Your answers in the tax information form decide which US tax form applies to you: a W-9, a W-8BEN or a W-8BEN-E. This article explains how that choice is made, how to fix the wrong form, and what each common error means, so your client can pay you without delays.

Worksuite can't give tax advice. If you're not sure how you should file, ask a tax professional or visit the IRS website.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Where to find your tax information

  1. Open Settings from the bottom left of Worksuite, next to your profile picture.
  2. Select Tax information.
  3. Fill in the form, or click Edit tax information to change the answers you gave before.
  4. Save the form.

You'll see "Tax information has been updated." Your client may also ask you to fill in this form as a step in your onboarding.

Which tax form you get

The first two questions on the form decide your tax form.

In which country do you file taxes?How do you report to your tax authority?Your tax form
United StatesAs an individual or As a businessW-9, created for you from your answers
Canada or OtherAs an individualW-8BEN
Canada or OtherAs a businessW-8BEN-E

Good to know:

  • A W-9 is created only when you choose United States. If you choose Other and then a US territory, such as United States Minor Outlying Islands, no W-9 is created.
  • US citizens, US residents and US businesses complete a W-9. They don't need a W-8 form.
  • Sole proprietors and sole traders report as individuals, so the W-8BEN applies to them, not the W-8BEN-E.
  • Your client decides whether your onboarding includes a W-8 form, and which one. The W-8BEN is for individuals and the W-8BEN-E is for businesses.
  • You can choose only one tax filing country. Choose the country where you're tax resident.

I was asked to sign the wrong form

This happens when your individual or business answer was wrong when the form was sent to you, or when you're a US person and a W-8 form was sent anyway.

  1. Go to Settings → Tax information.
  2. Check your answers to In which country do you file taxes? and How do you report to your tax authority? Correct them if needed, then save.
  3. If the wrong form is already waiting in your onboarding, you can't remove it yourself. Ask your client or Worksuite Support to remove it, and tell them which form you need.

You only need to complete the correct form.

My country isn't in the list

The first question, In which country do you file taxes?, lists only United States, Canada and Other.

  1. Choose Other. A Choose country field appears with the full list of countries.
  2. Select your country.

In the address section, choose your country of residence before the state. The State or Province options change to match the country you chose. If your country still isn't listed, contact Worksuite Support and ask for it to be added.

Tax ID format errors

If a tax ID doesn't match the format the form expects, you'll see one of these messages under the field.

Tax IDAnswer to "How do you report to your tax authority?"FormatMessage
US Social Security Number (SSN)As an individual999-99-9999"Please provide value in following format: Format: 999-99-9999"
US Employer Identification Number (EIN)As a business99-9999999"Please provide correct employer identification number"
Canadian Social Insurance Number (SIN)As an individual123 456 789 (with spaces)"Please provide value in following format: Numeric (9 digits in format: 123 456 789)"
Canadian Business NumberAs a business999999999-XX-9999"Please use 999999999-XX-9999 format"

For other countries, the message starts with "Please provide value in following format:" and ends with the format for your country. Type hyphens, spaces and slashes where the format shows them.

If your tax number is valid but uses a different format, don't change your individual or business answer to get past the error. Your answer must match how you report your taxes. Contact Worksuite Support and tell us your country and the type of tax number you have.

If you don't have a tax ID, the field is still required. Contact your client to ask how to continue.

"TIN verification failed: the SSN/EIN you entered is not valid"

When your tax filing country is the United States, Worksuite checks your name and Taxpayer Identification Number (TIN) against IRS records. If your client uses Worksuite Global Pay, your invoices can be paid only after this check passes.

The check fails for one of these reasons:

  • The name doesn't match IRS records exactly, including punctuation. "ABC LLC" and "ABC, LLC" don't match.
  • The answer and the number don't fit together. An SSN needs As an individual. An EIN needs As a business.
  • The number is recent. The IRS can take about 14 days to make a newly issued SSN or EIN available for checks.
  • There's a typo in the number.

To fix it:

  1. Go to Settings → Tax information and click Edit tax information.
  2. Check that your answer to How do you report to your tax authority? matches your number.
  3. Enter your name exactly as the IRS has it. For a business, use the name on your EIN assignment letter from the IRS.
  4. Enter the number with hyphens, then save.

Saving runs the check again. Some checks finish after the form saves, so you may get an email later saying the details are invalid. If so, correct them and save again. If you see "We are currently unable to verify the provided TIN. Please try again later.", the IRS service is busy. Try again later.

If your number was issued recently, wait 14 days from the date it was issued and save the form again. If the check still fails after that and your details are correct, contact Worksuite Support. We may ask for a copy of your IRS EIN assignment letter (CP 575). A W-9 can't be used as proof, because it's created from what you typed.

My onboarding doesn't move on after the W-8 form

A W-8BEN or W-8BEN-E step is complete only when the form is filled in and signed. Open the step, click Preview and sign, and sign the form.

If you've signed and the step still doesn't complete, or the form shows an error every time, contact Worksuite Support with the step name, what you clicked, the error you saw, your browser, and a screen recording if you can.

Generate and download your W-9

Your W-9 is generated from your tax information when your tax filing country is United States.

  1. Go to Settings → Tax information.
  2. Click Edit tax information, check your answers, and save the form. You'll see "W9 form was successfully generated."
  3. Click the W9 Form card to download it.

Each time you edit and save your tax information, a new W-9 is created with your updated details. To see earlier versions, click Previous Tax forms.

If you see "Your tax information is not fully complete yet. Please revise and resubmit your tax information to generate the W9 form.", open the form, complete every field, confirm the certification, and type your name in Signed by. Then save.

You moved or started working through a business

  • New address: if your 1099 copy is mailed to you, it goes to the address in your tax information, not the one on your profile. Update your tax information before the end of the year.
  • New business: change How do you report to your tax authority? to As a business, choose your Federal Tax Classification, and enter your business name and EIN. A new W-9 is created when you save. If you used more than one tax entity in a year, see the 1099 FAQ below.

If none of this solves it, contact Worksuite Support with the exact error message, the country and answer you chose, and a screenshot.

Support/Resources

Still have questions about your tax information? Click Support in the bottom-left corner of Worksuite to contact our Support team, or email support@worksuite.com.

For questions about your work, projects or rates, message your client from Messages in Worksuite.