Hello!
I have a new organization-level Apple Developer account and I'm stuck on the Tax Forms step in App Store Connect (https://appstoreconnect.apple.com/business). The system is showing me U.S. Form W-9 as the only option, but in my case filling out a W-9 would be incorrect — and I'd appreciate guidance from anyone who has resolved this.
My setup:
- I am a non-US individual (not a US citizen, not a US resident, never lived in the US).
- I am the sole owner of a single-member LLC registered in the US (set up via Firstbase specifically to distribute a mobile app).
- For US federal tax purposes, this LLC is a disregarded entity — it's not treated as a separate taxpayer from its owner.
Why W-9 is not the correct form in my case:
The IRS instructions for Form W-9 explicitly state:
"If the owner of the disregarded entity is a foreign person, the owner must complete an appropriate Form W-8 instead of a Form W-9. This is the case even if the foreign person has a U.S. TIN."
Form W-9 also requires me to certify, under penalty of perjury, that I am a US person — which I am not. The LLC itself doesn't certify anything on a W-9 because it's disregarded; the IRS looks through to the beneficial owner, who in my case is a foreign individual. The correct form for me should be W-8BEN (Certificate of Foreign Status of Beneficial Owner — Individuals).
What I've already tried:
I opened two support cases 4 days ago and have not received a substantive response yet:
- Apple Developer Support — Case ID: 20000112974233
- Ack Tax / Tax category settings — Team ID: 7YYWN3MYCY, Case ID: 19944616
My questions:
- Has anyone in the same situation (non-US individual, sole owner of a US single-member LLC) successfully switched the tax form from W-9 to W-8BEN inside App Store Connect? If so, how?
- Is there a specific path in the Business / Tax Forms section to declare the beneficial owner as a foreign individual that I might be missing?
- Is there an escalation channel beyond the standard support cases for tax-form issues that are blocking onboarding?
Thanks in advance for any pointers.