Do ITIN Numbers Expire? When to Renew and How to File W-7

Yes, ITINs do expire. An Individual Taxpayer Identification Number expires automatically if it isn’t used on a federal tax return for three consecutive years, and a large batch of older ITINs issued before 2013 has already expired on a separate schedule regardless of use. Filing with an expired ITIN puts your return on hold, freezes any refund, and blocks tax credits that can be worth thousands of dollars per family.

When an ITIN Expires

The main trigger is non-use. If your ITIN doesn’t appear on a U.S. federal tax return for any three consecutive tax years, it expires on December 31 of that third year.¹ An ITIN last used on a 2022 return but missing from 2023, 2024, and 2025 returns expires on December 31, 2025. People often miss this when a filing situation changes for a few years and then they need to file again.

Older ITINs face a second rule. Between 2017 and 2020, the IRS retired every ITIN with middle digits (the fourth and fifth positions) 70 through 88, along with 90 through 92 and 94 through 99. If you hold one of those numbers and haven’t renewed it, it has been expired for years, whether or not you’ve been filing. The IRS sent CP48 notices at the time, but many were never delivered or opened.

You don’t have to wait until an ITIN actually expires to renew it. If you know you’ll hit the three-year mark, you can submit a renewal early.

What Happens if You File With an Expired ITIN

Your Return Sits, and So Does Your Refund

The IRS won’t reject a return with an expired ITIN outright. It puts the return into a processing hold and sends a notice telling you to renew before anything moves forward.¹ Renewals themselves take seven to eleven weeks, so stacking that on top of ordinary return processing can push a refund out by months.

Credits Disappear Until Every ITIN on the Return Is Valid

This is where the real money is lost. The IRS won’t apply certain credits until every taxpayer identification number on the return is valid. The Child Tax Credit is worth up to $2,200 per qualifying child for 2025, adjusted for inflation in 2026.² The American Opportunity Tax Credit provides up to $2,500 per eligible student, with up to $1,000 refundable even if you owe no tax.³ Both require a valid TIN for the filer, spouse if filing jointly, and the qualifying child or student. One expired ITIN on the return can knock out the credit tied to that person.

Spouses and dependents matter as much as the primary filer. If you claim three children and one child’s ITIN has expired, that child’s credit is blocked until the renewal goes through. When you send in the renewal, list the spouses and dependents on the attached federal return with the schedule or form for the benefit being claimed.¹

Penalties and Interest Keep Running

If you owe rather than expect a refund, an expired ITIN doesn’t pause the clock. The IRS warns that filing with an expired ITIN “may result in a reduced refund or penalties and interest,”¹ and the agency does not waive late-payment charges because the delay came from an expired number. Renewing before you file is the only reliable way around this.

How to Renew Your ITIN

Form W-7 and the Documents You’ll Need

You renew using Form W-7, the same form used for a new ITIN. Check the box for renewal, pick the reason that fits your situation, and enter your existing ITIN.⁴

A valid passport is the only document that works on its own, because it proves identity and foreign status in one. Without a passport, you need at least two documents from the IRS’s accepted list that together cover both. Options include:

Identity documents: U.S. driver’s license, U.S. state ID card, or U.S. military ID card.
Foreign status documents: a visa issued by the U.S. Department of State, a foreign driver’s license, or a USCIS photo ID.
Dual-purpose documents: a national ID card (showing name, photo, address, date of birth, and expiration date), a foreign military ID card, or a foreign voter registration card.
For dependents: civil birth certificate, medical records (under age 6 only), or school records (under age 24 if a student).

Everything must be an original or a certified copy from the issuing agency. Notarized copies are not accepted.⁴ For dependents, a passport without a U.S. entry date stamp may not be enough by itself, and additional proof of U.S. residency may be required.

Three Ways to Submit

You have three submission paths:

By mail. Send Form W-7 and supporting documents to IRS ITIN Operation, P.O. Box 149342, Austin, TX 78714-9342, or the private delivery address at 3651 S. Interregional, Highway 35, Austin, TX 78741-0000.
In person. Visit an IRS Taxpayer Assistance Center that offers ITIN services, or a VITA site with ITIN services. Most documents can be authenticated and returned to you on the spot.
Through a Certifying Acceptance Agent. An IRS-authorized agent verifies your documents so you don’t have to mail originals. The IRS keeps a searchable directory by state and country.

Processing runs about seven weeks under normal conditions. During tax season (January 15 through April 30) or for applications from overseas, plan on nine to eleven weeks.⁵

Keeping Your Passport in Your Hands

Mailing an original passport to the IRS makes people uneasy for good reason. The IRS returns originals to the address on record after processing, but that can mean seven to eleven weeks without your document.⁶ You can enclose a prepaid Express Mail or courier envelope to speed the return. The safer move is to apply in person at a Taxpayer Assistance Center or to use a Certifying Acceptance Agent so your originals never leave your possession.

Renew the Whole Family Together

If one person in the household has an expired or expiring ITIN, you can renew ITINs for everyone on the return at the same time, including any whose numbers haven’t yet been flagged.⁷ Bundling avoids the situation where you renew your own number, file, and then discover a dependent’s ITIN was also expired.

When to File the Renewal

Renew as soon as you know a number has expired or will expire before your next filing. Because processing can stretch to eleven weeks at peak times, a fall submission gives the best odds of a valid ITIN in hand before the January-to-April filing window. If you’ve received a CP48 notice, treat it as the signal to start.

What an ITIN Doesn’t Do

An ITIN exists for federal tax reporting. It doesn’t grant work authorization, change immigration status, or qualify anyone for Social Security benefits. ITINs cannot be used on Form I-9 for employment verification, and neither employers nor employees should treat them as a stand-in for a Social Security number in that context.⁸

If You Later Get a Social Security Number

Once you become eligible for and receive an SSN, you can’t keep using your ITIN. The IRS does not allow a person to hold both. Stop using the ITIN on tax returns immediately, and notify the IRS so your tax records get merged under the new SSN.⁹

Notify the IRS in writing. The letter should state that you’ve been assigned an SSN and want your tax records combined. Include your full name, mailing address, ITIN, a copy of your CP565 Notice of ITIN Assignment if you still have it, and a copy of your Social Security card. Send it to Internal Revenue Service, Austin, TX 73301-0057. After processing, the IRS will void the ITIN and link your prior filings to the SSN.⁹

Skip this step and the IRS may not credit you for wages and withholding reported under the old ITIN, which can shrink your refund or produce discrepancy notices. Earnings reported under an ITIN also won’t automatically appear on your Social Security Administration earnings record. If you spot missing earnings after receiving your SSN, gather your old W-2s and pay stubs and call the Social Security Administration at 1-800-772-1213 to start a correction.¹⁰

1
Internal Revenue Service. How to Renew an ITIN
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Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 26 USC 24 – Child Tax Credit
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Internal Revenue Service. American Opportunity Tax Credit
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Internal Revenue Service. Instructions for Form W-7
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Internal Revenue Service. How to Apply for an ITIN
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Internal Revenue Service. ITIN Documentation Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
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Internal Revenue Service. Renew Individual Taxpayer Identification Numbers Before They Expire
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E-Verify. My Employee Entered a Set of Numbers in the Social Security Number Field on Form I-9
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Internal Revenue Service. Individual Taxpayer Identification Number (ITIN)
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Social Security Administration. How to Correct Your Social Security Earnings Record