What do I do if my mortgage lender is foreign, i.e., no U.S. Address and no SSN/EIN?

[jkim230]

I have a mortgage loan from a foreign lender, and I didn't receive a 1098. TurboTax asks for some info about my foreign lender (U.S. Address and SSN/EIN), but by definition, my foreign lender does not have U.S. Address and SSN/EIN.

[GeoffreyG · Accepted solution]

If your mortgage lender is foreign, but the interest is otherwise (legally) deductible, then in order to get around any blockage such as this in the TurboTax software, you can simply substitute a US address (such as your own, for example) and a "fictitious" EIN (Employer Identification Number) or SSN into the relevant data entry fields in the program.  For instance, 1234 Main Street, Anytown, USA, EIN # 93-1234567.

That will allow you to move beyond any data entry error screen issues.  Moreover, none of this mortgage lender information will be transmitted to the IRS, other than the amount, so it's really not too important what you input here.

Of course, please do save your actual foreign mortgage interest payment records, so that you'll be able to produce them for the government authorities, in the unlikely event of an IRS audit or examination.

Thank you for asking this question.