Form 8233--Exemption From Withholding on Compensation for Independent (and Certain Dependent) Personal Services of a Nonresident Alien Individual

Instructions for Form 8233

Department of the Treasury
Internal Revenue Service

(Rev. June 2011)

(Use with the March 2009 revision of Form 8233.)
Exemption From Withholding on Compensation for Independent (and Certain
Dependent) Personal Services of a Nonresident Alien Individual

General Instructions Giving Form 8233 to the
Section references are to the Internal
Revenue Code unless otherwise noted.

If you are a “resident of a treaty
country,” you must know the
CAUTION
terms of the tax treaty between
the United States and the treaty country
to properly complete Form 8233.

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Purpose of Form
In general, section 1441 requires 30%
income tax withholding on
compensation for independent personal
services (defined later). Sections 1441,
3401, and 3402 require withholding,
sometimes at 30% and sometimes at
graduated rates, on compensation for
dependent personal services (defined
later). However, some payments may
be exempt from withholding because of
a tax treaty or because the payments
are not more than your personal
exemption amount (defined later).
Complete and give Form 8233 to your
withholding agent if some or all of your
compensation is exempt from
withholding.
You can use Form 8233 to claim a
tax treaty withholding exemption for
noncompensatory scholarship or
fellowship income only if you also are
claiming a tax treaty withholding
exemption for compensation for
personal services (including
compensatory scholarship or fellowship
income) received from the same
withholding agent.
Do not use Form 8233 if you
have an office in the United
CAUTION
States regularly available to you
for performing personal services.
Additional information. You can
download the complete text of most
U.S. tax treaties at IRS.gov. Enter “tax
treaties” in the search box. Technical
explanations for many of those treaties
are also available on that site. Also, see
Pub. 901, U.S. Tax Treaties, for a quick
reference guide to the provisions of
U.S. tax treaties. You can get any of
the forms or publications referred to in
these instructions by calling
1-800-TAX-FORM (1-800-829-3676) or
by downloading them from www.irs.gov/
formspubs.

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Jun 07, 2011

Withholding Agent

You must complete Form 8233:
• For each tax year (be sure to specify
the tax year in the space provided
above Part I of the form),
• For each withholding agent, and
• For each type of income. However,
you can use one Form 8233 to claim a
tax treaty withholding exemption for
both compensation for personal
services (including compensatory
scholarship or fellowship income) and
noncompensatory scholarship or
fellowship income received from the
same withholding agent.
Give the form to the withholding
agent. The withholding agent’s
responsibilities are discussed in the
Part IV instructions.
Example. A nonresident alien is
primarily present in the United States
as a professor, but also is occasionally
invited to lecture at another educational
institution. These lectures are not
connected with his teaching obligations
but are in the nature of
self-employment. For each tax year, the
professor must complete two Forms
8233 and give one to each withholding
agent to claim tax treaty benefits on the
separate items of income.

Islands, or American Samoa is a
nonresident alien individual.
For more information on the tests
used to determine resident alien or
nonresident alien status, see Pub. 519,
U.S. Tax Guide for Aliens.
Even though a nonresident alien
individual married to a U.S.
CAUTION
citizen or resident alien may
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.

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U.S. Person
For purposes of this form, a U.S.
person is a U.S. citizen or resident
alien.

Tax Treaty Withholding
Exemption
This term refers to an exemption from
withholding permitted by IRS
regulations under section 1441 that is
based on a tax treaty benefit. See
Resident of a Treaty Country next for
requirements for claiming a tax treaty
benefit on this form.

Definitions

See the instructions for line 4 for
additional information for determining
residence for purposes of claiming a tax
treaty withholding exemption on this
form.

Nonresident Alien

Resident of a Treaty Country

If you are an alien individual (that is, an
individual who is not a U.S. citizen),
specific rules apply to determine if you
are a resident alien or a nonresident
alien for tax purposes. Generally, you
are a resident alien if you meet either
the “green card test” or the “substantial
presence test” for the calendar year.
Any person not meeting either test is
generally a nonresident alien.
Additionally, an alien individual who
qualifies as a “resident of a treaty
country” (defined later) or a bona fide
resident of Puerto Rico, Guam, the
Commonwealth of the Northern
Mariana Islands, the U.S. Virgin
Cat. No. 22663B

An alien individual may claim to be a
resident of a treaty country if he or she
qualifies as a resident of that country
under the terms of the residency article
of the tax treaty between the United
States and that country. See
Nonresident Alien, earlier.
A nonresident alien may claim a tax
treaty benefit on this form only if that
individual is the beneficial owner of the
income and meets the residency
requirement and all other requirements
for benefits under the terms of the
tax treaty.

