EIN for a New Business: How to Apply for a New EIN

The first week, in order

1. Form the entity with the state. Articles of organization for an LLC, articles of incorporation for a corporation. Wait for the approved certificate; the EIN application needs the name and date from it. A sole proprietor skips this step. Why the order matters is in EIN before or after the LLC.
2. Get the EIN. This page. Everything after it asks for the number.
3. Open the business bank account under the entity’s name and EIN, with the IRS confirmation letter and the state certificate. The bank account guide lists what each bank asks for.
4. Register with the state for taxes. Sales tax, withholding and unemployment registrations each want the federal EIN first. They issue separate state numbers, which are not the EIN; the state tax ID guide explains which is which.
5. Licenses and permits. City, county or state, depending on the trade. Unrelated to the EIN, usually asked for after it. See business license vs EIN.
6. Tax elections, if any. An LLC that wants S corporation treatment files Form 2553 within 2 months and 15 days of the start of its first tax year. The EIN application does not make the election.

Which new businesses need an EIN on day one

What to have ready

• The legal name exactly as the state approved it, including LLC, Inc or Corp as the state wrote it.
• The formation date on the state certificate, or the date a sole proprietorship started.
• The responsible party: the owner, a partner, or an officer, with their SSN or ITIN. An entity cannot be the responsible party on the online application.
• The physical business address and county, and a mailing address if different.
• How the business will be taxed: the number of LLC members, and whether it will elect corporate treatment.
• What the business does, in a sentence, and whether it expects employees in the next twelve months.

Apply for a new EIN online, by fax, or through us

Online

The IRS EIN Assistant is open Monday to Friday 6 a.m. to 1 a.m. (into the next day), Saturday 6 a.m. to 9 p.m., and Sunday 6 p.m. to midnight, Eastern time. It is one sitting of about ten minutes, it times out after 15 minutes idle, and it issues the EIN on the final screen with the confirmation letter as a PDF. The responsible party must have an SSN or ITIN. The screens, in order, are in the online application walkthrough.

Fax

A signed Form SS-4 faxed to the IRS, with a return fax number, comes back with the EIN in about 11 business days. This is the route for a responsible party with no SSN or ITIN, for a name the online tool rejects, and for anyone the website will not serve.

Through us

We prepare the application with the name and date as the state recorded them, choose the classification that matches how you intend to be taxed, file it by the route that will complete, handle any reference number, and email you the EIN and the confirmation letter, typically within 2 to 4 business days, or about 11 when the IRS requires the fax route.

The three mistakes new businesses make

1. Applying before the state approves the entity. The name on the application then differs from the name the state records, or the formation date is wrong, and the mismatch surfaces later at the bank or as a reference number 101.
2. Choosing the wrong tax classification. An LLC that picks “corporation” on the application without filing Form 8832 or 2553 gets an IRS letter months later asking for a return it never meant to file. Pick the default unless you have decided on an election.
3. Applying twice. A session that closed before the confirmation screen usually still issued the number. A second application the same day returns reference number 114; a second application on a later day creates a duplicate EIN that the IRS then has to close. Call the IRS instead and ask whether a number was assigned.

After the EIN arrives

• Save the confirmation letter (the CP 575) in two places. The IRS issues it once and never reprints it, and the bank asks for it.
• Use the number immediately for the bank and the state. Some IRS systems, including electronic filing and payments, take up to two weeks to recognize a new EIN.
• Calendar the Form 2553 deadline if you intend to elect S corporation status: 2 months and 15 days from the start of the tax year.
• Register for state taxes and open payroll before the first hire, not after.

A new EIN for a business you already run?

The word “new” covers three different situations. A genuinely new entity, as above, gets its own EIN. A business that is changing form, such as a sole proprietor forming an LLC or a partnership incorporating, usually needs a new EIN because the taxpayer changed; a business that is only changing its name, address or owners usually keeps the one it has. And a second trade name under the same entity never needs one. The scenario table is in do I need a new EIN, and the DBA case in can you get an EIN for a DBA.

Quick answers

How soon after forming the business can I apply for the EIN?

The same day the state approves the entity. Apply before approval and the name or date on the application will not match the state record, which is the usual cause of a reference number 101. A sole proprietor with no entity to form can apply at any time.

Do I need a new EIN for a second business?

If the second business is a separate entity, yes: each LLC, corporation or partnership has its own EIN. A second trade name under the same entity does not; a DBA uses the entity’s existing number.

How long does a new EIN take?

Online, the IRS issues it in the same session when the application completes and the responsible party has an SSN or ITIN. Fax takes about 11 business days. Through us, typically 2 to 4 business days, or about 11 when the application has to go by fax. Every method is compared in how long does an EIN take.

Can I open the bank account before the EIN arrives?

For an LLC, corporation or partnership, no: the bank opens the account under the entity’s EIN and asks for the IRS confirmation letter. Most banks will hold an application open for a few days while the number comes through.