Form 8946 PTIN Supplemental Application For Foreign Persons Withou

Caution
The mailing address for filing this form has been changed to the following:
IRS Tax Pro PTIN Processing Center
1605 George Dieter PMB 678
El Paso, TX 79936

Form

8946

PTIN Supplemental Application For Foreign Persons
Without a Social Security Number

(Rev. October 2015)
Department of the Treasury
Internal Revenue Service

▶ Information

OMB No. 1545-2189

about Form 8946 and its instructions is at www.irs.gov/form8946.

Do not submit this form if you have, or are eligible to get, a U.S. Social Security Number (SSN).

Name

1 First name

Applicant's
Non-U.S.
Physical
Address

2a Street address, apartment number, or rural route number. Do not use a P.O. box number.

Middle name

Last name

(see instructions)

(see instructions)

Birth
Information

b City or town, state or province, country, and ZIP or foreign postal code

3a Date of birth (mm/dd/yyyy)

4

b Country of birth

Female
c Name at birth (if different from line 1 above)
First name
Middle name

Foreign Status
and
Identification
Information

Last name

5 Foreign status and identification document(s) submitted (see instructions)

Passport

Foreign Driver's License

National ID Card

Foreign Voter's
Registration Card

U.S. Military ID Card

U.S. Visa

Civil Birth Certificate

Sign
Here

Male

Foreign Military ID Card

Under penalties of perjury, I declare that I have examined this application, including accompanying
documentation and statements, and to the best of my knowledge and belief, it is true, correct, and
complete.
Signature of applicant

Date

Phone number

▲

For IRS Use Only

For Paperwork Reduction Act Notice, see instructions.

Cat. No. 37764H

Form 8946 (Rev. 10-2015)

Page 2

Form 8946 (Rev. 10-2015)

General Instructions

How To Apply

Section references are to the Internal Revenue Code unless otherwise
noted.

Online. Go to webpage www.irs.gov/ptin for information. During the
PTIN application process, you will be prompted to complete and mail
Form 8946 and supporting documents to the address noted below.
Applying by mail. Complete both Form W-12 and Form 8946. Payment
of the application processing fee must accompany this form or it will be
rejected. The PTIN registration fee for the 2016 calendar year is $50.00.
• If you are registering for a 2015 PTIN and/or prior calendar year PTIN,
the application processing fee for each calendar year is $64.25.
• PTIN fees are nonrefundable.
• A separate PTIN fee (payment) must be submitted for each calendar
year a PTIN is requested. See Form W-12 instructions for requesting
prior-year PTINs.
• Make checks or money orders payable to “IRS Tax Pro PTIN Fee.”
• Do not paper clip, staple, or otherwise attach the payment to Form
W-12.
• Send both forms, the payment for the application processing fee, and
the supporting documents to the following address.
IRS Tax Pro PTIN Processing Center
104 Brookeridge Drive #5000
Waterloo, IA 50702
Allow 4 to 6 weeks for the IRS to process your application.
Submission of Form 8946. Submit the following.
1. Your completed Form 8946.
2. The original documents or certified copies of documents that verify
the information provided on Form 8946. If you are sending copies
of documents, see the information below. The supporting
documentation must be consistent with the information provided on
Form 8946. For example, the name must be the same as on Form
8946, line 1 (or in the case of a civil birth certificate, line 3), and the
date of birth must be the same as on Form 8946, line 3.

Future Developments
For the latest information about developments related to Form 8946 and
its instructions, such as legislation enacted after they were published,
go to www.irs.gov/form8946.

Purpose of Form
Form 8946 is used by foreign persons without a social security number
(SSN) who want to prepare tax returns for compensation. Foreign
persons who are tax return preparers must obtain a preparer tax
identification number (PTIN) to be eligible to prepare tax returns for
compensation. Generally, the IRS requires an individual to provide an
SSN to get a PTIN. Because foreign persons generally cannot get an
SSN, they must file Form 8946 to establish their identity and status as a
foreign person.
You must have a PTIN to be eligible to prepare a tax return
for compensation.

TIP

SSNs. Do not complete Form 8946 if:
• You have an SSN,
• You are eligible to get an SSN,
• You are a U.S. citizen, or
• You have been admitted by the United States for permanent residence
or U.S. employment.
To get an SSN, see Form SS-5, Application for a Social Security Card.
To get Form SS-5 or to find out if you are eligible to get an SSN, go to
www.socialsecurity.gov or contact a Social Security Administration
(SSA) office.
If you have an application for an SSN pending, do not file Form 8946.
Complete Form 8946 only if the SSA notifies you that an SSN cannot be
issued.
If you already have an SSN, enter the SSN when you apply for your
PTIN using Form W-12, IRS Paid Preparer Tax Identification Number
(PTIN) Application and Renewal.
Telephone help. If you have questions about completing this form, the
status of your application, or the return of your original documents
submitted with this form, you may call the following phone numbers. If
calling from the United States, call 1-877-613-PTIN (7846). For TTY/TDD
assistance, call 1-877-613-3686. If calling internationally, call
+1 915-342-5655 (not a toll-free number). Telephone help is generally
available Monday through Friday from 8:00 a.m. through 5:00 p.m.
Central time.