Compensation for
Independent Personal
Services
Independent personal services are
services performed as an independent
contractor in the United States by a
nonresident alien who is self-employed
rather than an employee.
Compensation for such services
includes payments for contract labor;
payments for professional services,
such as fees to an attorney, physician,
or accountant, if the payments are
made directly to the person performing
the services; consulting fees; honoraria
paid to visiting professors, teachers,
researchers, scientists, and prominent
speakers; and generally, payments for
performances by public entertainers.
Business profits. Certain treaties do
not have an independent personal
services article. Payments for
independent personal services may be
covered under the business profits
article of an applicable income tax
treaty. If you are eligible to claim
exemption from withholding on this type
of income, complete and give Form
8233 to the withholding agent.
Public entertainers. Special
restrictions on exemption from or
reduction of withholding apply to
nonresident alien public entertainers
(such as actors, musicians, artists, and
athletes). Generally, Form 8233 cannot
be accepted because the exemption
may be based on factors that cannot be
determined until after the end of the
year. These individuals are subject to
30% withholding from gross income
paid for personal services performed
unless a reduced rate of withholding is
applied for using Form 13930,
Application for Central Withholding
Agreement. In addition, many tax
treaties contain separate articles that
apply to public entertainers. If present,
these articles take precedence over the
“independent personal services” and
“dependent personal services” articles
of the treaties.

Required Withholding Form
For compensation you receive for
independent personal services,
complete Form 8233 to claim a tax
treaty withholding exemption for part or
all of that income and/or to claim the
daily personal exemption amount.

Compensation for
Dependent Personal
Services
Dependent personal services are
services performed as an employee in
the United States by a nonresident
alien. Dependent personal services
include compensatory scholarship or
fellowship income (defined later).

Compensation for such services
includes wages, salaries, fees,
bonuses, commissions, and similar
designations for amounts paid to an
employee.

Required Withholding Form(s)
Complete Form 8233 for compensation
you receive for dependent personal
services only if you are claiming a tax
treaty withholding exemption for part or
all of that income. Do not use Form
8233 to claim the daily personal
exemption amount. For compensation
for which you are not claiming a tax
treaty withholding exemption, use Form
W-4, Employee’s Withholding
Allowance Certificate.
Completing Form W-4. You should
complete Form W-4 as follows:
Line 2. You are required to enter a
social security number (SSN) on line 2
of Form W-4. If you do not have an
SSN but are eligible to get one, you
should apply for it. Get Form SS-5,
Application for a Social Security Card,
online at www.socialsecurity.gov, from
your local Social Security
Administration (SSA) office, or by
calling the SSA at 1-800-772-1213.

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CAUTION

You cannot enter an individual
taxpayer identification number
(ITIN) on line 2 of Form W-4.

Line 3. Check the single box
regardless of your actual marital status.
Line 5. In most cases, you should
claim one withholding allowance.
However, if you are a resident of
Canada, Mexico, or South Korea; a
student from India; or a U.S. national;
you may be able to claim additional
withholding allowances for your spouse
and children. See Pub. 519 for more
information.
If you are completing Form W-4 for
more than one withholding agent (for
example, you have more than one
employer), figure the total number of
allowances you are entitled to claim
(see the previous paragraph) and claim
no more than that amount on all Forms
W-4 combined. Your withholding
usually will be most accurate when all
allowances are claimed on the Form
W-4 for the highest-paying job and zero
allowances are claimed on the others.
Line 6. Write “nonresident alien” or
“NRA” above the dotted line on line 6. If
you would like to have an additional
amount withheld, enter the amount on
line 6.
Line 7. Do not claim that you are
exempt from withholding on line 7 of
Form W-4 (even if you meet both of the
conditions listed on that line).

