How to Apply for an ITIN from Outside the US (2026)

Reader, before you start: this article assumes you have already confirmed you need an ITIN, not a Social Security Number (SSN). If your visa makes you eligible for an SSN (most H-1B, L-1, F-1 with work authorization, green card holders), apply for the SSN instead — an ITIN is for people who are not eligible for one.

What this guide covers

The IRS lets you apply for an Individual Taxpayer Identification Number from your home country. The official pages tell you the rules. They do not tell you which of the three application paths actually fits your situation, what “certified copy” really means, or why your application will likely come back rejected if you treat it like a normal foreign government form.

This guide closes that gap.

• Decide which of the three ITIN applicant scenarios you fall into
• Pick between mailing the application, using a Certifying Acceptance Agent abroad, or waiting until you can visit an IRS office in person
• Avoid the five most common reasons applications come back as CP567 rejections

Which of the three ITIN scenarios are you?

Most people who need an ITIN from outside the US fall into one of three groups. The path through the rest of this guide changes depending on which one you are, so settle this first.

You own a US LLC and must file Form 1040-NR

You registered a US single-member LLC as a non-resident (common for e-commerce sellers, SaaS founders, freelancers using a US entity for Stripe). The LLC creates a US tax filing obligation even with zero US-source income. Your W-7 reason box is usually (b) Nonresident alien filing a U.S. federal tax return.

You are a treaty-benefit claimant on US-source income

A US company pays you royalties, platform income, or interest, and your country has a tax treaty with the US. You need an ITIN to claim the reduced withholding rate. Your W-7 box is usually (a) Nonresident alien required to get an ITIN to claim tax treaty benefit or (h) Other with a specific exception (see below).

You are a dependent of an SSN-holder filing jointly

Your spouse or parent holds an SSN and files a US return listing you. You need an ITIN even if you have never been to the US. Your W-7 box is (d) Dependent of a U.S. citizen/resident alien or (e) Spouse of a U.S. citizen/resident alien.

If none of these fit, check with a US tax preparer before filing. A W-7 for a situation that does not qualify burns 9 to 11 weeks and your original passport.

The three ways to apply (and which one fits you)

The IRS allows three application paths (IRS — Obtaining an ITIN from abroad). They are not equivalent.

Mail Form W-7 with original or certified documents

Send Form W-7, your supporting documents, and your federal tax return to the IRS ITIN Operation in Austin, Texas. You either mail the original passport or a certified copy from the issuing agency (defined below).

Pick this if your country has no Certifying Acceptance Agent, you can live without your passport for 7 to 11 weeks, or your passport authority offers certified copies.

Through a Certifying Acceptance Agent (CAA), including outside the US

A CAA is an IRS-authorized agent who authenticates your documents on your behalf. The agent verifies your original passport in person and sends verification to the IRS — you keep your passport. About 50 countries have CAAs listed, from Argentina to Vietnam (IRS — Acceptance Agent Program). Fees vary, usually $150–500.

Pick this if you need your passport during the processing window, your country has a CAA, and the service fee is workable.

IRS Taxpayer Assistance Center (in person)

A walk-in IRS office verifies your documents and returns them immediately. Every TAC is inside the United States. Book an appointment in advance — walk-ins without one are turned away.

Pick this if you have a US trip already planned and can schedule the appointment around it.

Documents you actually need

The document rules look simple on the IRS page and ruin applications anyway. Here is what they really mean.

If you have a passport (the simple path)

A foreign passport is the only document that establishes both foreign status and identity by itself. Submit your passport — original or a properly certified copy — and you do not need any other identification document (IRS — Obtaining an ITIN from abroad).

If you go this route, every other “supporting document” people mention online (driver’s license, utility bill, school records) is irrelevant for you. The passport carries the whole application.

If you don’t have a passport (the two-document combo)

Without a passport, you must submit at least two documents from the IRS-accepted list, and at least one must contain a photograph. Accepted documents include national ID card, foreign driver’s license, civil birth certificate (required for dependents under 18), foreign voter registration card, US or foreign military ID, visa, USCIS photo ID, and medical or school records (dependents only).

Pair documents that together establish (1) foreign status and (2) identity with photo. Two documents that don’t cover both halves get rejected.

What “certified by the issuing agency” really means

This is the single point that fails more ITIN applications from abroad than any other.

A certified copy, per the Form W-7 instructions, is one that “the original issuing agency provides and certifies as an exact copy of the original document and contains an official stamped seal from the agency” (IRS — Form W-7 Instructions).

