How to Get Your W-9: Download, Fill Out, and Send Back

You can get a W-9 form free from the IRS website at irs.gov/FormW9. It downloads as a fillable PDF you can type into before printing and signing, and the current version carries a March 2024 revision date in the upper-left corner.{¹} The form itself is one page. The care is in filling it out accurately and getting it back to the requester safely, because errors can trigger 24 percent backup withholding on your payments.

Where to Download It

Go straight to the IRS site rather than a copy from a search result. Check the revision date before you start; anything older than “Rev. March 2024” is out of date.{¹}

The business asking for your W-9 may hand you a copy or link, and that’s fine as long as it matches the current IRS version. Some larger companies use substitute forms that collect the same information in a different layout, which the IRS permits under formatting rules for requesters.{²} Either way, the completed form never goes to the IRS. It goes only to the party that asked for it.

Filling Out the Form

Most individuals can complete the W-9 in a few minutes. Work down the page in order.

Line 1: Your Legal Name

Enter your name exactly as it appears on your federal income tax return. If you’re a sole proprietor, that means your personal name, not your business name. The same rule applies to single-member LLCs: because the IRS treats a single-member LLC as a “disregarded entity,” your personal name goes on Line 1 and the LLC name goes on Line 2. Putting the LLC name on Line 1 sets up a name/TIN mismatch that causes problems later.{³}

If you’re applying for an Individual Taxpayer Identification Number, use the name from your Form W-7 application.{³}

Line 2: Business Name

Enter a DBA, trade name, or disregarded entity name if you have one. Leave it blank if your business name is the same as your personal name.{³}

Line 3: Federal Tax Classification

Check one box:

Individual/sole proprietor: the default for freelancers and independent contractors working under their own name or a DBA.
C corporation or S corporation: for incorporated businesses.
Partnership: two or more owners without a corporate election.
Trust/estate: entities managed by a trustee or executor.
LLC: check this box and also enter a letter for the LLC’s tax classification (C, S, or P).

A single-member LLC that hasn’t elected corporate treatment should not check the LLC box. Check “Individual/sole proprietor” instead, because the IRS disregards the LLC and treats the owner as the taxpayer.{³} This trips up a lot of people.

Line 4: Exemptions

Most individuals leave this line blank. It applies to entities exempt from backup withholding or from Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act reporting, and the form’s instructions list the numbered and lettered codes for those cases.{³}

Lines 5 and 6: Address

Enter the address where you want to receive tax-related mail, including any 1099 forms the requester generates from this W-9. This is the address they’ll use when filing information returns with the IRS.{³}

Part I: Taxpayer Identification Number

Enter one of three numbers depending on your situation:

Social Security Number, for most individuals and sole proprietors.
Employer Identification Number, for corporations, partnerships, and multi-member LLCs.
Individual Taxpayer Identification Number, for resident aliens who aren’t eligible for an SSN. Enter it in the SSN field.

The number must match the name on Line 1. Name/TIN mismatches are one of the most common triggers for backup withholding, and requesters can verify the combination through the IRS’s free TIN Matching Program before filing their information returns, so small errors tend to surface.{⁴}

Part II: Certification and Signature

You sign under penalty of perjury, certifying that your TIN is correct, that you’re not subject to backup withholding, and that you’re a U.S. person. If the IRS has previously told you that you’re subject to backup withholding because you underreported interest or dividends, cross out the second certification before signing.{³} Skipping the signature doesn’t just delay processing. Without it, the requester is legally required to begin withholding 24 percent from your payments.{⁵}

Electronic Signatures Are Allowed

You don’t have to print, ink-sign, and scan. The IRS allows requesters to set up electronic submission systems that accept a W-9 with an electronic signature, provided the system verifies your identity, includes the same perjury language as the paper form, and can produce a hard copy if the IRS asks.{⁶} In practice, a vendor portal or e-signature platform that a company routes you through is legitimate as long as it meets those requirements.

