Can I get an ITIN without filing a US tax return?
In most cases the application travels with the return that needs it rather than going in on its own. The number exists to let a filing or a claim happen, so the first question is which return or claim is driving it. There are situations where a number is needed for something other than a return, and a withholding certificate on a property sale is the common one. Those are handled differently. Working out which of the two you are in decides what goes in the envelope.
Does my spouse need an ITIN to go on my US return?
If your spouse has to be on the return and is not eligible for a social security number, then yes, the number is what puts them there. The application is prepared with the return and the two are filed together. What delays these is almost never the form. It is the identity documents, which have to be certified in a particular way before they will be accepted. We sort the documents out before anything is submitted, because a return held up waiting on a number is also a return that is not yet filed.
Do I need an ITIN to sell my US property as a non-resident?
Non-resident sellers of US property are squarely in the group who need the number, and the timing is what causes the pain. The number is a gate. The withholding certificate that reduces what is held back at closing, and the return that reclaims an over-withheld amount afterwards, both stall without it. Sellers usually discover this in the week the sale is closing, which is the worst moment to be gathering certified identity documents. Started early it is administration; started late it is money sitting with the tax authority for a year.
Can I send a photocopy of my passport with Form W-7?
Identity documents have to be certified in a specific way, and an ordinary photocopy is the most common reason an application comes back. That is also why people put off applying, since nobody wants to post an original passport abroad and wait. The practical route is to have the documents certified acceptably so the originals stay with you, and to arrange that before the return or the claim is ready to go, rather than discovering the requirement when everything else is finished.
Do my children need ITINs if I claim them on my return?
Dependants who are claimed on a US return and cannot obtain a social security number need their own numbers, one each. The applications are prepared alongside the return that claims them, and each needs its own certified identity documents, which for children is the part families underestimate. We prepare the household's applications as a set and file them with the return, so the claim and the numbers supporting it arrive together instead of the return going in and being adjusted while the numbers catch up.
Why can I not get my US tax back without an ITIN?
Because the number is the gate, and nothing downstream of it moves. A repayment of over-withheld tax, a treaty claim that reduces the rate on a payment, a certificate on a property sale: each needs a filer the system can identify, and until the number exists there is no filer. It is rarely a question of the claim being wrong. It is that the claim has nowhere to attach. Applying for the number and filing the claim it supports as one exercise is what shortens the wait.
How are non-residents taxed on Canadian rental income?
By default the payer or agent withholds a flat rate on the gross rent and remits it, with no deduction for mortgage interest, taxes or repairs. Electing under section 216 lets you file on the net rental result instead, which for most properties recovers a substantial part of what was withheld; an NR6 undertaking filed before the year starts lets the withholding itself be computed on net rather than gross. See the section 216 return.
What is Part XIII withholding?
Canada's flat withholding on certain payments to non-residents — dividends, interest to related parties, rents, royalties, pension and annuity payments, management fees. The payer withholds and remits, and is liable if they do not, which is why they insist on documentation. A treaty can reduce the rate, but only where the recipient has given the payer the declaration establishing entitlement before payment. Where too much was withheld, a refund claim is the route, with its own time limit. See Part XIII withholding review.
