Instructions for Form W-8ECI

(Rev. October 2021)

Certificate of Foreign Person's Claim That Income Is Effectively Connected With 

the Conduct of a Trade or Business in the United States

Department of the Treasury

Internal Revenue Service

Section references are to the Internal Revenue Code 

unless otherwise noted.

Future developments. For the latest information about 

developments related to Form W-8ECI and its 

instructions, such as legislation enacted after they were 

published, go to IRS.gov/FormW8ECI.

What's New

New line 12, securities dealer exception from section 

1446(f) withholding. The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act 

(TCJA), added section 1446(f), which generally requires 

that if any portion of a gain on any disposition of an 

interest in a partnership would be treated under section 

864(c)(8) as effectively connected gain, the transferee 

purchasing that partnership interest from a foreign 

transferor must withhold a tax equal to 10% of the amount 

realized on the disposition. Final regulations under section 

1446(f) published in T.D. 9926 (85 FR 76910) on 

November 30, 2020, (the final regulations) provide that for 

transfers of publicly traded partnership interests (PTP 

interests), a broker effecting a transfer of a PTP interest 

on behalf of a foreign partner must perform the 

withholding. Form W-8ECI and these instructions have 

been updated to incorporate the use of this form for 

transfers of PTP interests by dealers in securities eligible 

to claim an exception from the withholding under the final 

regulations. Withholding on transfers of interests in PTPs 

and related provisions of those final regulations apply to 

transfers that occur on or after January 1, 2023. See 

Notice 2021-51, 2021-36 I.R.B. 361, for more information.

Line 4. Line 4, “Type of entity,” has been updated. The 

general classification for foreign government has been 

removed and replaced with the two possible 

classifications for a foreign government: (i) an integral part 

of a foreign government; or (ii) an entity that is controlled 

by a foreign government. See Temporary Regulations 

section 1.892-2T. See the instructions for Line 4, later.

New lines 8a and 8b. New line 8b, “Check if FTIN not 

legally required,” has been added for account holders 

otherwise required to provide an FTIN on new line 8a, 

“Foreign tax identifying number (FTIN),” to indicate that 

they are not legally required to obtain an FTIN from their 

jurisdiction of residence. See the instructions for Line 8a, 

and Line 8b, later.

Section 6050Y(b) reporting. These instructions have 

been updated to reference the use of Form W-8ECI by a 

foreign seller of a life insurance contract or interest therein 

for purposes of the reporting required under section 

6050Y(b). See Regulations section 1.6050Y-3(f)(1).

Electronic signature. These instructions have been 

updated to include additional guidance included in final 

regulations issued under chapter 3 (T.D. 9890) 

concerning the use of electronic signatures on withholding 

certificates. See Signature, later.

General Instructions

Note. For definitions of terms used throughout these 

instructions, see Definitions, later.

Purpose of Form

Foreign persons are generally subject to U.S. tax at a 30% 

rate on income they receive from U.S. sources. However, 

no withholding under section 1441 or 1442 is required on 

income that is, or is deemed to be, effectively connected 

with the conduct of a trade or business in the United 

States and is includible in the beneficial owner's gross 

income for the tax year.

This withholding exception does not apply to personal 

services income performed by an individual. Separate 

withholding requirements apply to a foreign person’s 

amount realized from dispositions of U.S. real property 

interests (section 1445), to a foreign partner's share of 

effectively connected taxable income (section 1446(a)), 

and to a foreign person’s amount realized from the 

disposition for a gain of an interest in a partnership 

engaged in a U.S. trade or business (section 1446(f)). 

With respect to section 1446(f), an exception from 

withholding applies to a foreign dealer that transfers a 

PTP interest if the foreign dealer provides this Form 

W-8ECI and is able to make the certifications set forth on 

line 12. See Regulations section 1.1446(f)-4(b)(6).

Income effectively connected with the conduct of a 

trade or business in the United States is not a 

withholdable payment under chapter 4 and thus is not 

subject to withholding under section 1471 or 1472.

If you receive effectively connected income from 

sources in the United States, you must provide Form 

W-8ECI to:

• Establish that you are not a U.S. person;

• Claim that you are the beneficial owner of the income 

for which Form W-8ECI is being provided or are an entity 

engaged in a U.S. trade or business submitting Form 

W-8ECI on behalf of your owners, partners, or 

beneficiaries; and

• Claim that the income is effectively connected with the 

conduct of a trade or business in the United States.

