Hi, I?m an American citizen residing in the Philippines. I have a 5-year old daughter for who has not yet been approved for American citizenship. My taxable U.S. income is low enough that not claiming her on my tax return as a dependent does not cause any issues or result in any real tax savings. I need to get her an ITN in lieu of a Social Security Number. I opted not add her to my income tax return as a dependent and have already filed. In hindsight, it would have probable been easier, but I was not thinking at the time. Therefore, I need to get her an ITN with a W7 not attached to a return. I need the ITN not for dependent purposes, but because she and I are both members of a Native American tribe in the U.S. The tribe pays cash disbursement to adult members and makes deposits for minors in trust accounts. Her enrollment was just recently approved, but before they can begin depositing her per capita disbursements into her trust account, they need either a SSN or ITN. Now, I know most will say just go ahead and get her citizenship and SNN, but that is not really an option right now due to the remote location in which I reside and certain other reasons. Of course, I will get her U.S citizenship eventually, but it?s not such a pressing matter presently. I THINK I can get her an ITN based on a Tax Treaty between the U.S and the Philippines. However, I am unsure which article the basis for the ITN would fall under. Of course my daughter would not receive any actual income until she reaches 18 years of age. Nevertheless, she needs the ITN forthwith, so I am attempting to proceed with the W7 application using the tax treaty exemption as the basis for not submitting the form with my 2012 tax return. So, I guess my questions are:
1.) Is it ok to file the W7 without the tax return based on the tax treaty exemption? 2.) Since the disbursements are made to a trust account and not directly to her (at least not yet), which article would I use on the W7 form? (Initially, I thought of using Article 18 ? Private Pensions and Annuities. But, I am not really sure if it applies in this case.) The list of articles in the tax treaty are:TABLE OF ARTICLES Article 1----------------------------------Taxes Covered Article 2----------------------------------General Definitions Article 3----------------------------------Fiscal Residence Article 4----------------------------------Source of Income Article 5----------------------------------Permanent Establishment Article 6----------------------------------General Rules of Taxation Article 7----------------------------------Income from Real Property Article 8----------------------------------Business Profits Article 9----------------------------------Shipping and Air Transport Article 10---------------------------------Related Persons Article 11---------------------------------Dividends Article 12---------------------------------Interest Article 13---------------------------------Royalties Article 14---------------------------------Capital Gains Article 15---------------------------------Independent Personal Services Article 16---------------------------------Dependent Personal Services Article 17---------------------------------Artistes and Athletes Article 18---------------------------------Private Pensions and Annuities Article 19---------------------------------Social Security Payments Article 20---------------------------------Governmental Functions Article 21---------------------------------Teachers Article 22---------------------------------Students and Trainees Article 23---------------------------------Relief from Double Taxation Article 24---------------------------------Non-discrimination Article 25---------------------------------Mutual Agreement Procedure Article 26---------------------------------Exchange of Information Article 27---------------------------------Assistance in Collection Article 28---------------------------------Diplomatic and Consular Officers Article 29---------------------------------Entry into Force Article 30---------------------------------Termination
The actual treaty text can be found here: