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lot
Joined: 29 Dec 2006
Posts: 134
Location: Munich
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Posted: Wed May 27, 2009 2:59 pm
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| jmpaget wrote: | | lot wrote: | If I want to fill out form W7 it says I need to provide:
"1(d) A signed letter or document from the withholding agent, on official letterhead, showing your name and account number, and evidencing that an ITIN is required to make distributions to you during the current tax year which are subject to IRS information reporting or federal tax withholding."
Where do I get that signed letter? Also, I have not received any Email as it was claimed in the post by Shutterstock
What can I do here? |
I have received a letter, although unsigned, in the email from Shutterstock. Started a post requesting confirmation that the letter is acceptable under the terms of the W-9, as it states 'signed'. Be pointless sending off only to find out its not valid. |
Hm, I received nothing. Maybe my spamfilter ate that? Please, Shutterstock, can you send again (or, better, abandon this painful and in the case of my country completely pointless process)? |
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sistersnl
Joined: 30 Jul 2008
Posts: 43
Location: Netherlands
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Posted: Wed May 27, 2009 3:00 pm
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I don't understand it either, especially how to obtain a certified copy of my passport. According to the irs site I have to travel to another country to obtain that. So no Identification number for me and if they withold 30% I quit. |
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jeffdalt
Joined: 01 Mar 2006
Posts: 191
Location: N West UK
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Posted: Wed May 27, 2009 3:03 pm
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If I don`t fill in the forms and 30% gets deducted by SS how will I and all the other submitters know whether this deduction has been passed on to the IRS. |
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shevs
Joined: 31 Jul 2008
Posts: 1565
Location: Belgium
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Posted: Wed May 27, 2009 3:06 pm
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Ok, this is completely chinese to me...i always sucked at paperwork let alone in official english language.
I saw in the list belgium has an income tax agreement with the US and it's 0%; so if i fill in all the forms i get nothing witheld..right..? If i dont it's 30% taken off? (why why, on the vast amount of 0,25cents per image i dont think this still would pay off)
So, just resuming to see if i'm correct:
I need to fill in the form W-8BEN, but to do so, i need an ITIN number, and to get that ITIN number i have to fill in a W7 form...
Correct..?
*sigh*
un-fun :( |
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jeffdalt
Joined: 01 Mar 2006
Posts: 191
Location: N West UK
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Posted: Wed May 27, 2009 3:06 pm
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| madburst wrote: | | Isn't it a scam to retain lot's of 30% of different users? |
Thats what I was thinking and if not then why haven`t the other US sites I submit to asked for these forms. |
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luceluceluce
Joined: 10 Dec 2008
Posts: 2585
Location: Aquafun, Minsk
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Posted: Wed May 27, 2009 3:07 pm
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| Quote: | This letter is to advise you of potential changes in the amount of tax that may be withheld from your Shutterstock earnings.
In reviewing our files we discovered that we do not have a record of having received any US withholding tax certificates from you. Based upon the information in our files it appears that you may be a resident of United Kingdom, which has an income tax treaty with the United States that provides for a reduced rate of withholding tax on royalties.
If you are a resident of United Kingdom and qualify for benefits under the US/United Kingdom income tax treaty, you will need to complete a U.S. Internal Revenue Service (IRS) Form W-8BEN, Certificate of Foreign Status of Beneficial Owner for United States Tax Withholding. We are in the process of installing an online version of Form W-8BEN on our website; however, in order to complete Form W-8BEN you must have a U.S. Individual Taxpayer Identification Number (ITIN). If you do not currently have an ITIN, you can obtain one by filing a Form W-7, Application for IRS Individual Taxpayer Identification Number, with the IRS. This process takes only 4-6 weeks and could reduce your withholding taxes significantly.
Please complete the most recent version of Form W-7 by checking Box a (Nonresident alien required to obtain ITIN to claim tax treaty benefits), providing the information requested in Lines 1 through 6, and signing the form where indicated. You must provide certified or notarized copies of documents, such as your passport, that substantiate the information contained on Form W-7.
