ITIN Eligibility & Document Checker
Five questions, and you get a printable checklist: whether you need an ITIN at all, which Form W-7 box to tick, which route to use, and exactly which documents go in the envelope for your situation.
Every rule on this page is cited to an IRS source, linked where it is used. Last read against those sources September 8, 2026.
ITIN eligibility & document checker
Five questions. You get a straight answer on whether you need an ITIN, which Form W-7 reason code fits, which submission route suits your situation, and the exact document list for your case — not the full thirteen-row table.
Answer the questions above and your result appears here.
🔒 Free to use. No account is required. Calculator inputs are processed locally in your browser and are not transmitted to or stored by TaxSaveIQ. Standard website analytics and technical logs may still apply. Privacy policy.
Most rejected ITIN applications fail on one of three things: the applicant was eligible for a Social Security number, a document was notarised instead of certified by the issuing agency, or a dependent's passport carried no U.S. entry date and nothing else proved U.S. residency. This checker asks about all three before you post anything, then hands you the document list for your case rather than the full thirteen-row table.
Key takeaways
- It runs in your browser. No account is required, and your answers are processed locally rather than transmitted to or stored by TaxSaveIQ. Close the tab and they are gone. Standard website analytics and technical logs still apply, as our privacy policy explains.
- It gives you a reason code. Ticking the wrong box on Form W-7 tells the examiner to expect a different set of documents, which is a quiet cause of rejection.
- It recommends a route based on your circumstances, not on what earns a commission — this site sells no application service.
- It is a checklist, not a determination. Only the IRS decides whether to issue an ITIN.
What the checker is doing behind the questions
There is no black box here. Each question maps to a published rule, and the rule is what drives the answer you get.
| Question | The rule behind it |
|---|---|
| Do you have or could you get an SSN? | The IRS issues an ITIN only to someone not eligible for a Social Security number. This is a condition of eligibility, so it comes first and it overrides everything after it. |
| Why do you need a number? | This maps to the Form W-7 reason boxes a–h, and it determines whether a tax return must be attached or whether one of the five exceptions applies instead. |
| Where will you be when you apply? | An IRS Taxpayer Assistance Center is only reachable inside the United States. From abroad the choice narrows to mail or a Certifying Acceptance Agent. |
| How old is the applicant? | Medical records are accepted only for a dependent under 6; school records only under 24; a civil birth certificate is required for an applicant under 18 with no valid passport. |
| Is there a current passport, and does it show a U.S. entry date? | A passport is the only stand-alone document. For a dependent, an entry date also settles the U.S. residency question — without it, a separate residency document is needed. |
Source: IRS — Instructions for Form W-7 (Rev. 12/2024), read September 8, 2026.
The document rules, in full
The checker narrows this to your case. Here is the whole picture, for when you want to check its reasoning or your situation sits between two branches.
| Document | Foreign status | Identity | Restrictions |
|---|---|---|---|
| Passport | The only document that works on its own. Dependents may still need proof of U.S. residency if it carries no U.S. entry date. | ||
| USCIS photo identification | — | ||
| U.S. visa issued by the Department of State | Must be current. | ||
| Foreign military identification card | A Certifying Acceptance Agent cannot authenticate this one. | ||
| National identification card | Must be current and show name, photo, address, date of birth and expiry date. | ||
| Foreign voter registration card | — | ||
| Civil birth certificate | Foreign certificates only. Required for an applicant under 18 who has no valid passport. Does not expire. | ||
| Foreign driver's license | Identity only — must be paired. | ||
| U.S. driver's license | Identity only — must be paired. | ||
| U.S. state identification card | Identity only — must be paired. | ||
| U.S. military identification card | Identity only — must be paired. | ||
| Medical records | Dependents under 6 only. Foreign records only. | ||
| School records | Dependents under 24 only, if a student. Foreign records only. |
Source: IRS — ITIN supporting documents, read September 8, 2026. Column values cross-checked against the Instructions for Form W-7.
Five rules that decide most applications
- The IRS wants original documents, or copies certified by the agency that issued them — the passport office, the registrar, the school.