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Compensatory Scholarship
or Fellowship Income
In general, scholarship or fellowship
income is compensatory to the extent it
represents payment for past, present,
or future services (for example,
teaching or research) performed by a
nonresident alien as an employee and
the performance of those services is a
condition for receiving the scholarship
or fellowship (or tuition reduction).
Example. XYZ University awards a
scholarship to N, a nonresident alien
student. The only condition of the
scholarship is that N attends classes
and maintains a minimum level of
academic performance. The
scholarship income is not
compensatory because N is not
required to perform services as an
employee as a condition for receiving
the scholarship.

Required Withholding Form(s)
Compensatory scholarship or fellowship
income is considered to be dependent
personal services income. Therefore,
complete Form 8233 for this income
only if you are claiming a tax treaty
withholding exemption for part or all of
that income. Do not complete Form
8233 to claim the daily personal
exemption amount.
For any part of this compensatory
income for which you are not claiming a
tax treaty withholding exemption, use
Form W-4. See Completing Form W-4,
earlier.

Noncompensatory
Scholarship or Fellowship
Income
Noncompensatory scholarship or
fellowship income is scholarship or
fellowship income that is not
compensatory scholarship or fellowship
income (defined earlier).
In most cases, the taxable portion of
noncompensatory scholarship or
fellowship income (defined later) paid to
a nonresident alien is subject to
withholding at a rate of 30% (in most
cases, the rate is 14% for a nonresident
alien temporarily present in the United
States under an “F,” “J,” “M,” or “Q”
visa).
Taxable portion of noncompensatory
scholarship or fellowship income. If
you were a degree candidate, the
amount of this type of income that you
used for expenses other than tuition
and course-related expenses (fees,
books, supplies, and equipment) is
taxable in most cases. For example, in
most cases amounts used for room,
board, and travel are taxable. If you
were not a degree candidate, the full
amount of the scholarship or fellowship
income is taxable in most cases.

Required Withholding Form
In most cases, you should complete
Form W-8BEN, Certificate of Foreign
Status of Beneficial Owner for United
States Tax Withholding, to claim a tax
treaty withholding exemption for this
type of income. No Form W-8BEN is
required unless a treaty benefit is being
claimed.
Exception. If you are receiving both
compensation for personal services
(including compensatory scholarship or
fellowship income) and
noncompensatory scholarship or
fellowship income from the same
withholding agent, you may use one
Form 8233 for both types of income.
However, this exception applies only if
you are claiming a tax treaty
withholding exemption for both types of
income.
Alternate withholding election. A
withholding agent may elect to withhold
on the taxable portion of
noncompensatory scholarship or
fellowship income of a nonresident
alien temporarily present in the United
States under an “F,” “J,” “M,” or “Q” visa
as if it were compensatory scholarship
or fellowship income (provided the
nonresident alien is not claiming treaty
benefits with respect to that income).
The withholding agent makes this
election by requesting that the
nonresident alien complete Form W-4
using the instructions in Rev. Proc.
88-24, 1988-1 C.B. 800. Indian
students also should see Rev. Proc.
93-20, 1993-1 C.B. 528.

Withholding Agent
Any person, U.S. or foreign, that has
control, receipt, or custody of an
amount subject to withholding or that
can disburse or make payments of an
amount subject to withholding is a
withholding agent. The withholding
agent may be an individual,
corporation, partnership, trust,
association, or any other entity,
including (but not limited to) any foreign
intermediary, foreign partnership, and
U.S. branch of certain foreign banks
and insurance companies. In most
cases, the person who pays (or causes
to be paid) the amount subject to
withholding to the nonresident alien
individual (or to his or her agent) must
withhold.

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 in most
cases 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.

Avoid Common Errors
To ensure that your Form 8233 is
promptly accepted, be sure that you:
• Answer all applicable questions
completely.
• Specify the tax year for which this
form will be effective in the space
provided above Part I of the form.
• Enter your complete name,
addresses, and identifying number(s) in
Part I.
• Have attached the required
statement described in the line 10
instructions if you are a foreign student,
trainee, professor/teacher, or
researcher.
• Are not trying to claim tax treaty
benefits for a country with which the
United States does not have a ratified
tax treaty.
• Are not trying to claim tax treaty
benefits that do not exist in your treaty.
• Complete lines 11 through 14 in
sufficient detail to allow the IRS to
determine the tax treaty benefit you are
claiming.
• Claim the proper number of personal
exemptions on line 15.
• Complete the required certification in
Part III.

