Fully Legal but Shrouded in Fear: Paying Taxes if You’re Undocumented, Pt 1
Sierra Dickey • April 28, 2020
Part 1 of this series describes the usefulness of Individual Taxpayer Identification Numbers for undocumented workers.
“Undocumented immigrants pay more in US taxes than Amazon or Facebook,” NY Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez tweeted in February. While many citizens don’t like to entertain any discussion of immigrants as more useful and law-abiding than major corporations, the Congresswoman was correct.
The problem with undocumented people paying U.S. taxes is that they can’t access any of the benefits or support their earnings pay for. And, because many are forced to use fake Social Security Numbers (SSNs) to access the job market, getting right with the U.S. tax system can be frightening.
Individual Taxpayer Identification Numbers (ITINs) enable undocumented people to pay taxes in the ordinary way. Besides getting a worker’s taxes in order, ITINs can also be used to apply for credit cards, which are largely inaccessible to undocumented people. With a credit card you can rent or buy a car, apply for loans, solve cash flow problems, order goods and services online, send money internationally via PayPal or Venmo (which are cheaper than the commonly used Western Unions and Moneygrams) and access other financial services.
Using an ITIN as an undocumented person is not a shady work-around or a manipulation of the tax code. ITINs were created in 1996 expressly for undocumented “aliens” and other non-citizens with various forms of temporary status. In its own pamphlets, the IRS describes how it works: “Can I get an ITIN if I am an undocumented alien? Yes, if you are required to file a U.S. Federal income tax return or qualify to be listed on another individual’s tax return as a spouse or dependent, you must have either a valid SSN or an ITIN. If you are an undocumented alien and cannot get a SSN, you must get an ITIN for tax purposes.”
I spoke to Luz Arévalo, Senior Attorney at Greater Boston Legal Services about the ITIN application process. “People are afraid, but they also need to function,” she said of her undocumented clients. When counseling undocumented workers who need to file tax returns, Arévalo counsels “you may not want to use your home address.” Although the IRS is legally prohibited from disclosing any taxpayer information, having the worker’s address on the document can be risky if they then use it as proof of address for other purposes. However, Arévalo was also clear that obtaining an ITIN, even with a history of W-2s with an incorrect social security number, would not put someone in direct risk of deportation. In fact, she said “the IRS is completely aware that workers use made-up social security numbers to be able to work.”
What’s more, Arevalo commented, “when someone brings me their W-2, I know they have been paying the required taxes.” In the longer-term process of applying for a status change, a record of paying taxes, even on money earned with a made-up social security number, will be proof of good moral character. “My clients are between a rock and a hard place because they need to work, but they also need to contribute their tax on the money earned. And the ITIN does not authorize them to work. Only to file their tax returns.”
Part 2 of this series will describe the author’s effort to help a client secure an ITIN. If you can’t wait that long, read Sierra’s full article at:
https://theshoestring.org/2020/03/18/fully-legal-but-shrouded-in-fear-paying-taxes-if-youre-undocumented/
Sierra Dickey is a writer, educator, and organizer in Vermont. Read her on Twitter @dierrasickey.
Common Sense for the Eastern Shore
Right now, Congress is working on a fast-track bill that would make historic cuts to basic needs programs in order to finance another round of tax breaks for the wealthy and big corporations.
The House Agriculture Committee recently voted, along party lines, to advance legislation that would cut as much as $300 million from the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program. SNAP is the nation’s most important anti-hunger program, helping more than 41 million people in the U.S. pay for food. With potential cuts this large, it helps to know who benefits from this program in Maryland, and who would lose this assistance. The Center on Budget and Policy Priorities compiled data on SNAP beneficiaries by congressional district, cited below, and produced the Maryland state datasheet , shown below. In Maryland, in 2023-24, 1 in 9 people lived in a household with SNAP benefits. In Maryland’s First Congressional District, in 2023-24: Almost 34,000 households used SNAP benefits. Of those households, 43% had at least one senior (over age 60). 29% of SNAP recipients were people of color. 15% were Black, non-Hispanic, higher than 11.8% nationally. 6% were Hispanic (19.4% nationally). There were 24,700 total veterans (ages 18-64). Of those, 2,200 lived in households that used SNAP benefits (9%). The CBPP SNAP datasheet for Maryland is below. See data from all the states and download factsheets here.
