Eligibility check — free, no obligation
Send a short description of your situation: why you need a number, what U.S. income or entity is involved, who else is on the application, and which country you are in.
We come back with three things — whether you qualify, which route applies (return attached, or one of the exceptions), and the fee.
Engagement and document preparation
You approve the written fee. We prepare Form W-7 and, where the route requires it, the federal tax return that travels with it. For exception cases we tell you exactly which supporting letter or form is needed and what wording it must contain — this is where most applications fail.
Interview and certification
The IRS requires an interview with each applicant. We do this by video. Your original documents, or issuing-agency certified copies, must be in our hands at that moment — IRS rules require the agent to inspect the physical security features.
We authenticate what we are permitted to authenticate, sign the Form W-7 (COA) Certificate of Accuracy, and return your originals immediately.
Filing, tracking and your number
The package goes to the IRS. We monitor the case, and if the IRS raises a question or suspends the application we respond on your behalf under our representation authority as a CPA firm.
Getting your documents to us
Two routes. Which one suits you depends on how long you can be without your passport and what your own country's authorities will certify.
| Route | What you send | How long you are without it |
|---|---|---|
| Courier the original | Your passport, by tracked courier | Typically under a week — we return it immediately after the interview |
| Issuing-agency certified copy | A copy certified by the authority that issued the document | Your passport never leaves you |
A notarised copy is not the same thing. The IRS requires certification by the issuing agency — the passport authority, the civil registry — not by a notary public, a lawyer, or an embassy unless that body is the issuer. This distinction causes a large share of rejections. We check the wording before you rely on it.
What the IRS wants to see
Two things must be proven: identity and foreign status. A valid passport is the only single document that proves both on its own. Without one, at least two documents from the IRS list are required.
| Applicant | What we can certify | What must go to the IRS |
|---|---|---|
| You (primary) | All accepted documents | Foreign military ID only |
| Spouse (secondary) | All accepted documents | Foreign military ID only |
| Dependent | Passport, civil birth certificate | Everything else, original or issuing-agency certified |
What can go wrong, and how we avoid it
- No demonstrated tax purpose. The most common rejection. We establish the route at stage one.
- Unsigned or incomplete return attached. Automatic rejection. We prepare it ourselves rather than relying on a copy you were sent.
- Exception documentation with the wrong wording. A bank letter must state the account is subject to IRS reporting and withholding — not merely that it exists.
- Dependent passport without a U.S. entry date. Additional residency proof becomes necessary; we identify this before filing, not after.
- Expired ITIN treated as a new application. Renewal has its own box on the form and its own current rules.
If the IRS rejects an application because of an error we made in preparing or certifying it, we correct and refile it at no additional fee. This does not extend to rejections caused by documents or facts that were misrepresented to us, or to IRS processing delays, which nobody can control.