New requirement for dependents whose passports don’t have a date of entry into the U.S.

The IRS changed its policy on acceptable documentation for issuing dependent Individual Taxpayer Identification Numbers (ITIN). The agency no longer accepts passports that do not have a date of entry into the U.S. as a stand-alone identification document for dependents from countries other than Canada or Mexico or dependents of military members overseas.

In addition to their passport, affected applicants will now be required to submit either

• U.S. medical records for dependents under age six or
• U.S. school records for dependents under age 18, along with the passport.

Dependents aged 18 and over can submit a rental or bank statement or a utility bill listing the applicant’s name and U.S. address, along with their passport.

Form W-7 dependent applications submitted after Sept. 30, 2016, that don’t meet the new identification requirement, will be incomplete. Applicants will be notified by correspondence and given 45 days to respond with the appropriate documentation.

The new policy ensures that any dependent issued an ITIN will be used for legitimate tax purposes and serves to further protect the ITIN program and refund process.

If you use the services of a Certifying Acceptance Agent when applying for an ITIN for your dependents, changes to the ITIN program allow you to keep those all-important documents. Certifying Acceptance Agents are now allowed to authenticate the passport and birth certificate for your dependents. They will continue to certify identification documents for the primary and secondary applicants.

Further details can be found on the ITIN page on IRS.gov.