How to Fill Out Form W-8BEN-E: FATCA, Treaties, and Validity

To fill out Form W-8BEN-E, a foreign entity identifies itself and its U.S. tax classification in Part I, picks a single FATCA (Chapter 4) status on Line 5 that routes it to one certification part later in the form, optionally claims a treaty rate in Part III, completes only the matching FATCA part in Parts IV through XXVIII, signs Part XXX, and delivers the form to the U.S. payer rather than to the IRS. Use the October 2021 revision from irs.gov/FormW8BENE.¹ Individuals do not use this form; they use Form W-8BEN.

Without a valid W-8BEN-E on file with your U.S. payer, the default withholding on your U.S.-source dividends, interest, rents, or royalties is a flat 30%.

Confirm This Is the Right Form

Form W-8BEN-E covers fixed, determinable, annual, or periodical (FDAP) income from U.S. sources: dividends, interest, rents, royalties, and similar passive-type payments.² If instead your entity runs a U.S. trade or business and the income is effectively connected with that business, the IRS instructions tell you to use Form W-8ECI, not this one, unless the income flows through a partnership.¹

The distinction matters because effectively connected income is taxed on a net basis at graduated rates, while FDAP income is taxed at a flat rate on the gross amount. The IRS applies two tests to decide: whether the income is tied to U.S. assets used in your business, and whether your U.S. business activities were a material factor in producing it.³ Get this wrong and you fill out the wrong form entirely.

Gather Your Information Before You Start

Have this ready before opening the PDF:

Your legal entity name, exactly as it appears on your incorporation documents and tax filings.
Your country of incorporation or organization.
A physical permanent residence address in your home jurisdiction. No P.O. boxes, no care-of addresses.
Your U.S. Employer Identification Number, if your entity engages in a U.S. trade or business.⁴
Your foreign tax identification number, which most treaty claims require if you do not have a U.S. TIN.
Your Global Intermediary Identification Number (GIIN), if one has been assigned. The GIIN is a 19-character identifier in the format XXXXXX.XXXXX.XX.XXX, issued through the FATCA registration system.⁵
The specific treaty, article number, and rate you plan to claim, if you are seeking reduced withholding.

Part I: Identify the Entity

Every entity completes Part I. The choices here decide which of the twenty-nine later parts you touch.

Line 1 (Legal name). If your entity is disregarded for U.S. tax purposes, do not enter the disregarded entity’s name. Enter the name of the owner above it, looking through multiple layers of disregarded entities if needed.¹

Line 2 (Country of incorporation). For a disregarded entity, this is the owner’s country.

Line 3 (Disregarded entity name). Complete only if the disregarded entity has its own GIIN and is receiving a withholdable payment. Otherwise leave blank.

Line 4 (Chapter 3 status). Classify the entity under U.S. tax principles: corporation, partnership, simple trust, complex trust, estate, disregarded entity, and so on. This follows U.S. rules, not your home country’s classification.⁶

Line 5 (Chapter 4 / FATCA status). This is the most consequential box on the form. Your selection routes you to one specific part later in the form (or, for some statuses, to none at all). Common selections include Active NFFE, Passive NFFE, Participating FFI, Reporting Model 1 FFI, and Nonparticipating FFI. Entities that select Participating FFI, Nonparticipating FFI, Reporting Model 1 or 2 FFI, and certain registered deemed-compliant FFIs are not required to complete any additional certification in Parts IV through XXVIII.⁷ Choose wrong here and you often redo the whole form.

Lines 6 through 10. Permanent address, mailing address if different, U.S. TIN, GIIN (Line 9a), foreign TIN, and reference numbers. Line 10 lets a single owner of a disregarded entity flag that the payment account is held in the disregarded entity’s name.¹ Every identifier here should match what the IRS already has on file for you.

Part II: Almost Everyone Skips This

Complete Part II only in two situations: a disregarded entity with its own GIIN is receiving a withholdable payment, or a branch of a foreign financial institution is operating in a country different from the entity’s home country shown on Line 2.⁶ Hybrid entities claiming treaty benefits may also need Part II “if applicable” per the instructions.¹ Otherwise, move straight to Part III.

Part III: Treaty Benefits (Only if You Are Claiming Them)

Skip Part III unless you qualify for a reduced rate or exemption under an income tax treaty between your country and the United States.

Line 14a. Name the treaty country and certify that your entity is a resident of that country and the beneficial owner of the income.

Line 14b (Limitation on Benefits). Identify the LOB category your entity satisfies. Two of the most commonly used:

Publicly traded corporation. Your principal class of shares is regularly traded on a recognized stock exchange in your country of residence. Some treaties also allow trading on U.S. or specified third-country exchanges.
Ownership and base erosion. More than 50% of your shares by vote and value are held by qualifying residents of the same treaty country, and less than 50% of your gross income flows to persons who would not qualify under the ownership test.⁷

Other categories cover subsidiaries of publicly traded companies, tax-exempt entities, and entities qualifying under derivative benefits or competent authority provisions. Checking the wrong box can invalidate the entire treaty claim.

