Form 8805, the Foreign Partner's Information Statement of Section 1446 Withholding Tax, shows a foreign partner's share of a partnership's effectively connected taxable income (ECTI) and the US tax the partnership paid on it for them. The partnership files a separate one for each foreign partner, and the partner attaches it to their US return, usually Form 1040-NR or 1120-F, to claim the withheld tax as a credit.
Everything below comes from the IRS Instructions for Forms 8804, 8805 and 8813 (Rev. January 2026) and Form 8805 (Rev. November 2019), as of October 2026.
How the three forms fit together
| Form | What it does |
|---|---|
| Form 8804 | Reports the partnership's total section 1446 liability for the year and acts as the transmittal for every Form 8805 |
| Form 8805 | One per foreign partner: their share of ECTI and the tax credit allowed to them |
| Form 8813 | The payment voucher for installments of withholding tax during the year |
The withholding rates
The section 1446 applicable percentage is 21% for corporate foreign partners and generally 37% for non-corporate foreign partners. The same rates apply to publicly traded partnerships withholding on distributions of effectively connected income. Partnerships make installment payments with Form 8813 by the 15th day of the 4th, 6th, 9th and 12th months of their tax year, and must tell each foreign partner its share within 10 days of the installment due date or the payment date, so the partner can adjust its own estimated tax.
What's on Form 8805, line by line
| Line | What it shows |
|---|---|
| 1a to 4 | The foreign partner's name, US identifying number, address, account number, type of partner and country code |
| 5a to 7 | The partnership's name, EIN and address, and the withholding agent if different |
| 8a | A box ticked if the partnership owns interests in other partnerships |
| 8b | A box ticked if any ECTI is exempt from US tax for this partner |
| 9 | The partnership's ECTI allocable to the partner for the year |
| 10 | The total section 1446 tax credit allowed to the partner |
| 11a to 13 | Schedule T, used when the partner is a foreign trust or estate passing amounts to beneficiaries |
When it's due
Forms 8804 and 8805 are generally filed by the 15th day of the 3rd month after the partnership's tax year ends. If the partnership keeps its books and records outside the United States and Puerto Rico, the date moves to the 15th day of the 6th month, and the partnership ticks a box at the top of Form 8804. The foreign partner must also receive its copy by the due date of the partnership return, including extensions.
Claiming the credit as a foreign partner
- Check that line 1b shows a valid US taxpayer identification number. The partnership needs it to credit the tax to you correctly, so get an ITIN if you're an individual without an SSN.
- Take the line 10 amount as a credit against your US income tax on Form 1040-NR, Form 1120-F or the return you file.
- Attach Copy C of Form 8805 to that return for the year you claim the credit.
- If you're a foreign trust or estate, pass the right share to your beneficiaries using Schedule T.
A US person who was withheld on by mistake also gets a Form 8805 and claims the credit the same way. The instructions say a partnership can determine a partner's foreign or nonforeign status by relying on a Form W-9, or a W-8 form such as Form W-8BEN, so getting the right certificate to the partnership early avoids the problem.
Exempt income and partners with their own deductions
Line 8b is ticked when some of the ECTI is exempt from US tax for that partner. The partnership also has to complete a Form 8805 for a partner even when no tax is paid on their behalf, if it reduced ECTI for state and local income tax deductions under the regulations, or relied on a Form 8804-C the partner gave it to cut the withholding. A foreign partner can use Form 8804-C to certify deductions and losses it expects, which can lower what the partnership withholds during the year.
Tiered partnerships
An upper-tier partnership that had tax withheld by a lower-tier partnership receives a Form 8805 or a Form 1042-S for it. It files those with its own Form 8804, treats the withheld amount as a credit against its own section 1446 liability, and passes the information on to its partners.
Penalties, as of October 2026
Late filing of Form 8804 can cost 5% of the unpaid tax for each month or part of a month it's late, up to 25%, with a minimum penalty once it's more than 60 days late. Each Form 8805 that's filed late, incomplete or incorrect can also be penalized, and the IRS now points to its annual inflation adjustments for the amounts rather than printing them. A reasonable-cause explanation goes in after a notice arrives, not with the return.
The verdict
For a foreign partner, Form 8805 is a receipt worth guarding: line 10 is US tax already paid, and you only get credit for it by filing a US return with Copy C attached. For the partnership, the job is mostly about timing, so diary the installment dates and the 15th-day-of-the-3rd-month deadline together.
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Frequently asked questions
What is Form 8805?
It's the Foreign Partner's Information Statement of Section 1446 Withholding Tax, showing a foreign partner's share of ECTI and the tax credit allowed for withholding.
What is the withholding rate on Form 8805?
The section 1446 rate is 21% for corporate partners and generally 37% for non-corporate partners.
When is Form 8805 due?
Generally by the 15th day of the 3rd month after the partnership's tax year ends, or the 15th day of the 6th month if its books are kept outside the United States and Puerto Rico.
How do I claim the tax on Form 8805?
Attach Copy C to your US income tax return, such as Form 1040-NR or Form 1120-F, and claim the line 10 amount as a credit.
Is a separate Form 8805 needed for each partner?
Yes. The partnership files a separate Form 8805 for each foreign partner and attaches Copy A of each to Form 8804.
Where are Forms 8804 and 8805 filed?
With the Internal Revenue Service Center, P.O. Box 409101, Ogden, UT 84409, according to the current instructions.