If you expect to receive both income that is effectively 

connected and income that is not effectively connected 

from a withholding agent, you must provide Form W-8ECI 

for the effectively connected income and Form W-8BEN, 

Form W-8BEN-E, Form W-8EXP, or Form W-8IMY (as 

appropriate) for income that is not effectively connected.

If you submit Form W-8ECI to a partnership, the 

income claimed to be effectively connected with the 

Sep 27, 2021 Cat. No. 25902V
conduct of a U.S. trade or business is subject to 

withholding under section 1446(a). If a nominee holds an 

interest in a partnership on your behalf, you, not the 

nominee, must submit the form to the partnership or 

nominee that is the withholding agent, except as 

otherwise provided.

If you are a foreign partnership, a foreign simple trust, 

or a foreign grantor trust with effectively connected 

income, you can submit Form W-8ECI without attaching 

Forms W-8BEN, W-8BEN-E, or other documentation for 

your foreign partners, beneficiaries, or owners.

A withholding agent or payer of the income can rely on 

a properly completed Form W-8ECI to treat the payment 

associated with the Form W-8ECI as a payment to a 

foreign person who beneficially owns the amounts paid 

and is either entitled to an exemption from withholding 

under sections 1441, 1442, 1471, or 1472 because the 

income is effectively connected with the conduct of a 

trade or business in the United States or is subject to 

withholding under section 1446(a) and (f).

Provide Form W-8ECI to the withholding agent or payer 

before income is paid, credited, or allocated to you. 

Failure by a beneficial owner to provide a Form W-8ECI 

when requested may lead to withholding at the 30% rate 

or the backup withholding rate under section 3406.

Additional information. For additional information and 

instructions for the withholding agent, see the Instructions 

for the Requester of Forms W-8BEN, W-8BEN-E, 

W-8ECI, W-8EXP, and W-8IMY.

Who Must Provide Form W-8ECI

You must give Form W-8ECI to the withholding agent or 

payer if you are a foreign person and you are the 

beneficial owner of U.S. source income that is (or is 

deemed to be) effectively connected with the conduct of a 

trade or business within the United States or are an entity 

(including a foreign partnership or foreign trust) engaged 

in a U.S. trade or business submitting this form on behalf 

of your owners, partners, or beneficiaries.

You must provide Form W-8ECI if you are a foreign 

transferor that is a dealer in securities (as defined in 

section 475(c)(1)) that seeks to claim the exception from 

withholding under Regulations section 1.1446(f)-4(b)(6) 

on an amount realized from the transfer of a PTP interest. 

See the instructions for Line 12, later.

You must provide Form W-8ECI to the section 

6050Y(b) issuer (as defined under Regulations section 

1.6050Y-1(a)(8)(iii)), if you are the seller of a life insurance 

contract or an interest therein and the income from the 

sale is effectively connected with your trade or business in 

the United States. In such a case, reporting under section 

6050Y may apply with respect to the sale. See 

Regulations section 1.6050Y-3(a) and (f)(1).

Do not use Form W-8ECI if:

• You are a nonresident alien individual who claims 

exemption from withholding on compensation for 

independent or certain dependent personal services 

performed in the United States. Instead, provide Form 

8233 or Form W-4;

• You are the beneficial owner of a payment subject to 

withholding and are claiming an exemption from 

withholding for a reason other than a claim that the 

income is effectively connected with the conduct of a 

trade or business in the United States. For example, if you 

are a foreign person who is the beneficial owner of U.S. 

source income that is not effectively connected with a 

U.S. trade or business and you are claiming a reduced 

rate of withholding under an applicable income tax treaty 

in effect, do not use Form W-8ECI. Instead, provide Form 

W-8BEN or Form W-8BEN-E;

• You are a foreign person receiving proceeds from the 

disposition of a U.S. real property interest. Instead, see 

Form 8288-B;

