Radoslav

Q: US TAX ID - The Big Dilemma

Well... I`m from Bulgaria and want to publish books with Ibooks Author. I read everything for IRS and ITIN ect, contact with four US tax consulting companies and US embassy here, But I need to fly to London or Paris to local office of IRS where accredited notary make a copy of my ID card...

 

I just want to sell e-book in Apple store, I no want to start a company or business in US or something...

 

I know how for 90% from of you that's is not a problem because you a US citizens, but for international authors this is nightmare :|

 

Once again, please not delete my post I know for other posts here for US TAX ID, but if Anyone can give ANY suggestion for easy way to get this Tax ID and publish book please say it. Thanks.

 

p.s. I perfectly know this is the law, but the procedure is so complicated and very close to impossible...

Posted on Jan 27, 2012 12:05 PM

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Q: US TAX ID - The Big Dilemma

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  • by tndom,

    tndom tndom Mar 27, 2012 12:36 PM in response to jaxswim
    Level 1 (40 points)
    Mar 27, 2012 12:36 PM in response to jaxswim

    Do you mean the EIN confirmation letter jaxswim? Because I got that a few weeks after applying to, and mine mentions nothing of having to file returns.

  • by jaxswim,

    jaxswim jaxswim Mar 27, 2012 1:08 PM in response to tndom
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Mar 27, 2012 1:08 PM in response to tndom

    The letter from IRS confirming EIN says nothing about filing tax returns but it puts you on the IRS system and from what I gathered its up to you to file quarterly tax returns. Its very hard to get straight answers from the internet unless you understand the jargon.    Its a minefield out there.  Paying  for professional advice seems the only answer.  All these complications.................honestly don't think its worth writing ibook.

  • by tndom,

    tndom tndom Apr 7, 2012 2:42 AM in response to Radoslav
    Level 1 (40 points)
    Apr 7, 2012 2:42 AM in response to Radoslav

    Hi everyone.

     

    Here is a direct help response from the IRS after I have been chasing this issue relentlessly for the past few weeks.

     

    "Copyright royalties paid to a nonresident alien from U.S. sources are taxed in the U.S. at a flat rate of either 30% or a lower tax treaty rate. The U.S.-UK tax treaty provides that royalties from a U.S. publisher to a U.K. resident are taxed at 0%. If you gave the U.S. publisher a Form W-8BEN, Certificate of Foreign Status of Beneficial Owner for United States Tax Withholding, he will be able to calculate the proper using the treaty rate. If the tax is withheld at the applicable treaty rate you will not be required to file a tax return.

     

    However if the tax withholding amount is greater than the applicable treaty rate, you will need to file a tax return to claim a refund."

     

    Obviously this case is personal to my situation, but could generally be applied to people with an EIN in the UK. Other forms of TINs and authors from other countries may wish to investigate their treaty and situation further.

     

    In short - we don't need to file returns.

  • by buildyo23,

    buildyo23 buildyo23 Apr 8, 2012 1:52 AM in response to tndom
    Level 1 (5 points)
    Apr 8, 2012 1:52 AM in response to tndom

    Thanks tndom, that also was my understanding BUT has anyone sent a Form W-8BEN to Apple? I haven't submitted a book yet but completed the procedure inside iTunes connect and nowhere I found this form mentioned. Is this something that comes into play when there's actual money changing hands?

  • by tndom,

    tndom tndom Apr 8, 2012 11:51 PM in response to buildyo23
    Level 1 (40 points)
    Apr 8, 2012 11:51 PM in response to buildyo23

    You will fill out a W-8BEN through Apple when filling in your information after registering for iTunes Connect.

     

    It is the 'Certificate of Foreign Status of Beneficial Owner for United States Tax Withholding'.

     

    *Breathe.*

  • by buildyo,

    buildyo buildyo Apr 9, 2012 12:55 AM in response to tndom
    Level 1 (5 points)
    Apr 9, 2012 12:55 AM in response to tndom

    Thanks a lot tndom. I filled in the Certificate of Foreign Status of Beneficial Owner. Good to know that this is the W-8BEN.

  • by matsnaxe,

    matsnaxe matsnaxe Apr 9, 2012 1:48 AM in response to buildyo
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Apr 9, 2012 1:48 AM in response to buildyo

    Does it exist a step by step tuturial how to do it all? A guide to every step and all forms? How to fill them in and were to send them, who to talk to and exakt what I can expect will happen after I have sold some books in iBooks store? A list of phone numbers and homepages? It would probably give Apple more customers if all of this would be easy instead of complicated for us from other countries.

