Source: ITIN Services documentation. Last synced from GitBook content.
How ITIN Services moves an applicant from intake to IRS processing.
The purpose of the standard service process is to reduce avoidable IRS delays before the application package is mailed.
Intake: submit the application information form and core identity details.
Document review: we check passport, address, visa, signature, payment, and tax-reason materials.
Package preparation: we prepare Form W-7 and organize the supporting documents.
Signature and submission: you review, sign, and the final package is mailed.
IRS processing: keep your contact and mailing information reliable while the IRS reviews the case.
Post-approval support: check the CP565 notice and follow up quickly if anything is wrong.
Intake
After the application starts, you first need to complete the ITIN Application Information Form. The information on this form is used to prepare the official IRS Form W-7, so your name, address, birth information, and document information should match your passport as closely as possible.
The form mainly collects the following information:
Contact information: Phone Number and Email. Your phone number should include the country code. Your email will be used to receive ITIN document scans and follow-up notices.
Name.
Reason for ITIN Application, such as US Business Operations, Joint Tax Filing, ITIN Renewal, or Other. Renewal applications also need the existing ITIN.
Foreign residential address: Your Foreign Residential Address. This should be your complete residential address outside the United States, including street number, building or room number, city, province or state, postal code, and country. Do not enter a U.S. address here.
Personal identity information: Gender, Marital Status, Foreign Tax ID, Date of Birth, Occupation, and Country of Tax Residency.
U.S. visa and entry information. A visa photo is not mandatory; if you have it, provide it, and if you do not have it or lost it, that is usually acceptable. This includes whether you currently have a valid U.S. visa, whether you entered the United States in 2025, 2024, or 2023, and visa scans or photos. If you have a U.S. visa or recent U.S. entry records, please fill them in.
Handwritten Signature. Please sign on a blank sheet of paper with a black or blue pen. The signature should be clear and should match the English name on your passport.
Birth and nationality information: birth_country, birth_city, and countries_of_citizenship.
IRS letter mailing address: Where should the IRS send your ITIN letter. You can choose to use your own U.S. mailing address or use our CAA U.S. mailing address to receive the CP565 ITIN notice.
If some information is temporarily uncertain, you may submit the confirmed information first. However, passport details, name, date of birth, foreign residential address, application reason, and signature directly affect the accuracy of Form W-7 and should be checked first.
Passport details, legal name, date of birth, foreign residential address, application reason, and handwritten signature should be checked before Form W-7 is finalized.
Document review
The team checks whether your submitted materials are clear enough and whether the application path is consistent with IRS requirements. The review focuses on:
Whether the passport is clear, complete, uncropped, and free of obvious glare or obstruction.
Whether the passport name, date of birth, country of birth, nationality, and related information match the form.
Whether the foreign residential address is complete and has not been mistakenly entered as a U.S. address.
If you have a U.S. visa, whether the visa page is clear and whether the visa type and validity period can be identified.
If you recently entered the United States, whether an I-94 or related travel record is needed.
Whether the handwritten signature is clear and matches the English name on the passport.
Whether payment status is normal and whether the application reason and tax document path are complete.
If the system or manual initial review finds a problem, the support team will ask you to supplement or re-upload materials. Common reasons include a blurry passport, unclear home address, blurry visa, missing travel history information, or unpaid status.
Form and package preparation
ITIN Services prepares the application package based on the information you provide. This usually includes:
Preparing Form W-7 based on passport name, birth information, nationality, country of tax residency, and application reason.
Organizing passport, visa, signature, tax documents, and other supporting materials.
Generating PDF files for your review and signature.
Reviewing the application package again to confirm that the name, birth date, address, signature, and attachments support this application.
If the application involves joint tax filing, U.S. business, renewal, or another special reason, the team will organize supporting materials according to the corresponding path.
Signature and submission
You need to review the generated documents and complete signatures as required. After signing, the team will review the signed files and final application package.
Before mailing, the package usually goes through internal statuses such as pending printing, documents printed, waiting for customer signature, signing in progress, and signature reviewed and packed. After confirmation, the package enters ITIN application mailed status and a tracking record is generated.
IRS processing
IRS processing time varies. During this period, keep your email, phone, and mailing address reliable. If the IRS requests additional materials or the application status needs to be checked by phone, the support team will help you decide the next step based on the current record.
If you choose to use your own U.S. mailing address, make sure it can reliably receive IRS letters. If you choose to use our CAA U.S. mailing address, we will process the ITIN notice and notify you after it arrives.
Based on our experience, IRS processing time may be 40 days, 60 days, or 90 days. In most cases, it is about 50 to 60 days. In faster periods in the past, some approvals came in a little over 20 days. Recent processing speed has fluctuated. The IRS also appears to be using automation tools to improve efficiency, but name, birth date, and other data-entry errors can still happen, so you should carefully check the notice after approval.
Post-approval support
After the CP565 ITIN notice arrives, carefully check the name, date of birth, and ITIN number. If the ITIN has been issued, the team will send the delivery documents to you.
If you find a problem with the name, date of birth, ITIN number, or mailing information, contact support as soon as possible. Depending on the IRS record, the next step may involve correction, re-mailing the notice, or continuing phone follow-up.