• You are filing for a foreign government, international 

organization, foreign central bank of issue, foreign 

tax-exempt organization, foreign private foundation, or 

government of a U.S. possession claiming the 

applicability of section 115(2), 501(c), 892, 895, or 

1443(b). Instead, provide Form W-8EXP. However, you 

should use Form W-8BEN-E if you are claiming treaty 

benefits or are providing the form only to claim exempt 

recipient status for backup withholding purposes. You 

should use Form W-8ECI, however, if you received 

effectively connected income (for example, income from 

commercial activities);

• You are acting as an intermediary (acting not for your 

own account or for that of your partners, but for the 

account of others as an agent, nominee, or custodian) or 

qualified intermediary with respect to a payment subject to 

withholding. Instead, provide Form W-8IMY;

• You are a foreign partnership or foreign trust acting in 

your capacity as a withholding foreign partnership or a 

withholding foreign trust for purposes of sections 1441, 

1442, and 1471 through 1474. A withholding foreign 

partnership is, generally, a foreign partnership that has 

entered into a withholding agreement with the IRS under 

which it agrees to assume primary withholding 

responsibility for each partner's distributive share of 

income subject to withholding that is paid to the 

partnership. A withholding foreign trust is, generally, a 

foreign simple trust or a foreign grantor trust that has 

entered into a withholding agreement with the IRS under 

which it agrees to assume primary withholding 

responsibility for each beneficiary's or owner's distributive 

share of income subject to withholding that is paid to the 

trust. Instead, provide Form W-8IMY;

• You are a foreign corporation that is a personal holding 

company receiving compensation described in section 

543(a)(7). Such compensation is not exempt from 

withholding as effectively connected income but can be 

exempt from withholding on another basis;

• You are a foreign partner in a partnership and the 

income allocated to you from the partnership is effectively 

connected with the conduct of the partnership's trade or 

business in the United States. Instead, provide Form 

W-8BEN or Form W-8BEN-E (as applicable). However, if 

you made or will make an election under section 871(d) or 

882(d), provide Form W-8ECI. In addition, if you are 

otherwise engaged in a trade or business in the United 

States and you want your allocable share of income from 

the partnership to be subject to withholding under section 

1446, provide Form W-8ECI;

• You are a transferor of a partnership interest with 

respect to section 1446(f), unless this Form W-8ECI is 

-2- Instructions for Form W-8ECI (Rev. 10-2021)
provided by a foreign dealer to claim an exception from 

withholding on the amount realized from the transfer of a 

PTP interest when it is able to make the certifications set 

forth on line 12. See Regulations section 1.1446(f)-4(b)

(6).

Giving Form W-8ECI to the withholding agent. Do not 

send Form W-8ECI to the IRS. Instead, give it to the 

person who is requesting it from you. Generally, this will 

be the person from whom you receive the payment, who 

credits your account, or a partnership that allocates 

income to you. Give Form W-8ECI to the person 

requesting it before the payment is made, credited, or 

allocated. If you do not provide Form W-8ECI, the 

withholding agent must withhold at the 30% rate or the 

backup withholding rate. A separate Form W-8ECI must 

generally be given to each withholding agent.

U.S. branch of foreign bank or insurance company. 

A payment to a U.S. branch of a foreign bank or a foreign 

insurance company that is subject to U.S. regulation by 

the Federal Reserve Board or state insurance authorities 

is presumed to be effectively connected with the conduct 

of a trade or business in the United States if the 

withholding agent has an EIN provided by the branch. The 

presumption does not apply if the branch provides a 

withholding agent with a Form W-8BEN-E for the income.

Expiration of Form W-8ECI. Generally, a Form W-8ECI 

will remain valid for a period starting on the date the form 

is signed and ending on the last day of the third 

succeeding calendar year, unless a change in 

circumstances makes any information on the form 

incorrect. For example, a Form W-8ECI signed on 

September 30, 2020, generally remains valid through 

December 31, 2023.

Change in circumstances. If a change in circumstances 

makes any information on the Form W-8ECI you have 

submitted incorrect, you must notify the withholding agent 

or payer within 30 days of the change in circumstances 

and you must file a new Form W-8ECI or other 

appropriate form. For example, if during the tax year any 

part or all of the income is no longer effectively connected 

with the conduct of a trade or business in the United 

States, your Form W-8ECI is no longer valid. You must 

notify the withholding agent and provide Form W-8BEN, 

W-8BEN-E, W-8EXP, or W-8IMY. See Regulations 

section 1.1441-1(e)(4)(ii)(D) for the definition of a change 

in circumstances for purposes of chapter 3, and 

Regulations section 1.1471-(c)(6)(ii)(E) for purposes of 

chapter 4.