Line 15. Name the exact treaty article granting the reduced rate, state the specific rate you are claiming (5%, 10%, 15%, or whatever the treaty provides), and briefly explain why your entity qualifies. Vague entries give the withholding agent grounds to disregard the claim and revert to 30%. Actual article numbers vary by treaty, so check the specific bilateral treaty that applies to you.

Parts IV Through XXVIII: One FATCA Certification, No More

You complete only the one part that matches the Chapter 4 status you selected on Line 5. If your status is one of those exempted above, you complete none of them.

Active NFFE vs. Passive NFFE

Most non-financial entities land in Part XXV (Active NFFE) or Part XXVI (Passive NFFE). To certify as an Active NFFE in Part XXV, you must confirm both that less than 50% of your gross income for the preceding calendar year came from passive sources, and that less than 50% of your assets produce or are held to produce passive income.⁶ Passive income for this purpose includes dividends, interest, rents, royalties, and annuities.¹

Fail either threshold and you are a Passive NFFE, completing Part XXVI instead. Passive NFFEs must also provide information about their substantial U.S. owners, which the withholding agent will collect.

Financial Institutions

Foreign financial institutions follow different parts based on their FATCA registration. A Sponsored FFI completes Part IV. A certified deemed-compliant FFI that qualifies as a nonregistering local bank completes Part V. The chain of statuses runs through Part XXVIII for Sponsored Direct Reporting NFFEs. Each part is a set of affirmative certifications: check boxes confirming your entity meets the criteria for that specific status.

Every certification in these parts is made under penalties of perjury, and the person who signs bears personal liability alongside the entity.⁸

Part XXX: Signature and Delivery

An officer, authorized representative, or agent with legal authority to bind the entity must sign and date the form.¹ The signature confirms the signer has reviewed the form and believes it to be true and correct.

Electronic signatures are accepted, but the withholding agent sets the terms. An accepted electronic signature must include a time and date stamp plus a statement confirming the form was electronically signed. Typing a name into the signature line is not enough on its own. The withholding agent may also request documentation proving the signer’s authority.

Do not send the completed form to the IRS. Give it directly to the withholding agent or U.S. payer that requested it, usually the U.S. company paying you the dividends, interest, rents, or royalties.¹ Most payers accept it through a secure upload portal; some still take mail or fax.

How Long Your Form Stays Valid

A signed W-8BEN-E is valid from the signature date through the last day of the third succeeding calendar year. A form signed anywhere in 2026 stays valid through December 31, 2029.¹ Under some conditions the form can remain valid indefinitely if nothing changes, but plan to renew before expiration.

A change in circumstances that makes any information incorrect ends the form’s validity early. You have 30 days from the change to notify the withholding agent and provide updated documentation.¹ Triggering changes include:

A shift in your country’s intergovernmental agreement status, such as moving between Model 1 and Model 2 or being removed from the IRS list of jurisdictions with an IGA in effect.
Reclassification of the income covered by the form as effectively connected with a U.S. trade or business.
Changes to your entity’s structure, ownership, or residence that affect your Chapter 3 status, Chapter 4 status, or treaty eligibility.

Miss the 30-day window and the withholding agent must treat the form as invalid and go back to 30% withholding. Agents also have their own “reason to know” duties: if your form is inconsistent with other records they hold, they must reject it or apply presumption rules even without a report from you.⁹

If You Were Over-Withheld

When the agent took 30% because the form was late or the treaty rate was missed, the money is recoverable. Foreign corporations claim over-withheld tax back by filing Form 1120-F with the IRS, generally within three years of the original return’s due date or within two years of paying the tax, whichever is later.¹⁰

Attach proof of withholding, typically the Form 1042-S you receive from the agent showing income paid and tax withheld. For a treaty-based refund, include your W-8BEN-E as your certificate of entitlement, and attach Form 8833 to disclose the treaty position, including how you satisfy the LOB test.¹¹ Refunds tied to amounts on Form 1042-S can take up to six months.¹⁰

1
Internal Revenue Service. Instructions for Form W-8BEN-E
2
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 26 USC 1441 – Withholding of Tax on Nonresident Aliens
3
Internal Revenue Service. Effectively Connected Income (ECI)
4
eCFR. 26 CFR 301.6109-1 – Identifying Numbers
5
Internal Revenue Service. Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) – FATCA Registration System
6
Internal Revenue Service. Form W-8BEN-E (Rev. October 2021)
7
Internal Revenue Service. Instructions for Form W-8BEN-E (Rev. October 2021)
8
Internal Revenue Service. The Truth About Frivolous Tax Arguments – Section III
9
Internal Revenue Service. U.S. Withholding Agent Frequently Asked Questions
10
Internal Revenue Service. Instructions for Form 1120-F (2025)
11
Internal Revenue Service. Form 8833 Treaty-Based Return Position Disclosure