Free tool
W-8BEN and W-8BEN-E form helper
Five questions tell you which form a US payer needs from you, who signs it, what goes on every line, and the withholding rate your country's treaty gives you. Built from the IRS instructions, including the rule for a US LLC with a non-US owner.
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- Rates checked Oct 4, 2026
- IRS instructions, rev. 2021 and 2024
Find your form
Who is being paid?
The form documents the person or company whose name is on the payment.
Are you a US citizen or a US tax resident?
Green card holders, and anyone who meets the substantial presence test by spending enough days in the US, are tax residents even while living abroad.
Where was the company formed?
Where it is formed decides whether it is a US entity, not where its owners live.
Who owns the US company, and how is it taxed?
This is the question that decides between a W-9 and a W-8.
Is the LLC's owner a person or a company?
The owner gives the form, so this decides which W-8 it is.
What kind of entity is it?
As it is treated in its own country.
Where are you tax resident?
The country whose tax system you belong to. It decides whether a treaty applies.
What is the payment for?
Withholding follows the type of income, so this sets what to expect and whether Part II matters.
What Form W-8BEN is for
When a US company pays someone, US law makes the payer responsible for working out whether to withhold tax. For a US person that is settled with a Form W-9. For everyone else it is settled with one of the W-8 forms: a signed statement that you are not a US person, where you are tax resident, and, if your country has a treaty with the United States, which reduced rate you are entitled to. Form W-8BEN is the version for individuals; Form W-8BEN-E (the "E" is for entities) is the version for companies.
The form never goes to the IRS. You give it to whoever is paying you, they keep it on file, and it tells them what to withhold, if anything. Platforms such as Upwork, Fiverr, Amazon, Apple, Google and Stripe collect it through their own tax-information screens, which ask the same questions the paper form does.
W-8BEN vs W-8BEN-E vs W-9
| W-8BEN | W-8BEN-E | W-9 | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Who gives it | An individual who is not a US citizen or resident | A company or other entity formed outside the US | A US citizen, US resident, or any entity formed in the US |
| A US LLC with one non-US owner | Yes, from the owner, LLC named on line 7 | Yes, if the owner is a foreign company | No |
| What it certifies | Not a US person; treaty residence | Not a US person; treaty residence; FATCA status | US person; correct taxpayer number |
| Tax number needed | Your home-country number (line 6a); a US number only for some treaty claims | Home-country number (line 9b); EIN only if it has one | SSN, ITIN or EIN, always |
| Length | 1 page | 8 pages, of which a trading company completes 4 parts | 1 page |
| Valid for | To the end of the third year after signing | To the end of the third year after signing | Until something changes |
| Withholding if not provided | 30% on US-source income | 30% on US-source income | 24% backup withholding |
A US LLC owned by a non-US founder: W-8BEN, not W-9
This is the case the instructions handle in one sentence and most guides get wrong. A single-member LLC that has not elected to be taxed as a corporation is "disregarded" for US tax: the IRS looks through it to the owner. The W-9 instructions say that if the owner of a disregarded entity is a foreign person, the owner must complete a Form W-8 instead of a W-9, and the W-8BEN instructions say the same from the other side: the owner, not the disregarded entity, submits the form.
So the form is in your name, with your address outside the US and your home-country tax number on line 6a. The LLC appears on line 7, the reference line, so the payer can match the form to an account held in the company's name. The LLC's EIN is not your taxpayer number and does not go on line 5.
Two things change the answer. If the LLC has two or more members it is a partnership, a US entity, and gives a W-9 in its own name. If it filed Form 8832 or 2553 to be taxed as a corporation, it is a US corporation and also gives a W-9. In both cases the owners' nationality is irrelevant.
Which form, by LLC type
- One non-US owner, no electionOwner's W-8BEN
- Owned by a foreign companyOwner's W-8BEN-E
- Two or more membersLLC's W-9
- Taxed as a corporationLLC's W-9
Whatever the form, a foreign-owned single-member LLC files Form 5472 every year. See US tax obligations.
How to fill out Form W-8BEN, line by line
The current form is the October 2021 revision. It has three parts; most people complete Part I and Part III and leave Part II blank.
Your full name as on your passport. For a US LLC you own, still your name, not the company’s.
Country of citizenship.
Permanent residence address in your country. No PO boxes, no "in care of", no US address.
Mailing address, only if different.
US taxpayer number (SSN or ITIN). Leave blank unless you have one and need it for a treaty claim.
Foreign tax identifying number: your home-country tax number. Required unless your country issues none.
Tick only if your country does not issue tax numbers to individuals.
Reference number. For a disregarded US LLC, the LLC’s name goes here.
Date of birth, month-day-year.
Treaty country, only if claiming a reduced rate.
Article, paragraph, rate, income type and a one-line explanation, only if claiming a reduced rate.
Sign, date (month-day-year), print your name, tick the capacity box.
How to fill out Form W-8BEN-E for a small company
The entity form runs to eight pages because it covers banks, trusts and investment funds. A trading company needs four parts; the rest stay blank.
Identification: legal name, country of incorporation, chapter 3 status (Corporation), chapter 4 status (Active NFFE for an operating business), address outside the US, foreign tax number on line 9b. Line 3 and 9a stay blank.
Treaty claim, only for US-source royalties, dividends, interest or US-performed services: country on 14a, the limitation-on-benefits test you meet on 14b, article and rate on 15.
Active NFFE certification, box 39: less than half of last year’s income was passive and less than half of the assets produce passive income. Holding companies use Part XXVI instead.
Certification: an officer signs, prints their name, dates month-day-year, and ticks the authority box.