Definitions

Amount realized from the sale of a PTP interest. For 

purposes of withholding under section 1446(f) on the 

transfer of a PTP interest, the amount realized is the 

amount of gross proceeds (as defined in Regulations 

section 1.6045-1(d)(5)) paid or credited to the customer or 

other broker (as applicable). The amount realized on a 

distribution from a PTP is the amount of the distribution 

reduced by the portion of the distribution that is 

attributable to the cumulative net income of the 

partnership (as determined under Regulations section 

1.446(f)).

Beneficial owner. For payments other than those for 

which a reduced rate of withholding is claimed under an 

income tax treaty, the beneficial owner of income is 

generally the person who is required under U.S. tax 

principles to include the income in gross income on a tax 

return. A person is not a beneficial owner of income, 

however, to the extent that person is receiving the income 

as a nominee, agent, or custodian, or to the extent the 

person is a conduit whose participation in a transaction is 

disregarded. In the case of amounts paid that do not 

constitute income, beneficial ownership is determined as 

if the payment were income.

Foreign partnerships, foreign simple trusts, and foreign 

grantor trusts are not the beneficial owners of income paid 

to the partnership or trust. The beneficial owners of 

income paid to a foreign partnership are generally the 

partners in the partnership, provided that the partner is not 

itself a partnership, foreign simple or grantor trust, 

nominee or other agent. The beneficial owners of income 

paid to a foreign simple trust (a foreign trust that is 

described in section 651(a)) are generally the 

beneficiaries of the trust, if the beneficiary is not a foreign 

partnership, foreign simple or grantor trust, nominee or 

other agent. The beneficial owners of a foreign grantor 

trust (a foreign trust to the extent that all or a portion of the 

income of the trust is treated as owned by the grantor or 

another person under sections 671 through 679) are the 

persons treated as the owners of the trust. The beneficial 

owners of income paid to a foreign complex trust (a 

foreign trust that is not a foreign simple trust or foreign 

grantor trust) is the trust itself.

Generally, these beneficial owner rules apply for 

purposes of sections 1441, 1442, and 1446(a) or (f), 

except that section 1446(a) and (f) require a foreign 

simple trust to provide a Form W-8 on its own behalf 

rather than on behalf of the beneficiary of such trust.

The beneficial owner of income paid to a foreign estate 

is the estate itself.

A payment to a U.S. partnership, U.S. trust, or U.S. 

estate is treated as a payment to a U.S. payee. A U.S. 

partnership, trust, or estate should provide the withholding 

agent with a Form W-9. However, for purposes of section 

1446(a), a U.S. grantor trust or disregarded entity should 

not provide the withholding agent a Form W-9 pertaining 

to itself. Instead, the entity must provide a Form W-8 or 

Form W-9 pertaining to each grantor or owner, as 

appropriate, and in the case of a trust, a statement 

identifying the portion of the trust treated as owned by 

each such person. For purposes of section 1446(f), the 

grantor or owner must provide a Form W-8 or Form W-9 to 

certify its status and the amount realized allocable to the 

grantor or owner, which, alternatively, can be provided by 

the U.S. grantor trust on behalf of a grantor or owner.

Chapter 3. Chapter 3 means chapter 3 of the Internal 

Revenue Code (Withholding of Tax on Nonresident Aliens 

and Foreign Corporations), excluding sections 1445 and 

1446.

Chapter 4. Chapter 4 means chapter 4 of the Internal 

Revenue Code (Taxes to Enforce Reporting on Certain 

Foreign Accounts). Chapter 4 contains sections 1471 

through 1474.

Instructions for Form W-8ECI (Rev. 10-2021) -3-
Disregarded entity. A business entity that has a single 

owner and is not a corporation under Regulations section 

301.7701-2(b) is disregarded as an entity separate from 

its owner. A disregarded entity does not submit Form 

W-8ECI to a partnership for purposes of section 1446. 

