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Non-Resident Alien

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Being a foreign entity or individual and providing services in the U.S. can be a confusing experience when it comes to taxation. Our goal with this website is to provide valuable information and assistance to our foreign vendors to make compliance easier. The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) has made U.S. tax compliance one of its top audit issues, so it is in the best interest of both Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) and the vendor that all are in compliance.

All Foreign Nationals performing services in the U.S. are responsible for compliance with United States tax laws and regulations. The IRS, the U.S. government taxing authority, has issued strict rules regarding the taxation and reporting of payments made to vendors who are not citizens of the United States of America. As a result, Battelle (PNNL) may be required to withhold U.S. income tax and file reports with the IRS in connection to payments made to non-employees who receive travel reimbursements or compensation for services performed.

In order to meet compliance requirements, please reference the "required forms" options below. The instructions will walk you through completing any required information for your particular situation.

The IRS is the tax collection agency of the U.S. government. Even if you do not need to pay taxes, you may still need to file certain documents with the IRS to maintain legal status in the United States.

Please note: Information on this page has been obtained from a variety of sources as a reference for you. We urge you to also consult official government sources and (if necessary) seek help from qualified tax professionals.

Required Forms

The IRS, in general, requires tax withholding at a rate of 30% on U.S. sourced income paid to foreign vendors. A reduced rate of withholding or even an exemption may apply if there is a tax treaty between the vendor's country and the United States. In order to use a tax treaty to reduce or eliminate withholding, the individual vendors must have a U.S. taxpayer ID, or vendors who are entities can use either U.S. taxpayer ID or Foreign taxpayer ID. The correct paperwork must be in place before payment is made.

Individual

Not coming to the U.S.

  • Need Parts I & III of the W-8BEN form to be completed (full version can be used if desired).
  • Please do not fill in any of the boxes or lines under Part II.
  • Please add the statement to Part I, Line 7 "No services will be performed for Battelle/PNNL in the U.S."
  • Once we have received a correctly completed form, we will not withhold federal income tax.

W-8BEN Form 
IRS Instructions

Coming to the U.S., not claiming a treaty exemption

  • Need Parts I & III of the W-8BEN form to be completed.
  • Please do not fill in any of the boxes or lines under Part II.
  • PNNL will withhold 30% from any payment made related to the U.S.-based part of the services. If the U.S.-based part of the services is not specified separately, 30% will be withheld on the entire payment.

W-8BEN Form
IRS Instructions

Coming to the U.S., claiming a treaty exemption

  • Need the Tax Questionnaire completed and returned to the PNNL tax department. Once the tax department reviews the questionnaire and determines eligibility for a treaty exemption, then we will instruct the individual to complete Form 8233.

Tax Questionnaire
Form 8233
Form instructions

Entity

Not coming to the U.S.

  • Need Parts I & XXX of the Substitute W-8BEN-E form to be completed.
  • Please do not fill in any of the  boxes or lines under Parts III.
  • Please add the statement to Part I, Line 10 "No services will be performed for Battelle/PNNL in the U.S."
  • Once we have received a correctly completed form, we will not withhold federal income taxes.

Substitute W-8BEN-E
IRS full W-8BEN-E Form
IRS Instructions

Coming to the U.S., not claiming a treaty exemption

  • Need Parts I & XXX of the Substitute W-8BEN-E form to be completed (Full version can be used if desired).
  • Please do not fill in any of the boxes or lines under Part III.
  • PNNL will withhold 30% from any payment made related to the U.S.-based part of the services. If the U.S.-based part of the services is not specified separately, 30% will be withheld on the entire payment.

Substitute W-8BEN-E Form
IRS full W-8BEN-E Form
IRS Instructions

Coming to the U.S., claiming a treaty exemption

  • Need Parts I, III & XXX of the Substitute W-8BEN-E form to be completed (full version can be used if desired).
  • This includes providing a U.S. taxpayer ID or a Foreign Taxpayer Identification Number (TIN) under Part I, and under Part III please check all that apply under Section #14 a, b, and c, and complete the treaty exemption information in Section #15.
  • Once we have received a correctly completed form, we will not withhold U.S. federal income taxes or withhold based on a reduced tax rate, depending on the details outlined in the treaty.

Substitute W-8BEN-E Form
IRS full W-8BEN-E Form
IRS Instructions

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