Welcome back to the puzzling world of the W-8BEN-E
The topic of our first W-8BEN-E post was about the GIIN. Today we make a big jump from Part I, line 9a to Part I, line 9b: Foreign Tax Identification Number (“FTIN”).
So many rumours about such a small box. However, based on the W-8BEN-E instructions it should be very clear in which cases we have to provide a FTIN: “If you are providing this Form W-8BEN-E to document yourself as an account holder with respect to a financial account (as defined in Regulations section 1.1471-5(b)) that you hold at a U.S. office of a financial institution (including a U.S. branch of an FFI) and you receive U.S. source income reportable on Form 1042-S associated with this form, you must provide the TIN issued to you by the jurisdiction in which you are tax resident identified on line 6 (…)”.
Again: let’s take a deep breath and have a look at this section.
You must provide a FTIN if the following two cumulative requirements are met:
- You have to hold a financial account at a U.S. office of a financial institution
AND - You receive U.S. source income reportable on Form 1042-S
If one of the above-mentioned requirements are not met, you are not obliged to provide a FTIN.
In the case you want to claim treaty benefits, you may provide a FTIN but you are not obliged to.
Similar to our recommendations to the GIIN in our last blog post, if the bank insists on filling Part I, line 9b, then you may consider doing it.
You have questions or need assistance with filling out the W-8BEN-E? Do not hesitate to contact us at