Treaty withholding rates by country
Without a treaty, US-source royalties, dividends and interest are withheld at 30%. The United States has income tax treaties in force with 65 countries. The rates below are the general rates from the IRS treaty table; the wizard shows them for any country you choose.
| Country | Treaty | Dividends | Interest | Copyright royalties |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| India | Yes | 25% | 15% | 15% |
| Pakistan | Yes | 30% | 30% | 0% |
| United Kingdom | Yes | 15% | 0% | 0% |
| Germany | Yes | 15% | 0% | 0% |
| Canada | Yes | 15% | 0% | 0% |
| Turkey | Yes | 20% | 15% | 10% |
| Egypt | Yes | 15% | 15% | 15% |
| Philippines | Yes | 25% | 15% | 15% |
| Mexico | Yes | 10% | 15% | 10% |
| Australia | Yes | 15% | 10% | 5% |
| Nigeria | No | 30% | 30% | 30% |
| United Arab Emirates | No | 30% | 30% | 30% |
General rates. Direct-investment dividends, industrial royalties and some interest have different rates, and several treaties carry conditions. Hungary's treaty ended on 1 January 2024 and Russia's withholding articles are suspended since 16 August 2024.
Mistakes that get a W-8BEN rejected
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A US address on line 3
A permanent residence address in the US contradicts the claim of foreign status. Use your home address; if you have a US mailing address, it goes on line 4 with an explanation the payer may ask for.
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The LLC’s name on line 1
For a disregarded US LLC the form is the owner’s. The LLC goes on line 7.
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Writing the EIN on line 5
Line 5 is for your own SSN or ITIN. The company’s EIN is not your number.
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Leaving line 6a blank
The foreign tax number has been required since 2018. Only tick 6b if your country does not issue one.
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Day-month-year dates
The IRS reads dates as month-day-year. 03-06-2026 is 6 March, not 3 June.
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Claiming a treaty that does not exist
Singapore, Malaysia, the UAE, Brazil, Nigeria and Argentina have no US income tax treaty. Part II stays blank.
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Forgetting it expires
Three years after the end of the year you sign. Payers start withholding when it lapses.
-
Sending it to the IRS
It goes to the payer. The IRS never sees it.
Want to be paid as a US business instead?
Form a US LLC for $399 with all state fees included, get a federal tax number and a US business bank account, and take payments in dollars. We explain what that does and does not change about tax before you decide.
Frequently asked questions
What is Form W-8BEN?
Form W-8BEN is the IRS form a non-US individual gives to a US company that pays them. It certifies that you are not a US person, and, if your country has a tax treaty with the US, lets you claim a reduced withholding rate. It goes to the payer, never to the IRS, and it stays valid for three years after the year you sign it.
What is the difference between W-8BEN and W-8BEN-E?
W-8BEN is for individuals. W-8BEN-E is the entity version, for companies and other organisations formed outside the US. They certify the same things (not a US person, treaty residence) but the entity form also asks for the company’s FATCA status, which for an ordinary trading company is "Active NFFE".
Do I give a W-9 or a W-8BEN for my US LLC?
If your LLC has one owner, no election to be taxed as a corporation, and that owner is not a US person, the IRS instructions say the owner completes a Form W-8 (W-8BEN for an individual, W-8BEN-E for a company) and names the LLC on line 7. The LLC does not give a W-9, even though it has an EIN. If the LLC has two or more members, or elected corporate tax treatment, it is a US entity and gives a W-9 in its own name.
Do I need a US tax number (SSN, ITIN or EIN) to complete W-8BEN?
Usually not. Line 6a asks for the tax number your own country gave you, and that is what most people provide. A US number on line 5 is only required if you claim a treaty rate and have no foreign tax number, or in a few special cases such as giving the form to a US partnership. Your LLC’s EIN is the company’s number, not yours, and does not go on your W-8BEN.
How long is a W-8BEN valid?
From the date you sign until the last day of the third calendar year after it. Signed in March 2026, it works until 31 December 2029. It becomes invalid earlier if anything on it changes, such as moving country, and you must then give a new one within 30 days.
Will tax be withheld from my payments if I file W-8BEN?
That depends on the income, not the form. Payment for work done outside the US is foreign-source and not subject to US withholding at all; the form just documents your status. US-source royalties, dividends and interest are withheld at 30% unless your country’s treaty reduces the rate and you claim it in Part II. Sales of goods are not withholdable.
Which treaty article do I put on line 10?
The article that covers the income type. In most modern US treaties dividends are Article 10, interest Article 11, royalties Article 12 and business profits Article 7, but older treaties number them differently, so check the treaty text on the IRS site. Line 10 also needs the rate you are claiming and a short explanation of why you qualify.
What happens if I do not provide a W-8BEN?
A US payer with no form on file must treat you as an undocumented payee. For US-source income that means withholding 30%; for other income it can mean backup withholding at 24%, and some platforms will not pay you at all until the form is in. Give it before the first payment.
Can I sign a W-8BEN electronically?
Yes. The IRS accepts electronic signatures on W-8 forms when the payer’s system meets its requirements, and most platforms (Upwork, Amazon, Stripe, Google) collect it through an online form that signs for you. If you are sending a PDF to a client, a typed name is usually accepted; ask them if unsure.
My country has no tax treaty with the US. Should I still file W-8BEN?
Yes. The form does two separate jobs: it certifies that you are not a US person, which every payer needs regardless of treaty, and it optionally claims a treaty rate. With no treaty you leave Part II blank. Not filing can leave you with backup withholding or no payments, which is worse than the statutory rate.