You file your taxes every year, but there’s a family member who never appears on the return: your husband, who has no Social Security number, or your kids, who don’t have one either. And every April the same doubt comes up: “can I include them? Do they need a number? Which one?”
The answer is the ITIN (Individual Taxpayer Identification Number), and requesting it for your family can change your return in an important way. But there are also limits you should know before getting your hopes up.
When your family needs an ITIN
The ITIN exists for a single reason: to let people who don’t have and can’t get a Social Security number meet their tax obligations. In the family context, the most common cases are:
- Your spouse has no SSN. If you’re married and want to file jointly, your husband or wife needs a tax identification number on the return. With an ITIN, you can file the joint return normally.
- Your kids have no SSN. To claim them as dependents on your return, each child needs an identification number: SSN if they have it, ITIN if they can’t get one.
- Other dependents without an SSN. Parents, in-laws, or other relatives you support who also lack Social Security may need an ITIN to appear on your return.
The practical rule: if the person is going to appear on your tax return and has no SSN, they need an ITIN. It’s not optional: the IRS rejects electronic returns with dependents lacking a valid identification number.
How to request it: Form W-7 with your return
The ITIN is requested with Form W-7 (Application for IRS Individual Taxpayer Identification Number), and the normal way to request it is with your tax return: you attach the completed W-7 to the return where the person appears, and the IRS processes both together. You don’t need to file first and request the number later: they go in the same envelope.
To request it you must prove the person’s identity and foreign status. The king document is the passport (it proves both things at once); without a passport, combinations of other official documents are accepted (birth certificate, national ID, foreign driver’s license, among others). The application can take several weeks to process, so don’t leave it for April.
A tip that saves headaches: Certified Acceptance Agents (Certified Acceptance Agents) —preparers and organizations authorized by the IRS— can verify your original documents and return the originals to you on the spot, without you having to mail your passport. If the idea of sending the original passport by mail makes you nervous, look for a certified agent near you.
Which credits the family ITIN does enable
Here’s the good part. With a valid ITIN, your spouse and your dependents can appear on your return and open real benefits for you:
- Filing jointly with your spouse. With your husband’s or wife’s ITIN, you can file jointly and access the doubled brackets, the full standard deduction, and all available credits for joint returns.
- Credit for other dependents: $500 per person. Dependents with an ITIN who don’t qualify for the child credit (children 17 or older, parents, other relatives) generate this $500 credit each. It’s the most direct benefit of the family ITIN for many Latino families.
- Standard deduction and normal brackets. A return with dependents with an ITIN uses the same deductions and brackets as any other: the ITIN doesn’t put you in a lower tax category.
And here’s the part that has to be said clearly, because there’s a lot of misinformation:
- The child tax credit does NOT apply with the child’s ITIN. For the $2,200 CTC, the child needs a valid Social Security number valid for work, issued before the deadline. A child with an ITIN doesn’t open this credit, no exceptions.
- Nor does the EITC. The earned income credit requires a valid work-authorized SSN for the taxpayer, the spouse, and each claimed child.
No honest preparer can change these rules. Whoever promises you the child credit or the EITC “with ITIN” is selling you a problem with the IRS. The family ITIN is a legitimate and valuable tool: but only for what the law allows.
If the ITIN expired: renew it before filing
ITINs expire: if they weren’t used on a return in the last three years, or if they have certain old middle digits, the IRS deactivates them. An expired ITIN on your return causes the same problem as not having one: the return is rejected or the credits are denied.
Renewal is done with the same Form W-7, marked as a renewal, and can be done at any time of year: you don’t have to wait for tax season. If your family has been filing with the same ITINs for years, check their validity at irs.gov before January: renewing calmly in November is very different from discovering the expiration on April 14.
What to do today, in order
- Identify who in your family will appear on the return and has no SSN: each one needs an ITIN.
- Gather the documents (passport ideally) and file Form W-7 with your return, or look for a Certified Acceptance Agent.
- Verify that your family’s existing ITINs are still valid before the season.
- Know the limits: the family ITIN opens the joint return and the credit for other dependents, but neither the child credit nor the EITC.
To keep learning, check our guide on how to get an ITIN step by step and the article on the credit for other dependents.
This content is informational and is not tax advice. For your particular case, consult the official sources or an authorized professional.
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