Specific Instructions
Part I
Line 2
You are required to furnish a U.S.
taxpayer identifying number on this
form. In most cases, you are required
to enter your social security number
(SSN) on line 2. See Line 2 in
Completing Form W-4 for instructions
on how to get an SSN.
If you do not have an SSN and are
not eligible to get one, you must get an
individual taxpayer identification
number (ITIN). To apply for an ITIN, file
Form W-7, Application for IRS
Individual Taxpayer Identification
Number, with the IRS. In most cases,
you apply for an ITIN when you file your
tax return for which the ITIN is needed.
However, if the reason for your ITIN
request is because you need to provide
Form 8233 to the withholding agent,
you must file Form W-7 and provide
proof that you are not eligible for an
SSN (your Form SS-5 was rejected by
the SSA) and include a Form 8233. It

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usually takes about 6 to 10 weeks to
get an ITIN.
For details on how to apply for an
ITIN, see Form W-7 and its instructions.
Get Form W-7 online at IRS.gov. Click
on Individuals, then Individual Taxpayer
Identification Numbers.
If you have applied for an SSN or
ITIN but have not yet received it, you
may attach a copy of a completed Form
W-7 or SS-5 showing that a number
has been applied for.
An ITIN is for tax use only. It
does not entitle you to social
CAUTION
security benefits or change your
employment or immigration status
under U.S. law.

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Line 3
If your country of residence for tax
purposes has issued you a tax
identifying number, enter it here. For
example, if you are a resident of
Canada, enter your Social Insurance
Number.

Line 4
Your permanent residence address is
the address in the country where you
claim to be a resident for purposes of
that country’s income tax. If you are
completing Form 8233 to claim a tax
treaty withholding exemption, you must
determine your residency in the manner
required by the treaty. Do not show the
address of a financial institution, a post
office box, or an address used solely
for mailing purposes. If you are an
individual who does not have a tax
residence in any country, your
permanent residence is where you
normally reside.
Most tax treaties that provide for a
tax treaty withholding exemption require
that the recipient be a resident of the
treaty country at the time of, or
immediately prior to, entry into the
United States. Thus, in most cases, a
student or researcher can claim the
withholding exemption even if he or she
no longer has a permanent address in
the treaty country after entry into the
United States. If this is the case, you
may provide a U.S. address on line 4
and still be eligible for the withholding
exemption if all other conditions
required by the tax treaty are met. You
also must identify on line 12a and/or
line 13b the tax treaty country of which
you were a resident at the time of, or
immediately prior to, your entry into the
United States.

Line 6
Enter your U.S. visa type. For example,
foreign students are usually granted an
“F-1” visa. Foreign professors,
teachers, or researchers are usually
granted a “J-1” visa. Business/
vocational trainees are usually granted

an “M-1” visa; however, some persons
granted a “J-1” visa also may be
considered business/vocational
trainees (for example, a person
admitted to complete a postgraduate
residency in medicine).
If you do not have, or do not require,
a visa, write “None.”
Spouses and dependents
admitted on secondary visas
CAUTION
(for example, “F-2,” “J-2,” “H-4,”
and “O-3” visas) usually are not eligible
to claim the same treaty benefits as the
primary visa holder.

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Line 8
In most cases, you are required to
enter your date of entry into the United
States that pertains to your current
nonimmigrant status. For example,
enter the date of arrival shown on your
current Immigration Form I-94,
Arrival-Departure Record.
Exception. If you are claiming a tax
treaty benefit that is determined by
reference to more than one date of
arrival, enter the earlier date of arrival.
For example, you are currently claiming
treaty benefits (as a teacher or a
researcher) under article 15 of the tax
treaty between the United States and
Norway. You previously claimed treaty
benefits (as a student) under article
16(1) of that treaty. Under article 16(4)
of that treaty, the combination of
exemptions under articles 15 and 16(1)
may not extend beyond 5 tax years
from the date you entered the United
States. If article 16(4) of that treaty
applies, enter on line 8 the date you
entered the United States as a student.