Instead, the owner of such entity provides the appropriate 

documentation. See Regulations section 1.1446-1.

Effectively connected income. Generally, when a 

foreign person engages in a trade or business in the 

United States, all income from sources in the United 

States other than fixed or determinable annual or 

periodical (FDAP) income (for example, interest, 

dividends, rents, and certain similar amounts) is 

considered income effectively connected with a U.S. trade 

or business. FDAP income may or may not be effectively 

connected with a U.S. trade or business. Factors to be 

considered to determine whether FDAP income and 

similar amounts from U.S. sources are effectively 

connected with a U.S. trade or business include whether:

• The income is from assets used in, or held for use in, 

the conduct of that trade or business;or

• The activities of that trade or business were a material 

factor in the realization of the income.

There are special rules for determining whether income 

from securities is effectively connected with the active 

conduct of a U.S. banking, financing, or similar business. 

See section 864(c)(4)(B)(ii) and Regulations section 

1.864-4(c)(5)(ii) for more information.

Effectively connected income, after allowable 

deductions, is taxed at graduated rates applicable to U.S. 

persons and resident aliens, rather than at the 30% rate. 

You must report this income on your annual U.S. income 

tax or information return.

A partnership that has effectively connected taxable 

income allocable to foreign partners is generally required 

to withhold tax under section 1446(a). The withholding tax 

rate on a partner's share of effectively connected taxable 

income is 21% for corporate partners and 37% for all 

other taxable partners. In certain circumstances, the 

partnership can withhold tax at the highest rate applicable 

to a particular type of income (for example, long-term 

capital gain allocated to a noncorporate partner and the 

partner submits the required documentation, for example, 

Form W-8BEN) . Any amount withheld under section 

1446(a) on your behalf, and reflected on Form 8805 or 

Form 1042-S issued by the partnership to you, can be 

credited on your U.S. income tax return.

Under section 864(c)(8), added by the TCJA, a foreign 

partner’s gain or loss on the transfer of an interest in a 

partnership engaged in a U.S. trade or business is treated 

as effectively connected gain or loss. However, section 

864(c)(8) and final regulations issued under that section 

generally limit the amount of effectively connected gain or 

loss to the portion of the foreign transferor's distributive 

share of gain or loss that would have been effectively 

connected had the partnership sold all of its assets at fair 

market value.

Foreign person. A foreign person includes a 

nonresident alien individual, a foreign corporation, a 

foreign partnership, a foreign trust, a foreign estate, and 

any other person that’s not a U.S. person.

Nonresident alien individual. Any individual who is not 

a citizen or resident alien of the United States is a 

nonresident alien individual. An alien individual meeting 

either the “green card test” or the “substantial presence 

test” for the calendar year is a resident alien. Any person 

not meeting either test is a nonresident alien individual. 

Additionally, an alien individual who is treated as a 

nonresident alien pursuant to Regulations section 

301.7701(b)-7 for purposes of computing the individual's 

U.S. tax liability, or an alien individual who is a bona fide 

resident of Puerto Rico, Guam, the Commonwealth of the 

Northern Mariana Islands, the U.S. Virgin Islands, or 

American Samoa is a nonresident alien individual.

See Pub. 519 for more information on resident and 

nonresident alien status including information about the 

“green card test” and “substantial presence test.”

Even though a nonresident alien individual 

married to a U.S. citizen or resident alien can 

choose to be treated as a resident alien for certain 

purposes (for example, filing a joint income tax return), 

such individual is still treated as a nonresident alien for 

withholding tax purposes on all income except wages.

Publicly traded partnership. A publicly traded 

partnership (PTP) is an entity that has the same meaning 

as in section 7704 and Regulations sections 1.7704-1 

through 1.7704-4 but does not include a publicly traded 

partnership treated as a corporation under that section.

PTP interest. A PTP interest is an interest in a PTP if the 

interest is publicly traded on an established securities 

market or is readily tradable on a secondary market (or 

the substantial equivalent thereof).

Transfer. A transfer is a sale, exchange, or other 

disposition of a partnership interest, and includes a 

distribution from a partnership to a partner, as well as a 

transfer treated as a sale or exchange under section 

707(a)(2)(B).

