ITIN: the IRS number for people, not for your company
You run a business from and someone asked for your ITIN. Before you post your passport to Texas, find out whether you need one at all. Most owners of a US LLC abroad don't.
An ITIN is a personal US tax number for people who can't get a Social Security number. You need one only when you have a federal tax purpose: a US return to file, a treaty rate to claim, or a spouse or dependent claim.
Your LLC uses an EIN, and the IRS issues that without any SSN or ITIN.
Do you need an ITIN? Answer four questions
The IRS test is short: you need an ITIN only if you have a federal tax purpose and you aren't eligible for an SSN. A federal tax purpose means a return you must file, a refund or allowable benefit you want, a spouse or dependent claim, or another rule that requires your number. A return with all zero entries generally doesn't count.
ITIN vs EIN vs SSN: three numbers, three jobs
All three are nine digits and all three are taxpayer identification numbers. That's where the likeness ends. The one that matters for your company is in the middle.
- Who
- A person not eligible for an SSN
- Issued by
- IRS, on Form W-7
- Used for
- Your own US return, treaty claims, spouse or dependent claims
- Time
- 7 weeks; 9 to 11 from abroad or in tax season
- Lapses
- Yes, after 3 unused tax years
- Who
- Your LLC or other entity
- Issued by
- IRS, on Form SS-4
- Used for
- Bank account, Form 5472, W-8 and 1099 paperwork
- Time
- On the call from abroad, about 4 business days by fax
- Lapses
- No; it can be deactivated, never cancelled
- Who
- US citizens, permanent residents, people with US work permission
- Issued by
- Social Security Administration, Form SS-5
- Used for
- Work, benefits and tax
- Overlap
- You can't hold an ITIN and an SSN at once
- Lapses
- No
If you are later issued an SSN, the IRS asks you to stop using the ITIN and write to Internal Revenue Service, Austin, TX 73301-0057 with a copy of your Social Security card, so it can combine your records under the SSN.
Owners of a US LLC abroad: when the ITIN question actually comes up
The trouble usually starts at a sign-up screen that asks for "SSN or ITIN". That's a platform's own form, not an IRS rule about your company. On Form SS-4, line 7b, you write "Foreign" or N/A when the responsible party has no SSN or ITIN and isn't eligible for one, and the EIN is issued anyway. Our EIN guide for founders without an SSN fills that form in line by line.
Here is how the common situations sort out under the IRS rules.
Every ITIN application needs a federal tax return attached unless one of the five exceptions applies. So the ITIN comes with the return; it isn't something to collect in advance "just in case".
Three ways to apply, and which suits you abroad
Whichever route you pick, the package is the same: a completed Form W-7, the US return the ITIN is for (or the documents an exception asks for), and proof of identity and foreign status. Applying is free at the IRS. Agents charge their own fees.
By mail to Austin
- From any country
- Originals or certified copies travel with the form
- Documents back in up to 60 days
- No one reviews it before it's sent
Certifying Acceptance Agent
- In the US and abroad
- Completes and reviews your W-7
- Checks your passport and hands it back
- Works with the IRS on problems, gets copies of your notices
Acceptance Agent
- In the US and abroad
- Helps complete and mail the W-7
- Can't authenticate documents, so originals still go to the IRS
IRS office in the US
- Taxpayer Assistance Center with ITIN services
- Reviews the W-7, returns documents at the appointment
- US only, by appointment (844-545-5640)
- Waits of several weeks for a slot
Free help also exists at some Volunteer Income Tax Assistance sites in the US, which have their own Certifying Acceptance Agents. The IRS comparison of in-person options sets out what each one can do, and the acceptance agent list is sorted by US state and by country.
Mailing addresses
Austin Service Center
ITIN Operation
P.O. Box 149342
Austin, TX 78714-9342
ITIN Operation
Mail Stop 6090-AUSC
3651 S. Interregional, Highway 35
Austin, TX 78741-0000
Send the whole package to this address, not to the one printed in the Form 1040-NR instructions. The ITIN unit assigns the number, writes it on your return and passes the return on for processing.
How long it takes
The IRS says to allow 7 weeks for a notice, or 9 to 11 weeks if you apply between 15 January and 30 April or from outside the US. Pick the day your package arrives to see what that means for you.
Documents: a passport does it alone
You prove two things: who you are, and your link to a country other than the US (the IRS calls it foreign status). Documents must be originals or copies certified by the agency that issued them, and current on the day you submit.
Valid passport
The only document that works on its own. Send it, a certified copy from the passport office, or show it to a Certifying Acceptance Agent or an IRS office. If your reason needs a US visa, the visa pages go too.
No passport?
Send at least two documents from the IRS list of 13, one with a photo, together covering identity and foreign status. A national ID card counts only if it shows name, photo, address, date of birth and expiry.
What "certified" means here
A certified copy carries the issuing agency's official stamped seal and its statement that it matches the original. A US embassy or consulate can also certify copies; contact its American Citizens Services section first, since services vary. A notarised copy from a local notary isn't on that list; the instructions accept notarised copies only from spouses and dependents of US military personnel overseas.
Translations can be requested later. If you mail originals, you may include a prepaid courier envelope for their return.
After you apply: three notices
Mailed documents come back to the address on line 2 of your W-7 within 60 days. If they don't, or you hear nothing by the end of the waiting period, the IRS line for callers abroad is 267-941-1000 (not toll-free); inside the US it's 800-829-1040. One more catch: you can't e-file a return with an ITIN in the calendar year it's assigned, so the first return goes on paper with the application.
Expiry and renewal
An ITIN that isn't used on a federal tax return for any 3 consecutive tax years expires on 31 December after the third year. Using it only on information returns that others file about you, such as a Form 1099, doesn't keep it alive, and you don't need to renew it for those. ITINs assigned before 2013 and never renewed must be renewed with the next return.
To renew, file Form W-7 with the return you need it for, tick "Renew an existing ITIN", still choose a reason box, and give the old number and the name it was issued under on lines 6e and 6f. The IRS renewal page has the details. You don't need an ITIN to ask for an extension on Form 4868 or to make estimated payments: write "ITIN TO BE REQUESTED" where the number goes.
Why applications get rejected or delayed
The W-7 instructions flag these, and each one is avoidable before you post anything.
- No return and no exceptionBoxes b to g need a federal return attached. Without it, or the papers an exception asks for, the application can't go through.
- An expired or uncertified documentExpiry is judged by the postmark. A local notary's stamp isn't certification by the issuing agency.
- Blank spacesEvery section that doesn't apply needs "N/A". Line 4 alone needs three entries.
- A P.O. box or c/o address with a country-only line 3The instructions say this combination may get the application rejected.
- A name that doesn't matchLine 1a, your documents and the return must spell your name the same way.
- Eligible for an SSNIf you have one, or can get one, the ITIN is refused. With an SSN application pending, don't file W-7 at all.
Questions
Do I need an ITIN to form a US LLC?
Is the ITIN the same as an EIN?
How long does an ITIN take from outside the US?
Can I apply for an ITIN online?
Does an ITIN let me work in the US or open a personal bank account?
Will Heirson apply for my ITIN?
Changelog
13 November 2026: first published, from the IRS ITIN pages (reviewed 27 and 28 October 2026), the Instructions for Form W-7 (Rev. December 2024) and the Form SS-4 instructions (Rev. December 2025).
The number your LLC needs comes with it.
A Wyoming LLC is US$181.40 for year one, all in, and we apply for its EIN without an SSN or ITIN.