I am a British citizen and have bought a property in Rochester which has been rented to a S8 tenant since October 2008.
I applied for an ITIN on form W-7 citing the exemption h (1) rental income from real estate and have had problems with the IRS in Austin who said that I didn't complete the form correctly and that some documents were missing. The USA embassy in London helped me and reapplied for me using the exedited process 3 weeks ago and I have heard nothing. At the moment the S8 tenant isn't getting any assistance (as I don't have the ITIN) and the tenant is paying a minimal amount which just about covers my costs.

I am due to submit federal and NY state tax returns in January and I am wondering whether I should apply for an ITIN by completing yet another W-7 form as I will definitely get the ITIN in about a month, my Rochester accountant told me. This time the W-7 will accompany my tax returns.
Does anyone have any advice please?

I agree with your accountant.

Forms W-7 submitted with a tax return in January have been processed as fast as 10 days in my experience.

The 2008 tax forms have been released. If you get your Rochester accountant the required information, he/she can finish your return and W-7 and email it to you for signature, probably within the week. You can then mail the signed documents BACK to him/her for his/her signature, and he/she can mail it on 2 January 2009 to the ITIN Processing Center in Austin, Texas. With any luck, and given the mailing time from the U.S. to the UK, you should have the ITIN by 20 January 2009.

Thanks for your reply.

Do you think I should notify the IRS that I already have one application for an ITIN in progress as the one accompanying the tax returns will be on a different basis? Do I have to ask for the earlier W-7 application to be withdrawn?
It is always possible that they will overlap and they may yet issue an ITIN on my earlier application in the first week of January for example.

Just concerned that it is not lawful to have two W-7 applications at the same time on different grounds!

Being issued TWO ITINs is always a possibility with a bureaucracy as large as the IRS, but it is not likely, especially since the ITINs are all issued from ONE facility in the U.S.

It would not hurt to call the IRS and ask about your current ITIN submission. If the answer you receive is not satisfactory, thenre-submit with your tax return as detailed and see what happens. There will be NO penalty for a double submission.

Yes thanks, I will try and phone the IRS but last time it took 30 minutes before I was connected.

I was reading the instructions for completing the W 7 and it looks as if I don't have to submit copy validated passport, title deeds, or any other supporting information like I did before when I first applied. All I have to do is complete the form, tick the appropriate box and attach to the federal tax returns. Is that how you read it?

Negative.

You MUST submit some form of identity verification with the Form W-7. The preferred identity form is a notarized photocopy of your passport, and, since you are from the U.K. the IRS will accept the notarization stamp from a U.K. notary public.

Thanks for that.
As I have already provided a certified/verified copy of my passport to the IRS via the USA embassy in London, then I could attach a copy of the Rejection Letter from the IRS to the W-7 so that they can tie the applications together. The IRS in Austin already have verification of my foreign identity.
I take it that this is acceptable?

Regards,

You can try that, but re-submitting the notarized photocopy a second time is preferred, because the IRS may have lost the first copy.