That phrase has a precise meaning. The certification must come from the agency that issued the original document — for a passport, that is your country’s passport authority itself (UK His Majesty’s Passport Office, India Ministry of External Affairs, Indonesia Direktorat Jenderal Imigrasi, and so on). A local notary, solicitor, attorney, or chamber of commerce cannot certify a passport copy for the IRS. They are not the issuing agency. The IRS will reject the application.

Many countries do offer this service through their passport office, embassy, or consulate. Many do not. Before you commit to the mail-with-certified-copies path, confirm with your passport authority that they will certify a copy of your passport with an agency seal — in writing if possible.

Form W-7 — line-by-line for non-residents

Form W-7 is the application itself, current revision December 2024 (IRS — About Form W-7). The form is two pages. Most of it is name, address, and date-of-birth fields. The lines that confuse non-residents are below.

The reason-for-applying box

W-7 lists eight reason categories (a through h). You pick exactly one. The most common for non-residents abroad:

• (a) Nonresident alien required to get an ITIN to claim a tax treaty benefit
• (b) Nonresident alien filing a U.S. federal tax return
• (d) Dependent of a U.S. citizen/resident alien
• (e) Spouse of a U.S. citizen/resident alien
• (h) Other — used when you qualify for one of the five tax-return exceptions (see next section)

Pick the wrong box and the application either gets rejected or processed against the wrong rules. If you are not sure, check the section in the W-7 instructions titled “Reason you’re submitting Form W-7.”

The tax-return attachment requirement

By default, you must attach a complete federal tax return (Form 1040 or Form 1040-NR) to your W-7. The IRS uses the ITIN to process the return — that is the whole reason ITINs exist. Send a W-7 alone and it gets rejected unless one of the five exceptions applies.

One detail people miss: on the attached tax return, leave the SSN field blank for every person who is applying for an ITIN. Do not write “Applied for,” do not write “Pending.” Just blank. The IRS writes the assigned ITIN in once they process it.

The five exceptions to filing a tax return

These are the only situations where you can file Form W-7 without a tax return attached (IRS — Form W-7 Instructions):

1. Exception 1 — Passive income (third-party withholding or treaty benefits). Partnership income, interest, annuities, rental income, or pensions where a third party reports the income.
2. Exception 2 — Other income. Wages, scholarships, fellowships, grants, or gambling income claimed under a tax treaty, or taxable scholarship/fellowship income without a treaty claim.
3. Exception 3 — Mortgage interest, third-party reporting. US home mortgage interest reported to the IRS by the lender.
4. Exception 4 — Foreign person disposing of US real property interest. Sale of US real estate by a foreign person, where the buyer withholds tax under FIRPTA.
5. Exception 5 — Treasury Decision 9363. Non-US representatives of foreign corporations needing ITINs for e-filing compliance.

Each exception requires specific supporting documentation — a withholding statement, treaty article reference, mortgage interest statement, and so on. Read the exception’s documentation list in the W-7 instructions before filing. Filing under an exception without the right attachments triggers a rejection.

How to submit from abroad — step by step

1. Confirm your scenario and reason-for-applying box. Two minutes here saves the application.
2. Pick a path. Mail with original passport, mail with issuing-agency certified copy, or a CAA in your country. Verify the CAA exists before assuming it does.
3. Gather documents. Passport or the two-document combination. If applying via a tax return, prepare Form 1040 or 1040-NR. If applying under an exception, gather the exception-specific paperwork.
4. Fill in Form W-7 (Rev. 12/2024). Use the current revision only.
5. Mail to the IRS Austin Service Center. USPS: Internal Revenue Service, Austin Service Center, ITIN Operation, P.O. Box 149342, Austin, TX 78714-9342. Courier (DHL, FedEx): Internal Revenue Service, ITIN Operation, Mail Stop 6090-AUSC, 3651 S. Interregional Highway 35, Austin, TX 78741-0000.
6. Wait. 7 weeks normal, 9 to 11 weeks during tax season (January 15 to April 30) or from overseas. You receive notice CP565 on approval or CP567 on rejection.

Costs and timeline

Item	Cost	Timeline	Source
Form W-7 filing fee	$0 (no IRS fee)	n/a	IRS — How to apply for an ITIN
Certifying Acceptance Agent service	$150–500 (varies by agent; private fee)	Days to weeks for verification visit	IRS — Acceptance Agent Program
Certified copy from passport-issuing authority	Varies by country	Days to several weeks	Your national passport office
Mail submission processing	Postage only	7 weeks (normal); 9–11 weeks (tax season or from overseas)	IRS — How to apply for an ITIN
CP565 ITIN assignment notice	$0	After processing	IRS
CP567 rejection (start over)	$0 — but you redo the whole cycle	Adds another 7–11 weeks	IRS

Common reasons applications get rejected

The IRS sends notice CP567 when an ITIN application is rejected. These are the failure modes that come up most often.

