A US tax ID, without a Social Security Number.
If you are a non-US person who needs to file US taxes or is an owner of a US company, you may need an ITIN, an Individual Taxpayer Identification Number, on IRS Form W-7. As a Certified Acceptance Agent, we verify your passport by video, so your original never leaves your hands or spends weeks in the mail.
You built a US company from outside the US.
You formed the LLC and we got its EIN, so the business has its number. But you, personally, still have no US taxpayer identity, and the moment you need to file a US tax return, claim a treaty benefit, or satisfy a bank or platform that asks for a personal tax number, you hit a wall. An ITIN is your individual tax ID, and getting it should not mean mailing your only passport to another country for two months.
So how does this fit your record? Here it is.
Two numbers, two different jobs.
The business has its EIN. This adds your personal US tax identity. Seeing them side by side is the fastest way to know which one does what.
The distinction that matters: an EIN identifies your business to the IRS; an ITIN identifies you, the individual, when you have no Social Security Number. They are not interchangeable, and a foreign founder often needs both: the EIN to run the company, the ITIN for their own US tax filing. We confirm you genuinely need an ITIN before filing, since not every founder does.
The filing is Form W-7. How you prove your identity is where it gets risky.
Your passport stays in your hands.
An ITIN application has to prove your identity with your passport. The ordinary way means mailing the original to the IRS. As a Certified Acceptance Agent, we verify it without it ever leaving you.
- You mail your original passport to the IRS processing center.
- It can be gone for six to eight weeks or longer.
- You cannot travel internationally while the IRS holds it.
- Lost mail, though rare, means a lost passport and weeks of replacement.
- We verify your passport by video, in about fifteen minutes.
- Your original document never leaves your hands.
- You travel freely while the application is processed.
- We submit a certified copy the IRS accepts in place of the original.
Once issued, your ITIN lets you file a US individual tax return, claim any tax-treaty benefits you are entitled to, and satisfy platforms and institutions that require a personal US tax number.
Your identity is safe. Here's how the application runs.
Verified in minutes, issued in weeks.
You meet our agent by video. We prepare and certify the application, submit it to the IRS, and follow it to the number, without your passport ever leaving you.
A 15-minute video call
You meet our Certified Acceptance Agent by video and show your passport. That is the identity check the IRS would otherwise do by holding the original.
Form W-7, done right
We complete Form W-7 for your reason, tie it to the tax return or exception it supports, and certify a copy of your passport so the original stays with you.
Filed with certified proof
We submit the application with our certified documents, so the IRS does not need your original passport and there is nothing to mail across borders.
Your ITIN arrives
The IRS issues your ITIN, typically in six to eight weeks. We store it securely in your vault, and you kept your passport and your travel the entire time.
File, claim, and operate
With the ITIN in hand you can file your US return, claim treaty benefits, and clear the personal tax-number requirements that were holding things up.
Get the ITIN, or get it alongside the rest of your US setup.
The ITIN alone, or your whole US foundation.
The number, done safely
- Certified Acceptance Agent video verification
- Form W-7 prepared for your reason
- Your passport never leaves your hands
- ITIN stored securely in your vault
Everything to operate here
- Everything in the ITIN application
- Business EIN obtained without an SSN
- US banking and payment processing setup
- Compliance calendar for your US filings
The IRS charges nothing to issue an ITIN; our fee is for CAA verification and preparing it correctly. See what an ITIN costs →
Verified and filed. Here's your US tax identity, in hand.
Your US tax identity, and your passport never left.
When the IRS issues your ITIN, you can file your US return, claim the treaty benefits you are due, and satisfy any platform or institution that asked for a personal tax number. We keep the ITIN in your vault next to your EIN, and you did it all without mailing your only passport to another country.
Mateo Alvarez
Form W-7 filed through a Certified Acceptance Agent, with a certified copy in place of the original passport.
Mateo runs a US LLC from Bogotá.
He needed an ITIN to file his US return, but had two international trips booked and could not part with his passport for two months. We verified it on a video call, filed the W-7 with a certified copy, and his ITIN arrived seven weeks later. His passport never left his desk, and neither did his travel plans.
What a US founder usually needs with it.
Get an EIN
The business number, obtained without an SSN. The ITIN's counterpart for the company.
Learn more →Business Banking
Open US banking and payment processing for your company.
Learn more →Foreign Qualification
Register the company in each US state where it operates.
Learn more →Compliance Calendar
Keep your US filing deadlines in one place from abroad.
Learn more →Identity in hand. Here's the whole road it sits on.
Running a US company from abroad is one platform, not twelve.
An ITIN is one piece of operating in the US as a non-resident. Every other piece, the entity, the EIN, banking, compliance, lives on the same platform, so you build your US presence in one place instead of a dozen offices in a country you may never visit.
Form it, number it, and file from anywhere in the world, all inside File.Business. One platform for the whole life of the company, wherever its owner lives.
The questions foreign founders ask about an ITIN.
What is an ITIN?
An ITIN, or Individual Taxpayer Identification Number, is a nine-digit tax ID the IRS issues to individuals who have a US tax obligation but are not eligible for a Social Security Number, such as many non-US founders and their family members. It is applied for on Form W-7 and is used for your personal US tax filings. We prepare and file the W-7 and, as a Certified Acceptance Agent, verify your identity without you mailing your passport.
Is an ITIN the same as an EIN?
No. An EIN identifies your business to the IRS, while an ITIN identifies you as an individual taxpayer. A foreign founder often needs both: the EIN to open the company's bank account and file its returns, and the ITIN for their own US tax filing or treaty claim. They serve different purposes and are obtained through different forms.
Do I have to mail my passport to the IRS?
Not with us. The standard route requires mailing your original passport to the IRS, where it can stay for six to eight weeks. As a Certified Acceptance Agent, we verify your passport by video and submit a certified copy the IRS accepts in its place, so your original never leaves your hands and you can keep traveling while the ITIN is processed.
What is a Certified Acceptance Agent?
A Certified Acceptance Agent, or CAA, is authorized by the IRS to verify the identity documents of an ITIN applicant and certify them, taking the place of the IRS holding your original passport. That authorization is exactly what lets us confirm your identity on a short video call and keep your document with you, rather than sending it across borders and waiting.
How long does it take to get an ITIN?
The IRS typically issues an ITIN in about six to eight weeks after a complete application, though it can run longer during peak tax season. Because we certify your documents up front, your application goes in complete, which avoids the delays that come from a rejected or incomplete filing. We track it to issuance and store the number in your vault.
Do I even need an ITIN?
Not every founder does. You generally need one if you have a US tax filing requirement, want to claim a tax-treaty benefit, or a platform or institution requires a personal US tax number and you have no Social Security Number. Some non-resident owners can operate with just the business EIN. We confirm whether you actually need an ITIN before filing, so you do not apply for one you do not require.
Can File.Business handle the whole application?
Yes: we confirm you need an ITIN, verify your passport by video as your Certified Acceptance Agent, prepare Form W-7 and tie it to the right tax return or exception, submit it with certified documents so your passport stays with you, and track it to issuance. We can also pair it with your business EIN and US banking, so your whole US setup is done from wherever you are.