Transferor. A transferor is any person, foreign or 

domestic, that transfers a partnership interest. In the case 

of a trust, to the extent all or portion of the income of the 

trust is treated as owned by the grantor or another person 

under sections 671 through 679, the term transferor 

means the grantor or other person.

U.S. person. A U.S. person is defined in section 7701(a)

(30) and includes an individual who is a citizen or resident 

of the United States, as well as domestic partnerships, 

corporations, trusts, and estates.

Withholding agent. Any person, U.S. or foreign, that has 

control, receipt, custody, disposal, or payment of U.S. 

source FDAP income subject to chapter 3 withholding is a 

withholding agent. For purposes of chapter 4, any person, 

U.S. or foreign, that has control, receipt, custody, 

disposal, or payment of a withholdable payment is a 

withholding agent. The withholding agent can be an 

individual, corporation, partnership, trust, association, or 

any other entity including (but not limited to) any foreign 

intermediary, foreign partnership, and U.S. branches 

treated as U.S. person. Generally, the person who pays 

(or causes to be paid) an amount subject to withholding to 

the foreign person (or to its agent) must withhold.

CAUTION

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-4- Instructions for Form W-8ECI (Rev. 10-2021)
For purposes of section 1446(a), the withholding agent 

is the partnership conducting the trade or business in the 

United States. For a publicly traded partnership, the 

withholding agent can be the partnership, a nominee 

holding an interest on behalf of a foreign person, or both. 

See Regulations sections 1.1446-1 through 1.1446-6.

Withholdable payment. A withholdable payment means 

any payment of U.S. source FDAP income, subject to 

certain exemptions described in Regulations sections 

1.1471-2(b) and 1.1473-1(a). However, no exceptions to 

withholding on U.S. source FDAP income for purposes 

other than chapter 4 apply when determining whether a 

payment is a withholdable payment. For example, an 

exclusion from an amount subject to withholding under 

Regulations section 1.1441-2(a) does not apply for 

purposes of determining whether a payment constitutes a 

withholdable payment. Under chapter 4, a payment of 

effectively connected income is not a withholdable 

payment.

Specific Instructions

Part I

Line 1. Enter your name. If you are providing this form for 

a disregarded entity with a single owner who is a foreign 

person, this form should be completed and signed by the 

foreign single owner. If the account to which a payment is 

made or credited is in the name of the disregarded entity, 

the foreign single owner can inform the withholding agent 

of this fact by including the name of the disregarded entity 

on line 3 of Part I of the form.

If you own the income or account jointly with one 

or more other persons, the income or account will 

be treated by the withholding agent as owned by a 

foreign person if Forms W-8ECI are provided by all of the 

owners. If the withholding agent receives a Form W-9 

from any of the joint owners, the payment must be treated 

as made to a U.S. person.

Line 2. If you are providing this form for a corporation, 

enter the country of incorporation. If you are filing for 

another type of entity, enter the country under whose laws 

the entity is created, organized, or governed. If you are an 

individual, provide your country of residence for tax 

purposes.

Line 3. If you are providing this form for a disregarded 

entity, enter the name of the disregarded entity receiving 

the payment. This line is not required but can assist the 

withholding agent that is making a payment to you. The 

withholding agent can request additional referencing 

information (such as your account number) which should 

be entered on line 9. When completing this form, do not 

provide information concerning the disregarded entity on 

any line other than this line 3 or line 9. Instead, you should 

complete the form using the information of the owner of 

the disregarded entity.

Line 4. Line 4, type of entity, has been updated. The 

general classification for foreign government has been 

removed and replaced with the two possible 

classifications for a foreign government: (i) an integral part 

of a foreign government; or (ii) an entity that is controlled 

TIP

by a foreign government. To determine whether you are 

an integral part of a foreign government or an entity that is 

controlled by a foreign government, see Temporary 

Regulations section 1.892-2T.

Line 5. Your permanent residence address is the 

address in the country where you claim to be a resident 

for that country's income tax. Do not show the address of 

a financial institution (unless you are a financial 

institution), a post office box, or an address used solely for 

mailing purposes unless such address is the registered 

address of an entity identified on line 1 which does not 

have another address in the jurisdiction. If you are an 

individual who does not have a tax residence in any 

country, your permanent residence is where you normally 

reside. If you are not an individual and you do not have a 

tax residence in any country, the permanent residence 

address is where you maintain your principal office.

