[gmw]

It took five days, but I did get a response to my email query from BookBaby.

To the tax issue: They describe themselves as the "titular seller", and say that the author is selling their books on consignment which means that the royalties are not subject to additional withholding by the bookstores. They tell me that they do not need an ITIN (from the foreign author) because they do not withhold or report earnings to any government agency. Their email also told me that I should consult an local tax professional.

Now I don't have a problem with any of that, it makes perfect sense to me ... with the not so minor exception that no one else (that I've found) is following the same rule. In particular, both Smashwords and Amazon need foreign authors to have a U.S. tax number, and I really can't see what makes BookBaby any different. It is quite strange. I guess I'll see what my accountant has to say.