Form W-8 is a U.S. IRS requirement for non-U.S. individuals and businesses to confirm their non-U.S. taxpayer status. There are different variations of the form based on the filer and purpose. To simplify the process, Stripe has created a substitute Form W-8 for users to confirm their tax residency.

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A Form W8 from the U.S. Internal Revenue Service (IRS) allows non-U.S. individuals and businesses to confirm they are not a U.S. Person and thus not subject to U.S. taxation.

We’ve tried to make the submission process seamless by augmenting the form template to fit our business needs. Follow the prompts in the Stripe dashboard to complete the submission process.

You can find an example of the Form W8 collection fields in the screenshot below.

Above: Collection fields for Form W8 submission in the Stripe dashboard.

Once completed, a pdf version of the form is available for download via the Stripe dashboard.

Above: Pdf of a completed Form W8 submission

Follow the links to below to learn more about the unique IRS versions of Form W8s:

• Form W-8BEN for individuals; instructions.
• Form W-8BEN-E for entities; instructions.
• Form W-8ECI for earned income that is effectively connected to the U.S.; instructions.

Please note: Submission of an Affidavit of Unchanged status is not required in all instances. Most Stripe account holders will only be required to complete the Form W8 section.

Affidavit of Unchanged Status collected by Stripe

An Affidavit of Unchanged Status is a non-standardized document that allows the account holder to confirm the information provided on the Form W8 was accurate for a time period before the signature date and certifies that the content of the form is current and correct at the time it was signed. A Form W8 is used on a go forward basis from the time of the signature, so for some older Stripe accounts we may require an Affidavit of Unchanged Status to be completed along with your Form W8 submission.

Follow the prompts in the submission flow in the Stripe dashboard to complete and sign the Affidavit of Unchanged Status.

Below you can see the Affidavit of Unchanged Status collection fields.

Above: Affidavit portion of Form W8 collection fields in the Stripe dashboard.

The Affidavit of Unchanged Status will also be included in the pdf version that you can download from the Stripe dashboard. Check out the screenshot below to see an example of how the completed submission will appear.

Above: Pdf version of a completed Affidavit of Unchanged Status.

This article is neither legal advice nor tax advice. We recommend that you speak to your lawyer or accounting firm with any questions or concerns around tax reporting.