Is there a penalty for sending Form W-7 in late?
The application is not a return with a filing date of its own, so nothing is charged for lodging it late. The cost shows up elsewhere. The individual taxpayer identification number is the gate: a refund of over-withheld US tax, a treaty claim and a certificate sought before a US property sale all sit unprocessed until the number exists. Because the application usually travels with the return that needs it, a delay in the W-7 is a delay in that return, and it is the return's own position, not the W-7, that carries exposure. Treat the number as the first task in the sequence rather than the last.
Why was my Form W-7 rejected and sent back to me?
The commonest reason is the identity evidence rather than the tax content. Documents have to be originals or certified in the specific way the application requires, and a photocopy taken at home does not qualify however clear it is. A rejection returns the application and the return it travelled with, so the clock keeps running on the filing while the papers are in the post. Read the notice for which document failed and re-certify only that one. Before resubmitting, check that the reason you gave for needing a number still matches the return attached, because the two are assessed together.
Can I file a US return without an ITIN and add it later?
In practice the number and the return move together, because the application is built to travel with the filing that requires it. Sending the return alone with the identification field blank invites a rejection or a hold, which puts you further back than sending both would have. If the filing is already late the order is unchanged: prepare the return, prepare the W-7 with certified identity evidence, and send them as one package. The number is then issued against a return already in front of the authority rather than one you still have to write.
How long does an ITIN take and what stalls while I wait?
We do not quote a processing time, because it moves and a stale figure is worse than none. What is predictable is what stops. Over-withheld tax stays where it was remitted until a return can be assessed, and a return cannot be assessed without the number. A treaty claim that depends on identifying you is in the same position, as is a certificate sought before a US property sale closes. Where a closing date is already fixed, the application is the item to start first, because every other step waits behind it.
My spouse needs an ITIN to be claimed on our return, is it late?
The deadline that matters is the return's, not the application's. A spouse or dependant being claimed needs an identification number for the claim to be processed, so if the return is late the exposure belongs to the return. Send the applications with it rather than waiting for numbers first. The identity evidence for each person has to be certified in the prescribed way, and one deficient document holds the whole package, so check every person's papers before posting. If more than one family member needs a number, prepare all the applications together.
Does an old ITIN stop working if I have not filed for years?
A long gap in filing is exactly the situation in which people find the number they were given is no longer accepted. The practical test is simple: if a filing is rejected on the identification field, treat the number as unusable and apply again rather than arguing the point. Applying again means the same certified identity evidence as a first application. Where several unfiled years are being brought forward at once, settle the number question before the returns go out, because a rejection on one year usually means a rejection on all of them.
Do non-residents pay US estate tax?
Yes, on US-situs assets — and with a far smaller exemption than a US citizen or domiciliary receives, which is why exposure can arise at values people assume are safe. US real property, tangible property located there and shares issued by US companies are generally in; foreign-issued securities and certain deposits generally are not. An estate tax treaty, where one exists, can improve the position considerably. See US estate tax for non-resident aliens.
How do I get back tax withheld in another country?
By the route that country provides, and it is rarely automatic. Where an elective return is available — on rent or pension income, for instance — filing it recomputes the tax on net income and refunds the difference. Where it is not, you file a refund claim with the withholding authority, supported by evidence of your residence and entitlement to the treaty rate. Both take time, which is why fixing the rate before payment is worth more. See withholding refund and recovery.
