Tax & Accounting News

IRS announces 2 million more ITINs expire by end of 2018

by
Lee Reams II
on
6/27/2018
IRS announces 2 million more ITINs expire by end of 2018

The following is an important announcement from the IRS.

The Internal Revenue Service announced that more than 2 million Individual Taxpayer Identification Numbers (ITINs) are set to expire at the end of 2018. If you are affected by changes to the ITIN program, the IRS urges you to submit your renewal applications as soon as you learn your ITIN will expire, and avoid the rush.

Under the Protecting Americans from Tax Hikes Act of 2015, if your ITIN has not been used on a federal tax return at least once in the last three consecutive years, it will expire December 31, 2018. And if your ITIN begins with middle digits 73, 74, 75, 76, 77, 81 or 82, it will also expire at the end of the year. If you plan to file a tax return in 2019, you must submit a renewal application.

As a reminder, if your ITIN has middle digits of 70, 71, 72, or 80, it expired last year. Middle digits 78 or 79 expired in 2016. If you have an ITIN with these numbers you can renew it at any time.

There are three ways you can submit Form W-7, Application for Individual Taxpayer Identification Numbers:

  • Mail Form W-7, along with your original identification documents or copies certified by the agency that issued them, to the IRS address listed on the Form W-7 instructions. The IRS will review the identification documents and return them to you within 60 days.
  • Work with Certified Acceptance Agents (CAAs) authorized by the IRS to help you apply for an ITIN. CAAs can certify all identification documents for primary and secondary taxpayers and certify that an ITIN application is correct before submitting it to the IRS for processing. A CAA can also certify passports and birth certificates for dependents. This saves you from mailing original documents to the IRS.
  • Call, in advance, and make an appointment at a designated IRS Taxpayer Assistance Center and receive ITIN documentation verification services, in lieu of mailing your original identification documents to the IRS.

 If you have questions, visit the ITIN information page on IRS.gov and take a few minutes to understand the guidelines.

Lee Reams II, writes for TaxBuzz, a tax news and advice website. Reach him at [email protected] or on LinkedIn

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Lee Reams II

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