Send your W-9 without exposing your SSN
A signed W-9 has everything an identity thief wants: your full name, your address and your Social Security or employer number. Here's how to check that a request is genuine, which ways of sending it are safer than a plain email, and how to sign it without handing the file to another website.
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A safer W-9 in three steps
Signing here keeps the file on your device — only the requester ever gets it.
- 1
Check who's asking
Only send a W-9 to a business that is actually paying you.
- 2
Sign it on this device
Fill in and sign the PDF above — nothing is uploaded.
- 3
Send it the safe way
Use a secure portal, or protect the PDF with a password.
Signs a W-9 request is a scam
It claims to be from the IRS
The IRS doesn't collect W-9s. The form only ever goes to the business paying you.
You don't do business with them
No work, no account, no payment coming — no reason for them to have your tax number.
Urgency and threats
“Reply today or your account will be closed” is a pressure tactic. Real payers give you time.
Who can legitimately ask for your W-9
A W-9 is requested by a business that has to report payments to you to the IRS — usually on a Form 1099. Typical examples are clients you invoice as a freelancer or contractor, platforms that pay you, and banks or brokers opening an account for you. They need your taxpayer identification number to file that report.
If a request arrives by email, check it through a channel you already trust: call the company on a number from its website or your contract, not one from the email, and ask whether they sent it.
Safer ways to send a W-9
Best: the requester's own secure portal or vendor onboarding system. Many companies collect W-9s this way, and the file never sits in anyone's inbox.
Good: a password-protected PDF. Most PDF apps can add a password when you save or export; send the password separately — by text message or phone — never in the same email as the file.
Also fine: an encrypted email service, a secure file-sharing link that expires, or handing over a printed copy in person. Plain, unencrypted email is the weakest option — if that's all the requester accepts, at least confirm the address first.
Share less: use an EIN instead of your SSN
If you're a sole proprietor or freelancer, you can get a free employer identification number (EIN) from the IRS and put it on your W-9 instead of your Social Security number. That way clients never see your SSN at all. Make sure line 1 of the W-9 then matches the name the EIN is registered to.
Why signing the file on your own device matters
Many free online PDF signers upload your document to their servers to process it. For a W-9, that means one more company holding a copy of your SSN. Here, the PDF is opened, filled and signed in your browser; the file isn't sent to us, so the only copy that leaves your device is the one you send to the requester.
Afterwards, delete stray copies from your downloads folder and shared drives, and keep one copy somewhere safe in case the requester asks again.
Sending a W-9
What happens if I don't send a W-9?+
The payer may have to start backup withholding — keeping 24% of your payments and sending it to the IRS — until you give them a correct taxpayer identification number.
Can I fax a W-9?+
If the requester accepts faxes, yes. It avoids email, but make sure the fax number really belongs to them.
Should I send a new W-9 every year?+
Not usually. Send a new one when your name, business type, address or taxpayer identification number changes, or when the requester asks.
What does it cost?+
Free to try. Downloading your signed PDF costs €2.99 a month or €24.99 a year, and you can cancel anytime.
Sign your W-9 without uploading it
Open the form above — your SSN never leaves this device.
Choose the W-9