claim back USA Tax

R42

EdSwippet said:

So you paid both UK tax and NI at 47% and then another US withholding tax (30%?) on top for this RSU vesting? That would leave you little more than pocket money.

Correct

EdSwippet said: 
You can probably do this without treaty claim, but doing it with, since you have one, would make things crystal clear to the IRS, an organisation not exactly renowned for its flexible or intelligent approach to edge cases.

I was thinking the same too. There's also a note on Line L: "Attach Form 8833 if required" which is another confusing form. The instructions seems like I can exclude! But it also mentions that there could be a $1000 if I don't include it when I should have. 

Should I not risk it with Form 8833 and include it anyway? This one is the most confusing and requires me to read IRS tax law to fill it in correctly. 

EdSwippet

R42 said:Should I not risk it with Form 8833 and include it anyway? This one is the most confusing and requires me to read IRS tax law to fill it in correctly.

Form 8833 has some cases where filing is explicitly required, some where it's explicitly waived, and some they say nothing about. I have never been able to parse these. My take is that it's far less time to just fill out a copy and send it than it is trying to work out which of these three states you fall into. It's about five minutes of work. If it's redundant the IRS can simply ignore it.

On my reading, your case is simple. Aside from the obvious parts (name, address, ITIN when you get it), whoever withheld US tax will send you either a 1042-S or - sans W-8BEN - perhaps some 1099. This will show their payer details; put in box 3. In 1a, "United Kingdom" (don't shorten to UK - the IRS has been known to misinterpret this as Ukraine!), 1b "Article 14 paragraph 1". 2 is "26 USC 871(a)", 4 is "Article 23 paragraph 2(a), 5 tick "no", and 6 write something like "Employment income of $xx is not US taxable to a UK resident who is a US nonresident alien, treaty article 14 paragraph 1". Done. Package together with completed 1040-NR and Schedule OI, mail, then wait.

OliverLacon

I'm in a similar situation in that I sold some shares in the US but my W-8BEN had expired. I should be able to claim back around £800 but that is impossible unless I get a ITIN number. As I don't want to send original supporting documents (i.e. passport) to the IRS with my application, I am unable to get that ITIN  number. I know I could use a "Certifying Acceptance Agents", but the price I've been quoted is £350. As there is no guarantee that I would be issued with an ITIN (or that my tax reclaim would b successful), I don't feel like spending another £350 on top of the £800 I've already potentially lost.

If there was a cheaper way to get a certified copy of my passport, I'd be able to fill out all the forms and try to get the tax back. Unfortunately the IRS only accept certified copies from the issuing authority - and the UK Passport Office does not offer such a service,

EdSwippet

OliverLacon said:

...
If there was a cheaper way to get a certified copy of my passport, I'd be able to fill out all the forms and try to get the tax back. Unfortunately the IRS only accept certified copies from the issuing authority - and the UK Passport Office does not offer such a service.

The US embassy claims to handle certifying passports for ITIN applications - albeit grudgingly, by the look of things. You'll need an (apparently scarce) appointment and a bucket of patience for the ordeal of visiting the embassy, but it's an option. London mainly, but also consulates in Edinburgh and Belfast. Depending on where you live then, that might be a cheaper option, $50 per notary seal, plus travel costs.

OliverLacon

EdSwippet said:

OliverLacon said:

...
If there was a cheaper way to get a certified copy of my passport, I'd be able to fill out all the forms and try to get the tax back. Unfortunately the IRS only accept certified copies from the issuing authority - and the UK Passport Office does not offer such a service.

The US embassy claims to handle certifying passports for ITIN applications - albeit grudgingly, by the look of things. You'll need an (apparently scarce) appointment and a bucket of patience for the ordeal of visiting the embassy, but it's an option. London mainly, but also consulates in Edinburgh and Belfast. Depending on where you live then, that might be a cheaper option, $50 per notary seal, plus travel costs.

Thanks Ed.

I checked for available dates at both London and Edinburgh, seems that there are none available currently. I checked all months for the remainder of this year and all of next year. It isn't clear whether the actual dates that they provide the service are only released in batches though. There are a handful of dates this month and next month where Notary services are provided - but fully booked. All the other dates are "date passed or not yet open for appointments". I guess I'll need to re-check regularly in case any new dates become available.

If no dates become available I might consider sending documents other than passport to the USA along with the W7 form. My current thinking is to send documents that I can fairly easily get replacements for - birth certificate and driving licence for example. Has anyone reading this used this method successfully? How risky is it to send those documents?