Apparently, some people think that the GOP’s “big beautiful bill” is a foregone conclusion, and that the struggle over the budget and Trump’s agenda is over and done. Not true. On Sunday night, the bill — given the alternate name “Big Bad Bullsh*t Bill” by the Democratic Women’s Caucus — was voted out of the House Budget Committee. The GOP plan is to pass this legislation in the House before Memorial Day. But that’s not the end of it. As Jessica Craven explained in her Chop Wood Carry Water column: “Remember, we have at least six weeks left in this process. The bill has to: Pass the House, Then head to the Senate where it will likely be rewritten almost completely, Then be passed there, Then be brought back to the House for reconciliation, And then, if the House changes that version at all, Go back to the Senate for another vote.” She adds, “Every step of that process is a place for us to kill it.” The bill is over a thousand pages long, and the American people will not get a chance to read it until it has passed the House. But, thanks to 5Calls , we know it includes:
Let's talk about our Eastern Shore Delegation, the representatives who are supposed to fight for our nine Shore counties in Annapolis, and what they actually got up to this session.
For the first time in recent memory, Virginia Democrats have candidates running in all 100 House of Delegates districts — a milestone party leaders and grassroots organizers say reflects rising momentum as President Donald Trump’s second term continues to galvanize opposition.
The 447th legislative session of the Maryland General Assembly adjourned on April 8. This End of Session Report highlights the work Shore Progress has done to fight for working families and bring real results home to the Shore. Over the 90-day session, lawmakers debated 1,901 bills and passed 878 into law. Shore Progress and members supported legislation that delivers for the Eastern Shore, protecting our environment, expanding access to housing and healthcare, strengthening workers’ rights, and more. Shore Progress Supported Legislation By The Numbers: Over 60 pieces of our backed legislation were passed. Another 15 passed in one Chamber but not the other. Legislation details are below, past the budget section. The 2026 Maryland State Budget How We Got Here: Maryland’s budget problems didn’t start overnight. They began under Governor Larry Hogan. Governor Hogan expanded the state budget yearly but blocked the legislature from moving money around or making common-sense changes. Instead of fixing the structural issues, Hogan used federal covid relief funds to hide the cracks and drained our state’s savings from $5.5 billion to $2.3 billion to boost his image before leaving office. How Trump/Musk Made It Worse: Maryland is facing a new fiscal crisis driven by the Trump–Musk administration, whose trade wars, tariff policies, and deep federal cuts have hit us harder than most, costing the state over 30,000 jobs, shuttering offices, and erasing promised investments. A University of Maryland study estimates Trump’s tariffs alone could cost us $2 billion, and those federal cuts have already added $300 million to our budget deficit. Covid aid gave us a short-term boost and even created a fake surplus under Hogan, but that money is gone, while housing, healthcare, and college prices keep rising. The Trump–Musk White House is only making things worse by slashing funding, gutting services, and eliminating research that Marylanders rely on. How The State Budget Fixes These Issues: This year, Maryland faced a $3 billion budget gap, and the General Assembly fixed it with a smart mix of cuts and fair new revenue, while protecting working families, schools, and health care. The 2025 Budget cuts $1.9 billion ($400 million less than last year) without gutting services people rely on. The General Assembly raised $1.2 billion in fair new revenue, mostly from the wealthiest Marylanders. The Budget ended with a $350 million surplus, plus $2.4 billion saved in the Rainy Day Fund (more than 9% of general fund revenue), which came in $7 million above what the Spending Affordability Committee called for. The budget protects funding for our schools, health care, transit, and public workers. The budget delivers real wins: $800 million more annually for transit and infrastructure, plus $500 million for long-term transportation needs. It invests $9.7 billion in public schools and boosts local education aid by $572.5 million, a 7% increase. If current revenue trends hold, no new taxes will be needed next session. Even better, 94% of Marylanders will see a tax cut or no change, while only the wealthiest 5% will finally pay their fair share. The tax system is smarter now. We’re: Taxing IT and data services like Texas and D.C. do; Raising taxes on cannabis and sports betting, not groceries or medicine; and Letting counties adjust income taxes. The budget also restores critical funding: $122 million for teacher planning $15 million for cancer research $11 million for crime victims $7 million for local business zones, and Continued support for public TV, the arts, and BCCC The budget invests in People with disabilities, with $181 million in services Growing private-sector jobs with $139 million in funding, including $27.5 million for quantum tech, $16 million for the Sunny Day Fund, and $10 million for infrastructure loans. Health care is protected for 1.5 million Marylanders, with $15.6 billion for Medicaid and higher provider pay. Public safety is getting a boost too, with $60 million for victim services, $5.5 million for juvenile services, and $5 million for parole and probation staffing. This budget also tackles climate change with $100 million for clean energy and solar projects, and $200 million in potential ratepayer relief. Public workers get a well-deserved raise, with $200 million in salary increases, including a 1% COLA and ~2.5% raises for union workers. The ultra-wealthy will finally chip in to pay for it: People earning over $750,000 will pay more, Millionaires will pay 6.5%, and Capital gains over $350,000 get a 2% surcharge. Deductions are capped for high earners, but working families can still deduct student loans, medical debt, and donations. This budget is bold, fair, and built to last. That’s why Shore Progress proudly supports it. Click on the arrows below for details in each section.