- A notary cannot certify a document for an ITIN application. Notarized copies are not accepted. The one narrow exception is military personnel applying from an overseas address.
- A certified copy must carry the issuing agency's official stamped seal.
- If you send a passport, send every page, including the U.S. visa pages.
- One passport covers both columns. Any other route needs two documents — one proving identity, one proving foreign status — or a single document that covers both.
Source: IRS — ITIN supporting documents, read September 8, 2026.
Which route the checker recommends, and why
There are three ways to get a W-7 to the IRS, and the honest comparison turns on one column that service pages tend to bury: whether your original passport leaves your hands.
| By mail | IRS office | CAA | |
|---|---|---|---|
| What it is | Mail to the IRS ITIN Operation | IRS Taxpayer Assistance Center (TAC), in person | Certifying Acceptance Agent (CAA) |
| Cost | Free (you pay postage) | Free | Fees vary — set by the agent, not the IRS |
| Do your original documents leave your hands? | Yes — originals mailed | No — returned same visit | Depends on the agent |
| Who checks your documents | The IRS ITIN Operation in Austin, Texas | An IRS employee, in front of you | The agent, who certifies and forwards the application |
| What that person cannot certify | Nothing — but nothing is checked before it is mailed either | School and medical records for dependents | Foreign military ID cards, and dependent documents other than passports and birth certificates |
| Appointment | None needed | Required — call ahead | Set by the agent |
| Best for | Applicants outside the U.S. with no agent nearby, and anyone whose documents are certified copies from the issuing agency | Anyone inside the U.S. who can reach a participating office and does not want to mail a passport | Applicants abroad, and anyone who wants the form checked by a person before it is filed |
| The risk nobody mentions | Your original passport is in the postal system and then at the IRS for weeks. A single wrong box on the W-7 restarts the whole wait. | Appointments are limited and not every office handles ITIN authentication — call before you travel. | You are paying for form-checking, not for speed. No agent can make the IRS decide faster, and any promise of a guaranteed approval is a promise nobody can keep. |
Source: IRS — How to apply for an ITIN, read September 8, 2026.
Then he checks his calendar. His passport has to go with the application, and the IRS asks him to allow seven weeks to be told the outcome, or up to eleven weeks in filing season. Inside that window sit a visa renewal appointment that requires the passport, and a flight booked for a family wedding.
The free route would have cost him the appointment and the flight. An appointment at an IRS Taxpayer Assistance Center is also free, an IRS employee checks the documents in front of him, and the passport goes home in his pocket the same afternoon. Same cost, one fewer disaster.
Applying without a tax return: the five exceptions
Normally the W-7 and the return travel together. These five situations replace the return with the exception's own evidence — usually a letter from whoever needs your number.
| # | Exception | In plain English |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Passive income with third-party withholding or a treaty benefit | Bank interest, dividends, rent, royalties, or a partnership interest, where a U.S. payer must withhold and needs your number. |
| 2 | Wages, salary, scholarships, fellowships and grants | Includes the student and scholar cases where a treaty exempts the income, and cases where the Social Security Administration has denied you an SSN. |
| 3 | Third-party reporting of mortgage interest | A U.S. lender must report the mortgage interest you paid and needs a number to report it against. |
| 4 | Disposition of U.S. real property by a foreign person | The FIRPTA withholding case — you sold U.S. property and the buyer withheld. |
| 5 | Reporting obligations under Treasury Decision 9363 | The narrow e-filing reporting case; if it applies to you, your preparer will say so. |
Source: IRS — Instructions for Form W-7 (Rev. 12/2024), read September 8, 2026.