Line 6. Enter your business address in the United States. 

Do not show a post office box or in-care-of address.

Line 7. Enter your U.S. taxpayer identification number 

(TIN). A U.S.TIN is a social security number (SSN), 

employer identification number (EIN), or IRS individual 

taxpayer identification number (ITIN). Check the 

appropriate box for the type of U.S. TIN you are providing. 

You are required to provide a TIN for this form to be valid.

If you are an individual, you are generally required to 

enter your SSN. To apply for an SSN, get Form SS-5 from 

a Social Security Administration (SSA) office or online at 

www.ssa.gov/forms/ss-5.pdf. If in the United States, you 

can call the SSA at 1-800-772-1213. Fill in Form SS-5 and 

return it to the SSA.

If you do not have an SSN and are not eligible to get 

one, you must get an ITIN. To apply for an ITIN, file Form 

W-7 with the IRS. It usually takes 4 to 6 weeks to get an 

ITIN.

If you are not an individual (for example, if you are a 

foreign estate or trust), or you are an individual who is an 

employer or who is engaged in a U.S. trade or business 

as a sole proprietor, use Form SS-4 to obtain an EIN. If 

you are a disregarded entity, enter the U.S. TIN of your 

foreign single owner.

You can also apply for an EIN online. For more 

information, visit IRS.gov/EIN.

Line 8a. If you are providing this Form W-8ECI to 

document yourself as an account holder (as defined in 

Regulations section 1.1471-5(a)(3)) with respect to a 

financial account (as defined in Regulations section 

1.1471-5(b)) that you hold at a U.S. office of a financial 

institution (including a U.S. branch of an FFI) and you 

receive U.S. source income reportable on a Form 1042-S 

associated with this form, you must provide on line 8a the 

foreign tax identifying number (FTIN) issued to you by 

your jurisdiction of tax residence identified on line 5 

unless: (1) you properly identified yourself as a 

government (including a controlled entity that is a foreign 

government under section 892), foreign central bank of 

issue, or international organization on line 4; (2) you are a 

resident of a U.S. territory; or (3) your jurisdiction of 

residence is identified on the IRS’s List of Jurisdictions 

TIP

Instructions for Form W-8ECI (Rev. 10-2021) -5-
That Do Not Issue Foreign TINs at IRS.gov/businesses/

corporations/list-of-jurisdictions-that-do-not-issue-foreigntins. You also do not need to provide an FTIN on line 8a if 

you meet the requirement for checking the box on line 8b.

Line 8b. You may check the box on this line 8b if you are 

an account holder as described for purposes of line 8a 

and you are not legally required to obtain an FTIN from 

your jurisdiction of residence (including if the jurisdiction 

does not issue FTINs). By checking the box on line 8b you 

will be treated as having provided an explanation for not 

providing an FTIN on line 8a. If you wish to provide a 

further (or other) explanation why you are not required to 

provide an FTIN on line 8a, you may do so in the margins 

of this form or on a separate statement attached to this 

form.

Line 9. You or the withholding agent requesting this form 

can use this line to include any referencing information 

that is useful to the withholding agent in carrying out its 

obligations. For example, you can use line 9 to include the 

name and number of the account for which you are 

providing the form.

Line 10. If you are providing this Form W-8ECI to 

document yourself as an account holder with respect to a 

financial account (as described on line 8, earlier) that you 

hold at a U.S. office of a financial institution (including a 

U.S. branch of an FFI), provide your date of birth if you are 

an individual. Use the following format to input your 

information: MM-DD-YYYY. For example, if you were born 

on April 15, 1975, you would enter 04-15-1975.

Line 11. You must specify the items of income that are 

effectively connected with the conduct of a trade or 

business in the United States. You will generally have to 

provide Form W-8BEN, Form W-8BEN-E, Form W-8EXP, 

or Form W-8IMY for those items from U.S. sources that 

are not effectively connected with the conduct of a trade 

or business in the United States.

If you are providing this form to a partnership because 

you are a partner and have made an election under 

section 871(d) or section 882(d), attach a copy of the 

election to the form. If you have not made the election, but 

intend to do so effective for the current tax year, attach a 

statement to the form indicating your intent. See 

Regulations section 1.871-10(d)(3).

