US Tax Withholding

To avoid YouTube's 24% backup withholding, submit US tax info in AdSense for YouTube under Payments > Payments info > Manage settings > Payments profile > United States tax info > Manage tax info; a creator outside the US who does then pays 0 to 30% on earnings from US viewers only, depending on whether their country has a tax treaty with the US, while an individual who gives no tax info can have up to 24% of their total worldwide YouTube earnings withheld. The rule applies to every creator in the YouTube Partner Program, wherever they live, and has been in force since June 2021. Most non-US individuals fill in a W-8BEN through the form AdSense walks them through; US creators give a W-9 and have nothing withheld.

Quick facts

Source: US tax requirements for YouTube earnings, YouTube Help, as of Nov 6, 2026; start date from George Vanous's video.

What is taxed

Google withholds US tax only on what viewers in the United States earn the creator: ad views, YouTube Premium, Super Chat, Super Stickers, Super Thanks and Channel Memberships. Earnings from viewers elsewhere are not touched, as long as the tax info is in. That is the whole difference the form makes: without it, an individual's withholding is worked out on every dollar the channel earned, from every country.

A worked example

YouTube's own example is a creator in India who earns $1,000 in a month, $100 of it from US viewers:

Source: US tax requirements for YouTube earnings, YouTube Help.

How do I submit US tax info for YouTube?

1. Sign in to AdSense for YouTube (from YouTube Studio's Earn tab, or directly).
2. Click Payments, then Payments info, then Manage settings.
3. Under Payments profile, click the pencil beside United States tax info, then Manage tax info.
4. Answer the questions: individual or business, US person or not. Non-US individuals are led to the W-8BEN, non-US businesses to the W-8BEN-E, US persons to the W-9.
5. Claim the treaty benefit if the country has one with the US. The form fills in the rate for each kind of income (YouTube's earnings count as copyright royalties for YouTube and services for AdSense).
6. Sign and submit, in Latin characters. The status should turn to a green Approved.

Submit by Dec 10 for the form to count that year. US creators who move must resubmit the W-9 with the new address. AdSense for YouTube covers the rest of the account.

Forms expire

A tax form lasts until the end of the third full calendar year after it was signed, and AdSense asks for a new one about every three years. George Vanous, who runs the Freedom! network, warns that a lapsed form means the maximum withholding comes back, so creators should check the tax status in AdSense now and then rather than wait for a short payment to tell them.

The 2021 change

0:00 Before 2021, George's notes record US withholding on YouTube revenue mainly for non-US businesses and network-owned channels, from January 2020. In 2021 Google extended it to individual creators, warning that it might deduct up to 24% of worldwide earnings from anyone without tax info by May 31, 2021, and withholding began in June 2021, which George covered in two videos at the time: "New YouTube withholding tax starts June 1, 2021" and "24% Withholding Tax on ALL your YouTube Revenue! (if you don't add your tax info in your AdSense)". The 24% worldwide figure in the second title is still the rule for individuals with no tax info, as of Nov 6, 2026.

Withholding and Analytics

YouTube Analytics shows revenue before withholding, so a payment can be smaller than the estimate even after finalization (YouTube Studio Analytics). The AdSense statement shows each withholding line separately. George notes that a month's rates arrive by the end of the following month, so the line may appear late. Google sends Form 1042-S by April 14 for the previous year's withholding, which non-US creators may use to claim a credit at home, and US creators receive a 1099-MISC, usually by early March. This page is no tax advice: a local accountant knows whether the US tax can be credited against tax owed at home.

What creators say

1:08 In "New YouTube withholding tax starts June 1, 2021", recorded just before the change, George Vanous of Freedom! stressed that the form is needed for every channel a creator owns, whether or not it is partnered with a network, and had little patience for anyone who skipped it: the withholding is "a lot of money" lost only because a creator was "too lazy" to enter the tax info. He described the risk as up to 24% of US-source revenue; YouTube Help today applies the 24% to an individual's worldwide earnings.

1:45 In a 2026 Hindi video, "What Happens If You Don't Submit the US Tax Form", the Creator Guide and Tips channel walked Indian creators through the same arithmetic: of a channel's 5 million monthly views, only the earnings from its 10,000 US views are taxed, and the form cuts that rate from 30% to India's 15% treaty rate. Without the form, he said, 30% comes off the whole channel's income. YouTube Help's figure for an individual with no tax info is up to 24% of worldwide earnings, so his 30% overstates what an individual creator without the form loses.

Frequently asked questions

Why is YouTube taking 24% of my earnings? You have not submitted US tax info, or your form expired. Without it, Google can withhold up to 24% of an individual's worldwide YouTube earnings; submit the form in AdSense for YouTube to fix it.

Do non-US YouTubers pay US tax? Only on earnings from US viewers, at 0 to 30% depending on the tax treaty between their country and the US, once they submit tax info.

Which form do I need for YouTube, W-8BEN or W-9? Non-US individuals use the W-8BEN, non-US businesses the W-8BEN-E, and US persons the W-9. AdSense chooses the form from your answers.

What is the deadline for YouTube tax info? Dec 10 each year, to count for that year's withholding and treaty benefits.

Does YouTube withhold tax on Super Chat and memberships? Yes. Earnings from US viewers through Super Chat, Super Stickers, Super Thanks and Channel Memberships are taxed the same way as ad and Premium revenue.

How often do I need to update my YouTube tax info? A form expires at the end of the third full calendar year after you sign it, so roughly every three years.

Sources

• US tax requirements for YouTube earnings, YouTube Help, read Nov 6, 2026
• New YouTube withholding tax starts June 1, 2021, Freedom!, May 29, 2021 (video)
• 24% Withholding Tax on ALL your YouTube Revenue! (if you don't add your tax info in your AdSense), Freedom!, Aug 21, 2021 (video)
• What Happens If You Don't Submit the US Tax Form, Creator Guide and Tips, Sep 1, 2026 (video)