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Form W-9 (Rev. 10-2018) Page 2
By signing the filled-out form, you: Example. Article 20 of the U.S.-China income tax treaty allows an
1. Certify that the TIN you are giving is correct (or you are waiting for a exemption from tax for scholarship income received by a Chinese
number to be issued), student temporarily present in the United States. Under U.S. law, this
student will become a resident alien for tax purposes if his or her stay in
2. Certify that you are not subject to backup withholding, or the United States exceeds 5 calendar years. However, paragraph 2 of
3. Claim exemption from backup withholding if you are a U.S. exempt the first Protocol to the U.S.-China treaty (dated April 30, 1984) allows
payee. If applicable, you are also certifying that as a U.S. person, your the provisions of Article 20 to continue to apply even after the Chinese
allocable share of any partnership income from a U.S. trade or business student becomes a resident alien of the United States. A Chinese
is not subject to the withholding tax on foreign partners' share of student who qualifies for this exception (under paragraph 2 of the first
effectively connected income, and protocol) and is relying on this exception to claim an exemption from tax
4. Certify that FATCA code(s) entered on this form (if any) indicating on his or her scholarship or fellowship income would attach to Form
that you are exempt from the FATCA reporting, is correct. See What is W-9 a statement that includes the information described above to
FATCA reporting, later, for further information. support that exemption.
Note: If you are a U.S. person and a requester gives you a form other If you are a nonresident alien or a foreign entity, give the requester the
than Form W-9 to request your TIN, you must use the requester’s form if appropriate completed Form W-8 or Form 8233.
it is substantially similar to this Form W-9.
Backup Withholding
Definition of a U.S. person. For federal tax purposes, you are
considered a U.S. person if you are: What is backup withholding? Persons making certain payments to you
must under certain conditions withhold and pay to the IRS 24% of such
• An individual who is a U.S. citizen or U.S. resident alien;
payments. This is called “backup withholding.” Payments that may be
• A partnership, corporation, company, or association created or subject to backup withholding include interest, tax-exempt interest,
organized in the United States or under the laws of the United States; dividends, broker and barter exchange transactions, rents, royalties,
• An estate (other than a foreign estate); or nonemployee pay, payments made in settlement of payment card and
• A domestic trust (as defined in Regulations section 301.7701-7). third party network transactions, and certain payments from fishing boat
operators. Real estate transactions are not subject to backup
Special rules for partnerships. Partnerships that conduct a trade or withholding.
business in the United States are generally required to pay a withholding You will not be subject to backup withholding on payments you
tax under section 1446 on any foreign partners’ share of effectively receive if you give the requester your correct TIN, make the proper
connected taxable income from such business. Further, in certain cases certifications, and report all your taxable interest and dividends on your
where a Form W-9 has not been received, the rules under section 1446 tax return.
require a partnership to presume that a partner is a foreign person, and
pay the section 1446 withholding tax. Therefore, if you are a U.S. person Payments you receive will be subject to backup withholding if:
that is a partner in a partnership conducting a trade or business in the 1. You do not furnish your TIN to the requester,
United States, provide Form W-9 to the partnership to establish your 2. You do not certify your TIN when required (see the instructions for
U.S. status and avoid section 1446 withholding on your share of Part II for details),
partnership income.
3. The IRS tells the requester that you furnished an incorrect TIN,
In the cases below, the following person must give Form W-9 to the
partnership for purposes of establishing its U.S. status and avoiding 4. The IRS tells you that you are subject to backup withholding
withholding on its allocable share of net income from the partnership because you did not report all your interest and dividends on your tax
conducting a trade or business in the United States. return (for reportable interest and dividends only), or
• In the case of a disregarded entity with a U.S. owner, the U.S. owner 5. You do not certify to the requester that you are not subject to
of the disregarded entity and not the entity; backup withholding under 4 above (for reportable interest and dividend
accounts opened after 1983 only).
• In the case of a grantor trust with a U.S. grantor or other U.S. owner,
generally, the U.S. grantor or other U.S. owner of the grantor trust and Certain payees and payments are exempt from backup withholding.
not the trust; and See Exempt payee code, later, and the separate Instructions for the
Requester of Form W-9 for more information.
• In the case of a U.S. trust (other than a grantor trust), the U.S. trust
(other than a grantor trust) and not the beneficiaries of the trust. Also see Special rules for partnerships, earlier.
Foreign person. If you are a foreign person or the U.S. branch of a What is FATCA Reporting?
foreign bank that has elected to be treated as a U.S. person, do not use
Form W-9. Instead, use the appropriate Form W-8 or Form 8233 (see The Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA) requires a
Pub. 515, Withholding of Tax on Nonresident Aliens and Foreign participating foreign financial institution to report all United States
Entities). account holders that are specified United States persons. Certain
Nonresident alien who becomes a resident alien. Generally, only a payees are exempt from FATCA reporting. SeeExemption from FATCA
nonresident alien individual may use the terms of a tax treaty to reduce reporting code, later, and the Instructions for the Requester of Form
or eliminate U.S. tax on certain types of income. However, most tax W-9 for more information.
treaties contain a provision known as a “saving clause.” Exceptions
specified in the saving clause may permit an exemption from tax to Updating Your Information
continue for certain types of income even after the payee has otherwise You must provide updated information to any person to whom you
become a U.S. resident alien for tax purposes. claimed to be an exempt payee if you are no longer an exempt payee
If you are a U.S. resident alien who is relying on an exception and anticipate receiving reportable payments in the future from this
contained in the saving clause of a tax treaty to claim an exemption person. For example, you may need to provide updated information if
from U.S. tax on certain types of income, you must attach a statement you are a C corporation that elects to be an S corporation, or if you no
to Form W-9 that specifies the following five items. longer are tax exempt. In addition, you must furnish a new Form W-9 if
1. The treaty country. Generally, this must be the same treaty under the name or TIN changes for the account; for example, if the grantor of a
which you claimed exemption from tax as a nonresident alien. grantor trust dies.
2. The treaty article addressing the income.
3. The article number (or location) in the tax treaty that contains the Penalties
saving clause and its exceptions. Failure to furnish TIN. If you fail to furnish your correct TIN to a
4. The type and amount of income that qualifies for the exemption requester, you are subject to a penalty of $50 for each such failure
from tax. unless your failure is due to reasonable cause and not to willful neglect.
5. Sufficient facts to justify the exemption from tax under the terms of Civil penalty for false information with respect to withholding. If you
the treaty article. make a false statement with no reasonable basis that results in no
backup withholding, you are subject to a $500 penalty.
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