What Is the Fastest Way to Get an ITIN Number?
The ITIN is an important identifier for anyone in the U.S. who has tax obligations without qualifying for a Social Security number, so it’s not surprising that applicants frequently want to know how to get one quickly. Until you get ITIN assignments, you can not begin to make your tax commitments. The IRS recommends planning ahead and giving yourself plenty of processing time, but even so, it’s good to understand how to speed up the processing of your ITIN W7 in case deadlines get tight.
The first thing to do is to make sure you have fully filled out your ITIN form, with accurate information in every required field. You should also make sure you send the documents the IRS can process most quickly. That means including a passport as well as a U.S. tax return from a prior tax year. Those are the IRS’s preferred documents.
What if the Applicant Doesn’t Have a Tax Return or Passport?
There are procedures to follow for applicants who have qualified for exceptions to the passport requirement. You still need to make sure you fill out a complete application form, and then you will need to include qualifying documents to demonstrate your qualifications under the exceptions. Since the IRS will need to assign someone to verify that you do meet the exception, this can take extra time.
Similarly, if you do not have a passport, you can easily use two of the qualifying alternative documents to get your ITIN. Those documents also take a little longer to process than a passport would, but they are acceptable.
If you are looking to speed up your application, make sure your passport is available. You might not be able to control whether you have a prior U.S. tax return or not, but you can plan ahead to have the optimal identification for the process. For more tips, check out these ITIN W7 instructions.