Who Must Apply
As part of applying for a PTIN, a foreign person must file Form 8946 to
establish their identity and status as a foreign person. A foreign person
is an individual who does not have and is not eligible to obtain an SSN
and is neither a citizen of the United States nor a resident alien of the
United States as defined in section 7701(b)(1)(A).
For the purposes of receiving a PTIN, the United States includes any
state, territory, or possession of the United States, including a
commonwealth, or the District of Columbia.

!
▲
CAUTION

Only preparers who have a foreign (non-U.S.) address may
file this form. If you do not have a foreign address, do not
file this form. See How To Apply, later, for more information
about submitting documents with this form.

TIP

To avoid any loss of your documents, it is suggested you do
not submit the original documentation.

You can submit original documents or certified copies. A certified
document is one that the original issuing agency provides and certifies
as an exact copy of the original document and contains an official seal
from the issuing agency. All certifications must stay attached to the
copies of the documents when they're sent to the IRS. Certified
documents have a stamp and/or an ink seal (may or may not be raised).
Any document certified by a foreign official must be issued by the
agency or official custodian of the original record. The foreign
certification must clearly certify that each document is a true copy of the
original. All certifications must stay attached to the copies of the
documents when they are sent to the IRS.
Original documents you submit will be returned to you at
the mailing address shown on your Form 8946. You do not
TIP need to provide a return envelope. If your original
documents are not returned within 60 days, you can call the
phone numbers provided earlier under Telephone help. Copies of
documents will not be returned.
If you submit an original valid passport (or a certified copy of a
valid passport), you do not need to submit any other documents.
Otherwise, you must submit two current documents that, when the
combined information on the documents is taken into account, verify
your identity and your status as a foreign person. At least one document
must contain your photograph. The documents must be government
issued. Examples of acceptable supporting documents are listed in the
following table. If you submit copies of documents that display
information on both sides, copies of both the front and back must be
attached to the Form 8946. Do not attach expired documents.

Page 3

Form 8946 (Rev. 10-2015)

Can be used to establish:
Supporting Documents

Foreign Person
Status

Identity

Passport (the only stand-alone
document)

X

X

Visa issued by U.S. Department of
State

X

X

U.S. Military ID card

X

Foreign driver's license

X

Foreign Military ID card

X

X

Foreign voter's registration card

X

X

Civil birth certificate

X*

X

National ID card

X

X

* Can only be used to establish foreign person status if it is a foreign
document.
Note: Keep a copy of the application for your records.
You must submit the proper supporting documents with
Form 8946. If you do not provide the proper supporting
documents, your application will not be processed. The
application processing fee is not refundable, and it will not
CAUTION
be returned to you because you failed to submit the proper
supporting documents.

!
▲

Specific Instructions
Line 1. Enter your legal name on line 1 as it appears on your
documents. This entry should reflect your name as it will be entered on
tax returns that you are paid to prepare.
Lines 2a–b. Enter your complete non-U.S. physical mailing address.
This address should be your physical address where you normally
reside outside the United States. Failure to provide a complete non-U.S.
physical address on lines 2a–b will result in your application being
rejected.

!
▲

If the address you want to enter on line 2 is a U.S. address,
you cannot file this form.

CAUTION

Lines 3a–c. Enter your birth information as it corresponds to your
identification documents. Complete line 3c only if your name at birth is
different from the name you entered on line 1.
Line 5. Check the box indicating the type of document(s) you are
submitting for foreign status and identification. You must submit
documents as explained earlier under How To Apply.
Signature. The completed Form 8946 must be signed and dated by the
applicant.
Paperwork Reduction Act Notice. We ask for the information on this
form to carry out the Internal Revenue laws of the United States. This
information will be used to issue a Preparer Tax Identification Number
(PTIN).
You are not required to provide the information requested on a form
that is subject to the Paperwork Reduction Act unless the form displays
a valid OMB control number. Books or records relating to a form or its
instructions must be retained as long as their contents may become
material in the administration of any Internal Revenue law. Generally, the
information you provide on this form is confidential pursuant to the
Privacy Act of 1974 and tax returns and return information are
confidential pursuant to Code section 6103.
The time needed to complete and file this form will vary depending on
individual circumstances. The estimated burden for those who file this
form is shown below.
Recordkeeping . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 hr., 37 min.
Learning about the law or the form . . . . . . . . 34 min.
Preparing and sending the form . . . . . . . 1 hr., 40 min.
If you have comments concerning the accuracy of these time
estimates or suggestions for making this form simpler, we would be
happy to hear from you. You can send us comments from
www.irs.gov/formspubs. Click on More Information and then click on
Give us feedback. Or you can send your comments to Internal Revenue
Service, Tax Forms and Publications Division, 1111 Constitution Ave.
NW, IR-6526, Washington, DC 20224. Do not send this form to this
address. Instead, see Applying by mail, earlier.