• Third-party-notarized passport copy instead of issuing-agency certified. A copy stamped by your local notary, solicitor, or bank manager is not certified for IRS purposes. Only the agency that issued the document qualifies.
• Self-printed passport photo page. A photocopy you made at home is not a certified copy — it is a photocopy. Send the original or a properly certified one.
• Wrong reason-for-applying box. Filing under (b) when you should have filed under (h) with an exception (or vice versa) gets the application processed against the wrong rules. The IRS rejects rather than reclassifies.
• W-7 alone, no tax return, no qualifying exception. Filing without an attached return while claiming an exception you do not actually meet is one of the most common rejection causes.
• SSN field filled in on the attached tax return. The field must be blank for the ITIN applicant. “Pending” or “Applied for” written in the field counts as filled.
• Name mismatch between passport and tax return. Middle names, transliterations, or surname order differences cause rejection. Use the exact name as it appears on the passport, character for character.

A CP567 explains the specific reason and gives a resubmission window. Fix that issue — do not just resend the same package.

After you get your ITIN — what’s next

The CP565 notice contains your nine-digit ITIN. Use it on every US tax return and any IRS form that asks for a taxpayer identification number.

A few things the ITIN is not: it does not authorize work in the US, it does not change your immigration status, and it does not make you eligible for Social Security benefits or the Earned Income Tax Credit. It is purely a tax processing number (IRS — ITIN overview).

An ITIN expires if it is not used on a US federal tax return for three consecutive tax years — specifically, on December 31 of the third year. To use it again, renew with the same Form W-7 process.

A common follow-on step for LLC owners and treaty filers is opening a US bank account as a non-resident. Not every US bank accepts ITIN-only customers, and document requirements vary.

Frequently asked questions

Can I apply for an ITIN online from outside the US?

No. The IRS does not accept online ITIN applications. Form W-7 must be filed on paper, either by mail or in person through an Acceptance Agent or IRS office. Any service that claims to “file your ITIN online” is preparing the paper form on your behalf and mailing it themselves.

Do I have to mail my original passport?

Only if you choose the mail path and do not have access to a properly certified copy. The alternatives are a certified copy from the passport-issuing agency, or a Certifying Acceptance Agent who can verify the document in person without sending it to the IRS. If you need your passport during the 7- to 11-week processing window, do not mail the original.

Can a notary public certify my documents for an ITIN?

No. The IRS only accepts certified copies from the agency that issued the original document — for a passport, that means your national passport office, not a local notary, solicitor, attorney, or chamber of commerce. Notarized copies are rejected.

How long does it take to get an ITIN from abroad?

The IRS allows 7 weeks for normal processing and 9 to 11 weeks during tax season (January 15 to April 30) or when the application is filed from overseas. That clock starts when the IRS receives your application, not when you mail it. Add international postage time on top.

What if my country doesn’t have a Certifying Acceptance Agent?

You have two options. Mail Form W-7 with your original passport or with a certified copy from your country’s passport-issuing authority. If neither is workable, the only remaining path is to apply in person at an IRS Taxpayer Assistance Center during a visit to the US.

Can I work in the US with an ITIN?

No. An ITIN is a tax processing number, not work authorization. Working in the US requires authorization from US Citizenship and Immigration Services through a visa or other status. If you are eligible for an SSN, apply for that instead.

Does my ITIN expire?

Yes, if you do not use it. An ITIN that is not used on a US federal tax return for three consecutive tax years expires on December 31 of the third year. Renew with the same Form W-7 process before filing again. ITINs issued before 2013 had separate batch-based expirations — check the current “Expired ITIN” guidance on irs.gov if yours is from that period.

Next steps

Before you mail anything, confirm three things in writing: that you have picked the correct reason-for-applying box, that your documentation path is one the IRS actually accepts, and that you are either attaching a tax return or have specific documentation for one of the five exceptions. Most rejections trace back to one of those three.

When the ITIN arrives, the next paperwork item for most non-resident applicants is opening a US bank account — a guide for that is in progress.

---

Sources

• IRS — How to apply for an ITIN — accessed 2026-05-25
• IRS — Obtaining an ITIN from abroad — accessed 2026-05-25
• IRS — Individual Taxpayer Identification Number (ITIN) overview — accessed 2026-05-25
• IRS — About Form W-7 — accessed 2026-05-25 (current form Rev. 12/2024)
• IRS — Form W-7 Instructions — accessed 2026-05-25
• IRS — Acceptance Agent Program — accessed 2026-05-25