ITIN

Do You Need an ITIN? Seven Situations That Usually Mean Yes

An ITIN is the US tax number for someone who cannot get a Social Security Number. If one of these seven situations is yours, there is a US filing to make, and we can prepare the application and the return together.

Reviewed October 28, 2026 · 8 min read

What an ITIN is, and is not

An Individual Taxpayer Identification Number is a nine-digit number the IRS issues to a person who has a US federal tax reason to have one and cannot get a Social Security Number. It lets you file a US return, claim a refund of tax that was withheld from you, or be claimed on a family member's return.

It is only a tax number. It does not permit work in the US, confer any immigration status, or make you a US resident.

Two things have to be true before an application makes sense. You must not be eligible for a Social Security Number. And there must be a present US tax purpose: a return that is due, a refund to claim, or a specific exception in the IRS instructions. Wanting a US tax ID for a bank, a payment platform or an LLC formation service is not, on its own, a reason the IRS accepts.

We are a Certifying Acceptance Agent. That means we can verify your passport in an interview, in person or by video, and send the IRS a certificate instead of your original document. Your passport stays with you.

The seven situations below cover most of the people who come to us. If one fits, get in touch and we will tell you what the filing looks like. If none does, tell us anyway. The answer may be that you do not need one.

1. You bet on US sports or played online, and nothing was withheld

The situation

What it means

The US taxes a nonresident's gambling winnings at a flat 30 percent of the gross amount won. When the operator does not withhold it, the tax is still owed, and the only way to pay it is a US nonresident return for that year. The return needs a taxpayer number, so the ITIN application and the return are filed together in one envelope.

Winnings from blackjack, baccarat, craps, roulette and big-six wheel are exempt by statute. Sports betting, slots, poker tournaments and lottery prizes are not.

Example

A resident of Brazil, on a visit to New Jersey, wins $1,000 net on a sports betting app. The app pays the full $1,000 and withholds nothing. The US tax is $300. We prepare the nonresident return showing the $1,000 and the $300 due, attach the ITIN application, verify his passport by video, and mail the package. The ITIN arrives with the return processed.

2. You won at a US casino and 30 percent was taken at the cage

The situation

What it means

The 30 percent withheld is usually the final tax, and for residents of most countries there is nothing further to do. Where a treaty applies, part or all of it can be claimed back on a nonresident return. Canada's treaty, for instance, lets Canadian residents deduct their US gambling losses from their US winnings before the tax is computed. The ITIN application travels with the refund return.

Example

A resident of Canada wins $40,000 at a Nevada casino. The cage withholds $12,000 and issues a Form 1042-S. Her casino win/loss statement shows $15,000 of losses in the same year. Under the Canada treaty the tax is 30 percent of the net $25,000, which is $7,500, and the return claims the $12,000 already withheld. The refund is $4,500. Had she lived in a country without a gambling treaty, the $12,000 would have been the final tax and there would be nothing to file.

3. You sold US real estate

The situation

What it means

A foreign seller of US real estate is taxed on the gain, not the price, and the 15 percent the buyer sends to the IRS is a deposit against that tax, not the tax itself. Because the actual gain is usually far smaller than the price, most sellers are owed a refund. Claiming it takes a nonresident return with the withholding statement attached, and the return needs an ITIN.

If the sale has not closed yet, the ITIN application can travel with a request to the IRS to reduce the withholding to the expected tax, so less is tied up in the first place.

Example

A condo sells for $620,000. The buyer withholds $93,000. The seller paid $470,000, put in $40,000 of improvements, and took $30,000 of depreciation while it was rented, so the gain is $140,000 and the tax on it is about $25,000. The nonresident return claims the $93,000 deposit against that, and the refund is roughly $68,000. The ITIN exists to collect it.

4. You rent out a US property

The situation

What it means

Without an election, the US taxes a nonresident's rental income at 30 percent of the gross rent, with no deduction for mortgage interest, taxes, repairs, management fees or depreciation. An election on the nonresident return lets you report the rent net of those expenses instead, at ordinary rates, which on most properties is a small fraction of the gross-rent tax. The election is made on the return, and the return needs an ITIN.

Example

A Florida condo rents for $40,000 a year. Expenses are $29,000 and depreciation about $8,700. Taxed on the gross, the US tax is $12,000. With the election, the net rental income is about $2,300 and the tax about $230. The election also builds a documented cost basis and depreciation history that reduces the tax on an eventual sale.

5. You are a partner in a US business

The situation

What it means

A US partnership that earns US business income has to report each foreign partner's share and withhold tax on it. It cannot do either without a taxpayer number for you. There are two ways to get one. Before any return of yours is due, the ITIN application can go in on its own with pages from the partnership agreement showing you are a partner. Once the partnership has reported your share, the application goes in with your nonresident return claiming credit for the tax it withheld.

A foreign owner of a US LLC that does no US business is a different case. The LLC may have its own US filing, but that filing does not by itself require an ITIN for the owner.

Example

A resident of Germany holds a 25 percent interest in a Texas limited partnership that operates a warehouse. The partnership needs her taxpayer number to report and withhold on her share. We verify her passport by video and send the application with the agreement pages that show the partnership, its EIN and her signature as a partner. The following year the partnership issues her a withholding statement, and she files a nonresident return claiming the credit with the ITIN already in hand.

6. A US citizen or resident claims you on their return

The situation

What it means

A US return that claims a dependent, or includes a spouse, needs a taxpayer number for that person. For a spouse, the ITIN lets the couple file jointly. For a dependent, there must be an actual tax benefit under current law, and for a child the IRS also wants evidence that the child lived in the US during the year: a passport with a US entry record, or US school or medical records. This is the most closely examined type of application, and the paperwork has to be right the first time.

Example

A US-citizen mother in Texas claims her nine-year-old daughter, a UK citizen who moved in with her in June, on her return. The daughter's UK passport establishes who she is. Because the passport carries no US entry stamp, the application also needs a record showing she lived in the US that year, such as school enrolment. With that in the file, the application travels with the mother's return and the credit is allowed.

7. You already had an ITIN, but it has expired or you never received the number

The situation

What it means

An ITIN that was already issued must not be applied for again. A second application is refused and can tangle both numbers. The first step is a letter to the IRS asking for the status and a replacement notice at your current address. Once the number is confirmed, an expired ITIN is renewed with the next return that needs it, and a current one is simply used.

Example

A preparer filed an ITIN application for a client in 2019. The assignment notice went to that preparer's old office, and the client never saw it. No return has used the number since, so it has lapsed. We write to the IRS ITIN Operation with the client's name, date of birth, the approximate filing date and the old address, and ask for the number at his current address. When it comes back, the renewal goes in with his next nonresident return.

If one of these is you

Tell us which one, and roughly what year it concerns. We will say whether an application makes sense, what return goes with it, and what we need from you. Usually that is a current passport, the tax documents the US payer gave you, and a short video call.

Where this comes from

Not sure this is your situation?

Every fact pattern is a little different. Tell us yours and we'll tell you what you actually have to file.

Talk to us

This guide is general information about US federal tax rules, current as of October 28, 2026. It is not tax advice, does not take your specific circumstances into account, and reading it does not create a client relationship. Tax rules change and the details of your situation matter — get advice on your own facts before you act or decide not to.