Line 12. Check the box on line 12 if you are a foreign 

transferor providing this form to claim an exception from 

withholding under Regulations section 1.1446(f)-4(b)(6) 

on the amount realized paid to you from a transfer of a 

PTP interest for which withholding under section 1446(f) 

may otherwise apply. By checking box 12 you are 

certifying that you are a dealer in securities (as defined in 

section 475(c)(1)) and that any gain from the transfer of a 

PTP interest associated with this form is effectively 

connected with the conduct of a trade or business in the 

United States without regard to the provisions of section 

864(c)(8). This representation applies to each transfer of a 

PTP interest associated with this form unless you specify 

otherwise on line 11 or an attachment.

Part II

Signature. Form W-8ECI must be signed and dated by 

the beneficial owner of the income, or, if the beneficial 

owner is not an individual, by an authorized representative 

or officer of the beneficial owner. If an authorized 

representative or agent is completing Form W-8ECI on 

behalf of the beneficial owner of the income, the 

representative or agent must check the box to certify that 

he or she has the legal capacity to sign for the person 

identified on line 1. If Form W-8ECI is completed by an 

agent acting under a duly authorized power of attorney for 

the beneficial owner, the form must be accompanied by 

the power of attorney in proper form or a copy thereof 

specifically authorizing the agent to represent the principal 

in making, executing, and presenting the form. This 

requirement does not apply to a partnership or other 

flow-through entity submitting this form with respect to a 

payment of effectively connected income that is 

beneficially owned by the entity’s partners or owners. 

Form 2848 can be used for this purpose. The agent, as 

well as the beneficial owner, can incur liability for the 

penalties provided for an erroneous, false, or fraudulent 

form.

A withholding agent can allow you to provide this form 

with an electronic signature. The electronic signature must 

indicate that the form was electronically signed by a 

person authorized to do so (for example, with a time and 

date stamp and statement that the form has been 

electronically signed). Simply typing your name into the 

signature line is not an electronic signature.

A withholding agent may also rely on an electronically 

signed withholding certificate if you provide any additional 

information or documentation requested by the 

withholding agent to support that the form was signed by 

you or other person authorized to do so. See Regulations 

section 1.1441-1(e)(4)(i)(B).

If any information on Form W-8ECI becomes 

incorrect, you must submit a correct new form 

within 30 days to the requester of this form unless 

you will not receive a future payment from the withholding 

agent that would require an updated Form W-8.

Paperwork Reduction Act Notice. We ask for the 

information on this form to carry out the Internal Revenue 

laws of the United States. If you want to receive 

exemption from withholding on income effectively 

connected with the conduct of a trade or business in the 

United States, you are required to provide the information. 

We need it to ensure that you are complying with these 

laws and to allow us to figure and collect the right amount 

of tax.

You are not required to provide the information 

requested on a form that is subject to the Paperwork 

Reduction Act unless the form displays a valid OMB 

control number. Books or records relating to a form or its 

instructions must be retained as long as their contents can 

become material in the administration of any Internal 

Revenue law. Generally, tax returns and return 

information are confidential, as required by section 6103.

The time needed to complete and file this form will vary 

depending on individual circumstances. The estimated 

burden for business taxpayers filing this form is approved 

under OMB control number 1545-0123. The estimated 

CAUTION

!

-6- Instructions for Form W-8ECI (Rev. 10-2021)
burden for all other taxpayers who file this form is shown 

below.

The estimated average time is: Recordkeeping, 4 hrs., 

32 mins.; Learning about the law or the form, 2 hrs., 09 

mins.; Preparing and providing the form, 3 hrs., 31 

mins.

If you have comments concerning the accuracy of 

these time estimates or suggestions for making this form 

simpler, we would be happy to hear from you. You can 

send us comments from IRS.gov/FormComments. You 

can write to the Internal Revenue Service, Tax Forms and 

Publications, 1111 Constitution Ave. NW, IR-6526, 

Washington, DC 20224. Do not send Form W-8ECI to 

this office. Instead, give it to your withholding agent.

Instructions for Form W-8ECI (Rev. 10-2021) -7-