR ITIN REQUIREMENTS… THERE ARE SEVERAL CATEGORIES OF ITIN’S BUT ALL MUST BE FOR TAX PURPOSES… THE MOST COMMON IS FOR A JOINT TAX RETURNS; REQUIREMENTS ARE: ITIN APPLICANT MUST APPEAR IN PERSON, MUST HAVE A MARRIAGE LICENSE/ CONTRACT OF MARRIAGE, HAVE A CURRENT PASSPORT (APPLICANT) IF NO PASSPORT, TWO OF THE FOLLOWING DOCUMENTS! NATIONAL ID CARD/CURRENT DRIVERS LICENSE/MILITARY ID CARD/VOTERS ID ARE ACCEPTABLE DOCUMENTS… PROVIDE AN UNFILED IRS 1040/1040X… NOTE: SPOUSE NAME ON 1040 MUST BE SAME AS ON SUPPORTING DOCUMENTS (PASSPORT/OTHER) AND CAN USE THE MARRIED OR SINGLE NAME… WE WILL PREPARE ALL THE NECESSARY DOCUMENTS ATTACH YOUR TAX RETURN AND SEND TO IRS VIA PRIORITY MAIL… DURING COVID, IT TAKES AROUND 3 MONTHS TO PROCESS… IF YOU ARE EXPECTING A REFUND, IT WILL GO TO THE ADDRESS/BANK LISTED ON YOUR IRS FORM 1040… IRS WILL MAIL APPLICANT AND US A COPY OF THE ITIN… USUALLY WE RECEIVE OUR COPY FIRST AND WILL NOTIFY YOU UPON RECEIPT… WE PROCESS ITIN APPLICATION BETWEEN 1000 -1300HRS M-F EXCEPT HOLIDAYS… IF ANY QUESTIONS CALL (045) 888-2748 AND ASK TO SPEAK TO AN ITIN REPRESENTATIVE.

 

I would advise to call and chat with the head ITIN lady, then make an appointment with her.  She is not there all day everyday.

[seekingthetruth 1,218]

12 minutes ago, seekingthetruth said:

This is from their website:

https://1925mcarthur.wixsite.com/raoangeles

[seekingthetruth 1,218]

48 minutes ago, Wuozopo said:

Her passport (or a certified copy if you go to the Acceptance Agent in the Phils)

Just to be clear for the OP, the agent will certify everything.  Call before you go to make sure.

[Wuozopo 4,285]

@seekingthetruth

 

Excellent information. It is always helpful to hear from somebody who has personal experience with a particular topic. 

[top_secret 2,061]

On 4/19/2022 at 5:58 PM, justdandy81 said:

Unfortunately, the agency that issues the passports in the Philippines claims that they do not do certified copies of passports so I am going to bring my wife’s original passport with me

In the Philippines this is DFA (Department of Foreign Affairs).  A certified copy of a Philippine Passport is a routine service that can be easily obtained from any DFA Passport office in the Philippines.  The fee is like P150 ($3).  Local DFA offices may take a month or so to process such a request so if it is required quickly you must go to DFA Aseana office in Manila.  If you have time, any local DFA office is fine.  I can say from first hand experience that the IRS accepts a copy of a Philippine Passport certified by the Philippines DFA as a valid single document for issuance of an ITIN.

 

Your wife must wet sign the tax return.  No notary required.  DO NOT send you wife's real passport to the IRS.  It's easy and costs $3 to get the proper certified copy in the Philippines.

 

https://consular.dfa.gov.ph/10-passport/259-passport-certification-requirements

Edited April 22, 2022 by top_secret

[top_secret 2,061]

 

This is the DFA Certified copy we mailed to the IRS ITIN Operation PO Box in Austin TX along with our W7 and 1040.  It has a raised embossed seal of the Philippines DFA and a color copy of her passport bio page was attached.  This was accepted by the IRS as a "stand alone document" and her ITIN was successfully issued.

 

[Chancy 6,233]

12 hours ago, top_secret said:

A certified copy of a Philippine Passport is a routine service that can be easily obtained from any DFA Passport office in the Philippines.

 

I can confirm that the DFA satellite office at Megamall in Metro Manila does passport certification as a routine service.  I did not avail of it myself, but I saw someone else who did while I was there for my passport renewal appointment.

 

[justdandy81 0]

Thanks everybody for the assistance. I am heading back to the US on Wednesday but we'll go to the nearest DFA here in Tacloban to inquire. I truly appreciate your help!