If You’re Not a U.S. Person

The W-9 is only for U.S. persons, which includes U.S. citizens, resident aliens, and domestic entities. If you’re a nonresident alien, don’t fill out a W-9 at all. The requester needs a Form W-8BEN for individuals, or another form in the W-8 series for entities.{⁷} If someone hands you a W-9 and you aren’t a U.S. person, tell them you need a W-8 instead.

Sending It Back Safely

A completed W-9 contains your name, address, and Social Security Number or EIN. That’s everything an identity thief needs. Treat it the way you’d treat a copy of your tax return.

First, confirm the request is legitimate. A real requester is a business paying you, a bank where you hold an account, or a similar entity with a genuine reporting obligation. An out-of-the-blue W-9 request from someone you have no financial relationship with is a red flag.{⁸}

For delivery, many organizations provide a secure vendor portal where you can upload the form directly. If you need to send by email, encrypt the file or password-protect the PDF and share the password through a separate channel like a phone call. Avoid sending an unprotected W-9 as a plain email attachment. If you mail a paper copy, use a service with tracking. Keep a copy for your records so you can resolve discrepancies if a 1099 arrives with incorrect information.

Warning Signs of a Fake Request

Scammers use fake onboarding processes to collect Social Security Numbers. Be cautious when:

You have no prior relationship with the requester (no job application, contract, or account).
The requester pressures you for an immediate response or threatens consequences.
The request comes through a text message, social media, or an email with misspelled links or a domain that doesn’t match the company’s real website.
The request involves you sending money. A legitimate W-9 request never does.

If something feels off, contact the company through a phone number or website you find on your own, not through the message you received.{⁸}

Updating a W-9 You’ve Already Submitted

A W-9 doesn’t expire on a schedule, but it becomes invalid the moment the information on it changes. Send an updated form to any requester who has your old one when:

Your legal name changes, for example after marriage.
Your business name, entity type, or tax classification changes, such as a C corporation electing S corporation status.
You receive a new TIN or your existing one changes.
You were listed as exempt from backup withholding but no longer qualify, and you expect to receive reportable payments from that requester going forward.

The form itself directs you to provide updated information in these situations.{³} Don’t wait until tax season. Fix it when the change happens, so the requester’s information returns match IRS records.

What Happens If You Get It Wrong

Backup withholding is the main enforcement mechanism behind the W-9. If you fail to provide a TIN, provide the wrong one, or don’t sign the certification, the payer must withhold 24 percent of each payment and send it to the IRS on your behalf.{⁵}{⁹} The money isn’t lost; it gets credited to your tax account. But it ties up cash and you don’t recover it until you file your return.

The IRS can also notify a payer that your TIN is incorrect, which triggers backup withholding even after you’ve already submitted a form. Requesters can catch mismatches early through the TIN Matching Program, so a small typo is unlikely to slip by.{⁴}

Failing to provide a TIN when required also carries a separate penalty of $50 per failure, capped at $100,000 per calendar year.{¹⁰} And because the W-9 is signed under penalty of perjury, knowingly providing false information can lead to criminal charges, with penalties up to $250,000 in fines and three years in prison.{¹¹} That outcome is reserved for deliberate fraud rather than honest mistakes, but it’s the reason accuracy on this one-page form matters.

1
Internal Revenue Service. About Form W-9, Request for Taxpayer Identification Number and Certification
2
Internal Revenue Service. Instructions for the Requester of Form W-9
3
IRS. Form W-9 (Rev. March 2024)
4
Internal Revenue Service. Taxpayer Identification Number (TIN) Matching Tools
5
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 26 USC 3406 – Backup Withholding
6
Internal Revenue Service. Instructions for the Requester of Form W-9
7
Internal Revenue Service. Instructions for Form W-8BEN (10/2021)
8
Internal Revenue Service. Recognize Tax Scams and Fraud
9
Internal Revenue Service. 2026 Publication 15
10
eCFR. 26 CFR 301.6723-1 – Failure to Comply With Other Information Reporting Requirements
11
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 26 USC 7206 – Fraud and False Statements