What did people do last year if they didn have an ATIN?
A.9. Before the 1997 tax year, taxpayers who were adopting children and met the requirements to claim the child could use the phrase “U.S. Adoption Pending” in place of the SSN. If taxpayers amended their 1996 or 1995 tax returns claiming the child they were in the process of adopting, they could still use the phrase “U.S. Adoption Pending” in place of the SSN. It is only beginning with your 1997 tax return that the ATIN a required.