After completing the W-7 form and providing the required documentation as described above, you can apply for an ITIN in any of three ways:
1. by mail through the IRS, with details available here:
http://www.irs.gov/individuals/article/0,,id=96287,00.html
2. using the services of an IRS-authorized Acceptance Agent in your country
3. by visiting an IRS Taxpayer Assistance Center in Frankfurt, London, or Paris, where they will provide in-person help with ITIN applications on a walk-in or appointment basis.
http://www.irs.gov/localcontacts/article/0,,id=101292,00.html
Please note that without an ITIN and a completed IRS Form W-8BEN on file at Shutterstock, we will be required to deduct a 30% US withholding tax from royalties payable to you.
We will send you a separate email when our online Form W-8BEN is ready for use. Your early June royalty payment will not be subject to withholdings but subsequent royalty payments may be.
If you have questions on tax withholding from your Shutterstock earnings, please visit our submitter forum.
Thank you for your cooperation and attention to this matter.
Best Regards,
Shutterstock Images LLC |
this is the letter i go. it said if i have questions, to come here and ask them...
SS I do! this sounds like a long process... what happens if we can't arrange this in time. How do we get our tax back? What happens if our ittn whatever number is rejected?
bureaucracy is fraught with perils and holdups. the timescale seems short. |
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devonyu
Joined: 27 Jul 2005
Posts: 34
Location: Vancouver, BC, Canada
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Posted: Wed May 27, 2009 3:07 pm
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SS should move out from US. finding a country with less tax or no tax. |
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jmpaget
Joined: 05 Sep 2007
Posts: 1192
Location: UK
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Posted: Wed May 27, 2009 3:07 pm
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| sistersnl wrote: | | I don't understand it either, especially how to obtain a certified copy of my passport. According to the irs site I have to travel to another country to obtain that. So no Identification number for me and if they withold 30% I quit. |
I think a certified copy of your passport is obtained by a trip to a solicitors office |
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kerstinw
Joined: 27 Jan 2008
Posts: 12
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Posted: Wed May 27, 2009 3:09 pm
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I'm doing a lot of commissioned work for several US companies. That's my full time day job - so I don't speak about a few hundred dollars or so here...
Those companies usually need the W8-BEN but nobody of them needs that ITIN. I've heard that it's a major trouble to get that number and I'm just not interested in that trouble...
I am paying my tax here in Germany and for sure I am not paying it twice. The day I get 30% less from my earnings here I'll delete all my images from Shutterstock and upload them elsewhere.
Last edited by kerstinw on Wed May 27, 2009 3:10 pm; edited 2 times in total |
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luceluceluce
Joined: 10 Dec 2008
Posts: 2585
Location: Aquafun, Minsk
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Posted: Wed May 27, 2009 3:09 pm
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and certified / notarized copies of passports... ?
this is not a simple process |
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abimages
Joined: 18 Nov 2005
Posts: 29
Location: UK
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Posted: Wed May 27, 2009 3:10 pm
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So I have to prove my British status to the IRS. This is nuts!! Sounds like just another US scam to hold info on the whole world. Likely the legal fees will be more than I earn at SS in a year. Not interested thanks. |
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luceluceluce
Joined: 10 Dec 2008
Posts: 2585
Location: Aquafun, Minsk
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Posted: Wed May 27, 2009 3:11 pm
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SS - please can you give us a clear date by which we must complete this process.
tnx |
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anmax
Joined: 03 Mar 2006
Posts: 38
Location: Toronto
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Posted: Wed May 27, 2009 3:13 pm
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W8-BEN is surely enough. Otherwise images must go elsewhere. |
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photobunny
Joined: 20 Oct 2006
Posts: 995
Location: Bristol United Kingdom
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Posted: Wed May 27, 2009 3:14 pm
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| jmpaget wrote: | | sistersnl wrote: | | I don't understand it either, especially how to obtain a certified copy of my passport. According to the irs site I have to travel to another country to obtain that. So no Identification number for me and if they withold 30% I quit. |
I think a certified copy of your passport is obtained by a trip to a solicitors office |
more expense, nevermind sending the documentation by registered post to the US, for a number that going by other's posts is really hard to obtain! I dont know if I can be bothered with the hassle of this, I'll just withdraw from SS if it starts getting complicated. |
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photobunny
Joined: 20 Oct 2006
Posts: 995
Location: Bristol United Kingdom
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Posted: Wed May 27, 2009 3:15 pm
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| abimages wrote: | | So I have to prove my British status to the IRS. This is nuts!! Sounds like just another US scam to hold info on the whole world. Likely the legal fees will be more than I earn at SS in a year. Not interested thanks. |
I hear you! |
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