W-7 Application for ITIN - supporting documentation

Forum|Forum|6 years ago
May 20, 2020
1 reply
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I was wondering whether I might ask you to advise me on how to submit form W-7 (Application for ITIN) alongside the required supporting documentation.

My situation is as follows:

I am a nonresident alien and currently in the US on a J1-Student visa. I receive a non-service fellowship and I am a German citizen, which makes me exempt from income tax in accordance with tax treaty article 20 (3). I believe this exemption applies to both federal and state taxes (?).

So far, I have prepared my federal tax returns, i.e. everything 1040-NR-EZ related.

As I do not have an ITIN, I ended up completing form W-7 and was asked to obtain a certified copy of the picture page of my passport. Due to COVID-19, however, it would seem that my embassy does not respond to my requests for certification. Do you have any advice on how I should go about this dilemma? Is an uncertified copy going to be sufficient?

I also understood that it is fine to file my 1040-NR-EZ without ITIN and form W-7 enclosed. But it would seem to me that I cannot start preparing my state taxes without an ITIN. Processing times, however, are ballparked at 14-20 weeks. As a consequence, I won't be able to make the July 15th deadline for filing my state taxes. Is that going to be problematic? I am living in the state of New York.

Thank you so very much, best wishes, and stay safe.

CatinaT1

Level 15

You can take your documents to an IRS Taxpayer Assistance Center or a Certified Acceptance Agent to have your document certified.

I am attaching an IRS FAQ that should be helpful. It references a phone number to call to set an appointment.

https://www.irs.gov/individuals/international-taxpayers/itin-updated-procedures-frequently-asked-questions

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YL-WintAuthor

Level 2

Thank you so very much for your response.

Unfortunately, it would seem that all TACs are currently closed due to the COVID-19 crisis.

Moreover, when I call the telephone number indicated on the IRS FAQ page, I am advised that telephone information service is currently suspended due to staff shortage.

Can I quickly ask, if you have any idea whether the fact that I am exempt from federal income taxation typically also means that I am exempt from state income taxes?

If so, my plan of action would be, to file for an extension, to wait until I am able to obtain all required documentation, and to file my 1040-NR-EZ with a W-7 attached. I'd probably also file my state taxes with a W-7 attached or simply wait until I have my ITIN. As far as I understood, this should not be problematic provided that I do not owe any state taxes.

Many thanks.