Getting My Wife A Itin(Indivisual Tax Identification Number)

[lopburi3]

If you have a refund due on your tax return you can use this process to confirm receipt/status after four weeks. Expect the normal slow ITIN may take even longer than normal this year as government just about went broke and it seems many services are running in a much reduced manner from other reports I have seen.

http://www.irs.gov/individuals/article/0,,id=96596,00.html

[55Jay]

I didn't believe this process would be as simple as set forth on the W7 instruction so, being the cynical expat I (we?) am, called the IRS to confirm. Nice lady read back the instructions word for word then we had a chuckle as I told her I just didn't believe it could be as easy and effecient as the form made it sound.

I did it in another country, had a US Military legal guy (notary) do a silly fill in the blanks form to say he watched me make the xerox copy of the original in front of him, then I had the pp copy stamped by the Thai consulate here (about $20.00).

Did the 1040 as married filing joint, put wife's name (less still unissued ITIN) on page 1 and sent the lot and the memo/letter signed by us, to the ITIN processing center as per instruction. Return went through and it was about 1.5 to 2 months later received the ITIN document in the mail. I owed money, so maybe that helped greased the skids, I don't know (cynical again).

As to paying the fees, scam, etc., IMO, the instant benefit of having my standard withholding doubled, thus reducing taxable income amount, felt like a pretty good deal to me then, and in all future tax years. J.

[TerryLH]

"The Thai cannot go into US Citizen Services."

Is this something new? My wife has always gone in with me.