  • by MichiHenning,

    MichiHenning MichiHenning Apr 9, 2012 2:04 AM in response to matsnaxe
    Level 4 (1,350 points)
    Apr 9, 2012 2:04 AM in response to matsnaxe

    It wasn't terribly complicated for me (Australia).

     

    You download the EIN application form and fill it in. That's just so you have all the details handy when you need them.

     

    Then you call the IRS and ask for an EIN. They will ask you for all the details you filled in previously and give you an EIN on the spot.

     

    Once you have an EIN, you fill in your application to become a publisher with Apple.

     

    The entire process took well less than an hour for me.

     

    The one glitch I encountered was that I filled in the application with Apple immediately, once I got my EIN over the phone. Maybe five or six days later, I received an email from Apple telling me that my application was on hold because Apple had not been able to find my EIN in the IRS database. (It takes about a week for newly-issued EINs to make their way into the IRS database.) The email said that I should resubmit after a week or so, and I did.

     

    I think it was three days later that I received my iTunes Connect authorisation and could start to provide my publisher details.

     

    Michi.

  • by john buck1,

    john buck1 john buck1 Apr 9, 2012 2:07 AM in response to matsnaxe
    Level 1 (73 points)
    Mac OS X
    Apr 9, 2012 2:07 AM in response to matsnaxe

    I completely agree matsnaxe

     

    It just seems at complete odds with Aple's notion of - It just works.

    Why even create iBA?

     

    If you are an American iBA user and are a reasonably IRS savvy - It kinda just works.

    But for all non-American tax payers it's a case of here's a Version 1 app release, you go work out how to sell books by yourself because we can't be bothered writing a simple no end to end explaination.

     

    A url link to the IRS isn't - It just works.

     

    Sure the laws are different for different countries and different users, but US based ebook aggregators are already helping authors write and sell epub titles, so why doesn't Apple let them in on the iBA app?

  • by john buck1,

    john buck1 john buck1 Apr 9, 2012 2:08 AM in response to MichiHenning
    Level 1 (73 points)
    Mac OS X
    Apr 9, 2012 2:08 AM in response to MichiHenning

    and Michi as an Australian tax payer how and where are you declaring your taxable income?

  • by MichiHenning,

    MichiHenning MichiHenning Apr 9, 2012 2:15 AM in response to john buck1
    Level 4 (1,350 points)
    Apr 9, 2012 2:15 AM in response to john buck1

    I declare my income in Australia. There is a reciprocal tax agreement between Australia in the US. Any difference in tax rates is taken into account, so I don't pay more tax than I would have paid if the income had been generated in Australia.

     

    The net effect is that, even if the US applies a withholding tax to my income, that tax is credited against my other taxes at the end of the year. In practice, even if Apple apply US alien withholding tax, it makes not difference to me: I only pay the difference in the tax applicable in the US and Australia. Seeing that alien withholding tax is well below what most people in Oz pay in income tax, that means that I pay some tax to the ATO (Australian Taxation Office), but the tax withheld by Apple (if any) is subtracted from what I need to pay.

     

    Even though it works like this in Australia, I recommend that you check with an accountant for the situation in your particular country. I have no idea how things work between the US and countries other than Australia…

     

    Michi.

  • by MichiHenning,

    MichiHenning MichiHenning Apr 9, 2012 2:18 AM in response to john buck1
    Level 4 (1,350 points)
    Apr 9, 2012 2:18 AM in response to john buck1
  • by john buck1,

    john buck1 john buck1 Apr 9, 2012 2:20 AM in response to MichiHenning
    Level 1 (73 points)
    Mac OS X
    Apr 9, 2012 2:20 AM in response to MichiHenning

    Michi thanks for taking the time to reply

  • by dinobu,

    dinobu dinobu Apr 28, 2012 6:37 AM in response to K T
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Apr 28, 2012 6:37 AM in response to K T

    How do I create a paid iBooks account without a US tax ID? Apple doesn't let me complete the aplication proces without it.

  • by MichiHenning,

    MichiHenning MichiHenning Apr 28, 2012 2:19 PM in response to dinobu
    Level 4 (1,350 points)
    Apr 28, 2012 2:19 PM in response to dinobu

    Did you read the information provided by the links above? You need an EIN, which can get in ten minutes by calling the IRS. The phone number is provided in one of the links above.

     

    Michi.

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