Line 9a
Enter your current nonimmigrant status.
For example, enter your current
nonimmigrant status shown on your
current Immigration Form I-94.

Line 9b
Enter the date your current
nonimmigrant status expires. For
example, you may enter the date of
expiration shown on your current
Immigration Form I-94. Enter “DS” on
line 9b if the date of expiration is based
on “duration of status.”

Line 10
Nonresident alien students, trainees,
professors/teachers, and researchers
using Form 8233 to claim a tax treaty
withholding exemption for
compensation for personal services
must attach to Form 8233 a statement.
The format and contents of the required
statements are shown in Appendix A
and Appendix B in Pub. 519.

Part II

Line 13b

Line 11a
For compensation for independent
personal services, examples of
acceptable descriptions to enter on this
line include: “Consulting contract to
design software” or “give three lectures
at XYZ University.”
For compensation for dependent
personal services, examples of
acceptable descriptions to enter on this
line include:
• A nonresident alien student may
enter “part-time library assistant,”
“part-time restaurant worker,” or
“teaching one chemistry course per
semester to undergraduate students.”
• A nonresident alien professor or
teacher may enter “teaching at ABC
University.”
• A nonresident alien researcher may
enter “research at ABC University’s
school for liquid crystal research.”
• A nonresident alien business/
vocational trainee may enter
“neurosurgical residency at ABC
Hospital” or “one-year internship in
hydraulic engineering at XYZ
Corporation.”

Line 11b
Enter the total amount of compensation
for personal services you will receive
from this withholding agent during the
tax year. Enter an estimated amount if
you do not know the exact amount.

Line 12a
Enter the specific treaty and article on
which you are basing your claim for
exemption from withholding (for
example, “U.S./Germany tax treaty,
Article 20(4)” or “U.S./Belgium tax
treaty, Article 7 (business profits)”).

Line 12b
If all income received for the services
performed to which this Form 8233
applies is exempt, write “All.” If only part
is exempt, enter the exact dollar
amount that is exempt from withholding.

Line 12c
Generally, you may claim a withholding
exemption based on a U.S. tax treaty
with the country in which you claim
permanent (or indefinite) residence.
This is the foreign country in which you
live most of the time. It is not
necessarily the country of your
citizenship. For example, you are a
citizen of Pakistan but maintain your
home in England. You cannot claim a
withholding exemption based on the
U.S./Pakistan tax treaty. Any
withholding exemption you claim must
be based on the U.S./United Kingdom
tax treaty.

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Enter the specific treaty and article on
which you are basing your claim for
exemption from withholding (for
example, “U.S./Germany tax treaty,
Article 20(3)”).

Line 14
Provide sufficient facts to justify the
exemption from withholding claimed on
line 12 and/or line 13. Be sure you
provide enough details to allow the IRS
to determine the tax treaty benefit you
are claiming.

Lines 15 through 18 (for
certain independent personal
services)
Do not complete lines 15 through 18 if
you are claiming an exemption from
withholding based on the “business
profit” article of a treaty or claiming on
line 12b that all of the compensation
you are receiving for independent
personal services is exempt from
withholding.

Line 15
For compensation for independent
personal services for which an
exemption from withholding is not
available, 30% must be withheld from
that compensation after subtracting the
value of one personal exemption. In
most cases, you will enter “1” on line
15; however, if the exception described
next applies to you, enter the total
number of personal exemptions you are
entitled to on line 15.
Exception. If you are a resident of
Canada, Mexico, or South Korea; a
student from India; or a U.S. national;
you may be able to claim additional
personal exemptions for your spouse
and children. See Pub. 519 for more
information.

Lines 16 and 17
Each allowable personal exemption
must be prorated for the number of
days during the tax year you will
perform the personal services in the
United States. Enter the number of
days on line 16 that pertain to the
independent personal services
described in line 11a. To figure the
daily personal exemption amount to
enter on line 17, divide the personal
exemption amount for the tax year
($3,700 for 2011) by 365 (366 for leap
year) and multiply the result by the
amount you entered on line 15. For
example, if you are entitled to one
personal exemption for 2011, enter
$10.14 (that is, $3,700 / 365 days =
$10.14 x 1 personal exemption =
$10.14) on line 17.

