W-8BEN Rev 2021 - Question 6a/6b

[flyingmonkey]

I'm a Canadian resident/citizen and a US nonresident alien. I don't receive any income from the US, but I maintain a US account with US company RSUs I received while working there many years ago. I'm filling out a new W-8BEN, and realized they've updated the form since I last did it. Institution is Morgan Stanley Shareworks.

On the 2017 W-8BEN, for Part 1, Question 6: Foreign tax identifying number, I simply left it blank.

On the 2021 W-8BEN, they've split that question in two, 6a: Foreign tax identifying number and the 6b: Check if FTIN legally not required.

Googling on this I'm now getting some conflicting information. Some institutions such as RBC recommend putting your SSN in as a FTIN, some such as TD, do not.

Does anyone know whether SSN should be entered for 6a, and if not, should 6b be checked? They also gave me an additional form to fill out if I do not provide an FTIN and do not check 6b: Letter of Explanation for Absence of a Foreign Taxpayer Identifying Number on a Global Equity Plan Management Form W-8BEN for Individuals. This requires an actual written explanation, which I have no idea what I would need to put.

Hoping the answer is simple and others have encountered this on here. Thanks.

[flyingmonkey]

Correction, I wrote: "Some institutions such as RBC recommend putting your SSN in as a FTIN". What I mean to say was SIN not SSN.

[flyingmonkey]

My proofreading is failing me. Basically everywhere I wrote SSN I meant SIN. "Should SIN be entered for 6a".

[ND]

put SIN on 6a, leave 6b blank. 6b is only checked when your country doesn't issue you a tax ID.