Six ways applications get rejected, and how to avoid each
A CP567 notice means the application was rejected. The IRS gives three broad reasons — you may not be eligible, the documents may not have been valid, or a request for more information went unanswered. Underneath those, the specific causes repeat.
| What went wrong | What to do instead |
|---|---|
| A notarized copy was sent instead of an agency-certified copy. | Get the copy certified by the agency that issued the document, or use an in-person route so nothing has to be certified at all. |
| The name on the W-7 does not match the name on the passport. | Copy the passport exactly, in the same order, including every middle name and any hyphen. |
| No tax return attached, and no exception claimed. | Either attach the return the ITIN is for, or claim one of the five exceptions and attach that exception's own evidence. |
| A dependent's passport had no U.S. entry date and nothing else proved U.S. residency. | Add a U.S. medical record (under 6) or school record (under 24), or use a passport that carries the entry stamp. |
| A document expired between the day it was copied and the day the IRS opened the envelope. | Check every expiry date against a date roughly two months out, not against today. |
| The applicant was, in fact, eligible for a Social Security number. | Apply to the Social Security Administration instead. The IRS will not issue an ITIN to someone who can get an SSN. |
Source: IRS — Understanding your CP567 notice, read September 8, 2026.
The Form W-7 walkthrough covers what to do when a notice arrives, including why re-filing without reading the reason produces the same answer a second time.
Frequently asked questions
Does this checker tell me whether the IRS will approve my ITIN application?
No, and nothing can. Only the IRS decides, and it decides on your complete application. What this tool does is apply the published rules to your answers so you can see which reason code fits, which submission route suits your circumstances, and which documents your specific case needs — before you spend six weeks finding out you were missing one.
Is my information stored anywhere?
No account is required, and your answers are processed locally in your browser rather than transmitted to or stored by TaxSaveIQ. They are held in the page while you use it and disappear when you close the tab. Standard website analytics and technical logs still apply across the site, as our privacy policy explains — but they carry no answer you gave this tool.
What documents do I need for an ITIN application?
It depends on whether you have a passport. A valid passport is the only document that proves both identity and foreign status on its own, so with one you need the passport, Form W-7, and the tax return. Without one you need two documents — one from each column — and if the applicant is a dependent under 18 with no passport, a foreign civil birth certificate is required.
Which Form W-7 reason code should I tick?
Box b or c if you are filing your own return, as a nonresident or a resident respectively. Box d if you are a dependent, box e if you are a spouse. Box f covers students, professors and researchers. Box h covers the exceptions, where a payer needs your number and you write the reason on the line. The checker picks the box that matches your answers.
Can I apply for an ITIN without attaching a tax return?
Only if one of five exceptions applies: passive income with third-party withholding or a treaty benefit, certain wages and scholarships, third-party reporting of mortgage interest, the sale of U.S. real property by a foreign person, or a narrow reporting rule. Each exception replaces the return with its own evidence — usually a letter from the bank, university or closing agent that needs your number.
Why does the checker ask how old the applicant is?
Because age changes what the IRS will accept. Medical records only work as supporting documents for a dependent under 6. School records only work under 24. A civil birth certificate is required for an applicant under 18 who has no valid passport. Asking the age is how the tool avoids handing you the full thirteen-row table and leaving you to guess.
Do I have to use a Certifying Acceptance Agent?
No. Applying by mail is free, and applying in person at an IRS Taxpayer Assistance Center is also free and returns your documents the same visit. A Certifying Acceptance Agent is a private business that charges its own fee for checking and forwarding your application. It can be worth it, particularly from abroad, but no agent can make the IRS decide faster.
The checker says I should get an SSN instead. Why?
Because the IRS will not issue an ITIN to anyone eligible for a Social Security number — that is a condition of eligibility, not a preference. If your immigration status permits employment, you are eligible, and applying to the Social Security Administration is free. An SSN also reaches credits an ITIN cannot, including the Child Tax Credit and the education credits.
After the number arrives
An ITIN is the start of the tax work, not the end of it. These tools are free, need no account, and run in your browser the same way this checker does.
- 2026 federal tax calculator — what you actually owe on the return the W-7 is attached to.
- Self-employment tax calculator — if your U.S. income is 1099 or business income. See also quarterly estimated tax planner.
- Family Tax Credit Finder — which credits your household can claim once you know who holds which number.
- IRS form guides — plain-English walkthroughs of the schedules your return will need.