I need get my ITIN number but Im affraid ?

Under the IRC (Internal Revenue Code) if you have wages or self employment that requires a tax return you are required to file just by virtue of obtaining the income from within the geographical boundaries of the US. To get any refund due you must file the IRS (Internal Revenue Service) within 3-years (after that, even if a refund might have been possible the refund is forfeit).

The need to file your return has benefits often overlooked by some who think that an undocumented person is "paying his/her taxes..." The reality is that if the Form W-2 does not show the number belonging to the person who earned the income then the social security and medicare tax withheld is not going to be credited to the correct account. Therefore when that person seeks those benefits there will be nothing paid in and the benefits may then be not available.

I deal with undocumented people all the time. They typically will bring me a Form W-2 with an invalid social security number - one that does not belong to the person who earned the income. When I advise them to obtain an ITIN they typically get jittery about reporting that number to their employer out of fear that the employer will need to terminate their employment.

While there certainly are legal issues surrounding what employers "should do" and don't do, the person with the need is the person who worked for the income. Filing tax returns helps if the person is seeking to become legal in this country (I am actually working with clients as they file with me every year and with their lawyer as these issues are complex).

The obligation (requirement) to file is determined each year. There are number of factors to consider. The important factors include the income, the marital status and whether there are dependents

Under the IRC if you owe tax for any year that debt never goes away until it is paid. In fact, the debt may be increased by the assessment of penalties and interest on the tax debt. It does not matter whether the tax debt started 20-years ago or was incurred just this year. Until resolved with the IRS the debt continues.

In your case you can be assured that your legal status should not be affected by filing your tax return. In other words the IRS is not going to report to the immigration authorities anything about your tax situation. The IRS is interested in collecting tax not in enforcing immigration rules.

I recommend you get your tax returns filed. To do that the current procedures require that you complete a Form W-7 and get it filed with the IRS Service Center in Austin, TX. Sending along the original copy of the documents that go with the W-7 means that you would be well advised to keep a copy of any document you send there and send your material by accountable mail (certified mail return receipt requested). It normally takes about 6-weeks for the IRS to act on an application for an ITIN (Individual Tax Identification Number).

Completing the ITIN application is not difficult. Just read the form carefully.

Since you have multiple tax returns to file it would be advisable for you to seek the assistance for an experienced Tax Professional. This person could assist with the preparation of the W-7 as well.

Finally, it may be that when all of your tax returns are completed that you will net out at a far better place than you think you might. What I mean by that is, for example, that maybe one year you owe while another year you have a refund.

Don't overlook the requirement to file state tax returns for those years too (not every state requires this because they don't have a personal income tax law).

You get the ITIN the same way whether you have been here 50 years or 5 minutes.

Getting the ITIN won't cause you to be in trouble.

You might get in trouble for not paying the taxes earlier, but you might get in trouble for those years even if you don't get the ITIN. Getting the ITIN won't be the reason for the troubles.

obviously you have in mind some kind of reward having lived in the US 20 yrs but if you have never filed taxes it is also obvious you never worked where you were issued a W-2

if you think you getting prepared for SS you never filed any income to indicate you worked the 40 quarters that are required, you never apparently ever got a W-2 and you definitely did NOT file a Sch C or SE on your self employment income and that is also very likely the only way you survived in the US by working self employment and never reporting the income

depending on the questions on the form to apply for the ITIN you may or may not even be eligible to get one

Once you file the first year and get the ITIN, then proceed to file for the past 6 years. Typically the IRS is looking for those years first.

Getting an ITIN won't get you investigated for previous years,