The purpose of this document is to know information about income tax. This is a request for an identification number and taxpayer certificate in which Americans provide their social security number and other identification information to their new employer. If a person is not a US resident and is not subject to income tax of this country, he does not need to fill out the copies of W-9.
What to do when a non-US resident was asked to use W-9
If someone asks an individual to submit a completed W-9 form, while this person is not US taxpayer, as he is neither US citizen nor another person who can be considered as US resident who has to pay US taxes. Requester should be informed that Canadian business W-9 is not required in this case, while instead he has to provide them with one of W-8 doc versions. In most cases, this is a W-8BEN form, but it is possible that another type will be appropriate for any specific circumstances.
What is a W-8BEN form?
Americans and US foreigners must complete a W-9 form when they start working with a new employer. US non-resident independent contractors and foreign companies that receive income from US employers must complete a W-8 form, PDF can be downloaded here.
This form can be called Canadian equivalent to W-9. It establishes the status of a foreigner who is working for an American employer. This form exempts Canadians from a 30% American income tax, as a resident of a country with which the USA has a special income tax treaty. The form is submitted once in three years and considered as valid until the taxpayer’s status or some other information changes.
Form sections
| Part 1: Identification of Beneficial Owner | Part 2: Claim of Tax Treaty Benefits | Part 3: Certification |
| This section is intended to identify the owner of the income. Valid taxpayer information should be provided here. | In this section, information about to which contract taxes are applied, and at what rate they should be deducted from the payments made by the taxpayer. | Here it is necessary to confirm that the information provided in this corporate tax form is complete and truthful, and that all instructions for completing of the form were taken into account while filling it out. |