Part IV
Withholding Agent’s
Responsibilities
When the nonresident alien individual
gives you Form 8233, review it to see if
you are satisfied that the exemption
from withholding is warranted. If you
are satisfied, based on the facts
presented, complete and sign the
certification in Part IV.
You will need three copies of the
completed Form 8233. Each copy of
Form 8233 must include any
attachments submitted by the
nonresident alien individual. Give one
copy of the completed Form 8233 to
the nonresident alien individual. Keep a
copy for your records. Within 5 days of
your acceptance, forward one copy to:
Department of the Treasury
Internal Revenue Service
Philadelphia, PA 19255-0725
You also can fax Form 8233 to:
(267) 941-1365. You are limited
to 25 pages at one time.
The exemption from withholding is
effective for payments made retroactive
to the date of the first payment covered
by Form 8233, even though you must
wait at least 10 days after you have
properly mailed Form 8233 to the IRS
to see whether the IRS has any
objections to the Form 8233.
You must not accept Form 8233,
and you must withhold, if either of the
following applies:
• You know, or have reason to know,
that any of the facts or statements on
Form 8233 may be false, or
• You know, or have reason to know,
that the nonresident alien’s eligibility for
the exemption from withholding cannot
be readily determined (for example, you
know the nonresident alien has a fixed
base or permanent establishment in the
United States).
If you accept Form 8233 and later
find that either of the situations
described above applies, you must
promptly notify the IRS (by writing to
the address provided earlier) and you
must begin withholding on any amounts

not yet paid. Also, if you are notified by
the IRS that the nonresident alien’s
eligibility for the exemption from
withholding is in doubt or that the
nonresident alien is not eligible for
exemption from withholding, you must
begin withholding immediately. See
Regulations section 1.1441-4(b)(2)(iii)
for examples illustrating these rules.
If you submit an incorrect Form
8233, you will be notified by the IRS
that the form submitted is not
acceptable and that you must begin
withholding immediately. Examples of
incorrect Forms 8233 include:
• Any Form 8233 that claims a tax
treaty benefit that does not exist or is
obviously false.
• Any Form 8233 that has not been
completed in sufficient detail to allow
determination of the correctness of the
tax treaty benefit or exemption claimed.

Signature
You or your authorized agent must sign
and date Form 8233. See Regulations
section 1.1441-7(c) for information
about authorized agents.
Privacy Act and Paperwork
Reduction Act Notice. We ask for the
information on this form to carry out the
Internal Revenue laws of the United
States. You are not required to request
a tax treaty withholding exemption.
However, if you want to receive
exemption from withholding on
compensation for independent (and
certain dependent) personal services,
you are required to give us this
information so that we can verify
eligibility under the relevant tax treaty
and confirm proper tax treatment. Our
legal right to ask for this information is
Internal Revenue Code sections 1441,
3401, and 3402. We need this
information to ensure that you are
complying with these laws and to allow
us to figure and collect the right amount
of tax. Code section 6109 requires
taxpayers and withholding agents to
provide their identification number.
Routine uses of this information include
giving it to the Department of Justice for
civil and criminal litigation, and cities,
states, the District of Columbia, and

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U.S. commonwealths and possessions
for use in administering their tax laws.
We may also disclose this information
to other countries under a tax treaty, to
federal and state agencies to enforce
federal nontax criminal laws, or to
federal law enforcement and
intelligence agencies to combat
terrorism. If a nonresident alien fails to
provide a properly completed form, the
withholding agent cannot accept it and
is required to withhold. If a withholding
agent accepts a Form 8233 as
completed and later finds that any of
the facts or statements made on the
form are false, or that a nonresident
alien’s eligibility for the exemption is in
doubt, the withholding agent is required
to notify the IRS and begin withholding;
failure to do so may result in penalties.
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 may 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 average time is:
Recordkeeping, 1 hr. 5 min.; Learning
about the law or the form, 31 min.;
Preparing and sending the form to
IRS, 57 min.
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 write to the Internal
Revenue Service, Tax Products
Coordinating Committee,
SE:W:CAR:MP:T:T:SP, 1111
Constitution Ave. NW, IR-6526,
Washington, DC 20224. Do not send
the tax form to this address. Instead,
give it to your withholding agent.