Made a Mistake on Your EIN Application? How to Fix Each One

Which fix each mistake needs

The business name is misspelled or incomplete

The IRS manual draws a line between a name change and a name correction. Corrections, in its words, “include misspellings, incomplete names, any missing or incorrect suffixes, finger errors, etc.,” and they “can be made via correspondence or phone call” (IRM 21.7.13.6.5.6). So start with a call to the Business and Specialty Tax Line at 1-800-829-4933, Monday to Friday, 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. local time.

What decides how far the call gets is the name control: up to four characters the IRS derives from the name, generally its first four, which its e-file systems match against the EIN. Only ampersands and hyphens survive as special characters, and “dba” is never part of it. A correction that changes the name control, such as “Smtih Consulting LLC” to “Smith Consulting LLC”, is referred to the IRS’s business entity unit instead, and the IRS generally wants a signed request in writing before it changes an account. If the agent cannot make the correction on the call, ask for the address to write to; the manual has staff give callers the entity unit address for their state. Adding a missing “LLC” at the end usually leaves the name control alone.

Not a mistake: a dropped apostrophe or a symbol spelled out, since IRS business names allow only letters, numbers, hyphens and ampersands. And a name the state has since changed is a real name change, not a correction; how to change your business name with the IRS.

What to put in the letter

• The EIN, the name exactly as the CP 575 shows it, and the correct legal name.
• A copy of the state formation document showing the correct name. The IRS requires the filed amendment for a real name change; for a correction it is the quickest proof of the right name.
• The signature of the owner, an officer, a partner or a member. A request from a third party without authorization on file is refused.
• A daytime phone number, and a request for written confirmation.

The manual gives the business entity unit a 30 day turnaround, and the IRS sends a letter once the name line has been changed.

You chose the wrong entity type

Right entity, wrong tax treatment

Your answers set the account’s filing requirements, the returns the IRS expects, which the CP 575 lists. A single member LLC set up to file a partnership return, or the corporation box ticked when you meant the LLC default, is a correction to those. The manual lets IRS staff change filing requirements only while the account has no activity, on a source document such as your letter or the returned CP 575; after returns are filed, it goes to the business entity unit.

A different tax classification you now want is an election, not a correction, made on the same EIN: the IRS says an LLC needs no new EIN to elect corporation or S corporation treatment. See the Form 8832 instructions and the Form 2553 instructions.

You applied as a sole proprietor, but the business is an LLC

This one is not a correction. A sole proprietor EIN belongs to the person, under the owner’s own name, and an individual has only one however many sole proprietorships they run. The IRS’s “Do you need a new EIN?” page says a single member LLC can keep using the owner’s sole proprietor EIN if it makes no corporation or S corporation election, has no employees and owes no excise tax; one that files employment or excise taxes needs a new EIN. An LLC with two or more members is a partnership by default and needs its own.

The old number stops being enough when one of those conditions changes, or when the LLC needs a number in its own name: a bank or payment processor opening an account for the LLC compares its legal name with the IRS letter, and a sole proprietor CP 575 carries yours. Then the fix is an EIN applied for in the LLC’s exact legal name. Keep the sole proprietor number for anything you do run as a sole proprietor, or ask the IRS to deactivate it if it was never used; how to close an EIN.

The responsible party is wrong

File Form 8822-B with the correct person on lines 8 and 9. The responsible party must be an individual who owns or controls the entity, not a company (government entities aside) and not a nominee. If the person really did change after the application, the form is due within 60 days of the change. The Form 8822-B instructions go line by line, with the mailing address for your state.

The address is wrong

Form 8822-B again, on lines 5 to 7, or a signed written statement with the business name, EIN and the old and new addresses, or a phone call after the IRS verifies your identity. The manual confirms an address change can be taken by telephone. The IRS says a change of address generally takes four to six weeks to process fully. Until then, notices and mailed letters go to the old address.

You ended up with two EINs

It happens when an application seemed to fail and was sent again, or was filed both online and by fax. The IRS’s instruction is short: “A business entity should have only one EIN. If you have more than one EIN and aren’t sure which to use, call the Business and Specialty Tax Line,” and it will tell you. The manual shows how that answer is reached (IRM 21.7.13.6.3):

• No returns filed on either. Keep the one you prefer. With no preference, the one set up to file Form 941, and otherwise the earliest assigned.
• Returns filed on one. Keep that one.
• Returns filed on both. The IRS consolidates the accounts, and only its business entity unit can do that.

The IRS then sends a letter on the number assigned in error. In writing, the route is the IRS deactivation letter (EIN, legal name, address, the assignment notice if you have it, and the reason) to MS 6055, Kansas City, MO 64108 or MS 6273, Ogden, UT 84201, saying it is a duplicate and which number the business uses.

Smaller details, and before you call

A wrong start date or employee answer is fixed the same way, by letter or call; the manual lets staff change the start date on an account with no activity without supporting documents. Have the CP 575 and the formation document ready. Only someone with authority over the business can make changes; an accountant needs a power of attorney, Form 2848, on file. And if a platform is rejecting a brand new EIN with no mistake in it, the cause may be the IRS posting delay; read new EIN not active yet before changing anything.

Quick answers

Do I need a new EIN to fix a typo in the business name?

No. A misspelled name, an incomplete name or a missing suffix such as LLC is a correction to the IRS record, and the EIN stays the same. Call the Business and Specialty Tax Line or send a signed letter. Applying again would give the same business a second EIN.

I applied as a sole proprietor but I have an LLC. What now?

The EIN you have belongs to you as a sole proprietor, not to the LLC. The IRS lets a single member LLC with no employees, no excise tax and no corporate or S corporation election keep using that number. An LLC with employees, excise tax, an election or more than one member needs an EIN of its own, applied for in the LLC’s legal name.

I have two EINs for the same business. Which one do I keep?

Call the IRS Business and Specialty Tax Line and the IRS will tell you which number to use. Its manual says to keep the one returns have been filed under; if none has been used, the one you prefer, or failing that the one set up for Form 941, or the earliest one.

How long does an EIN correction take?

Corrections handled by the IRS’s business entity unit have a 30 day turnaround in the IRS manual. Address and responsible party changes on Form 8822-B generally take 4 to 6 weeks.

Checked against IRS.gov and the Internal Revenue Manual on November 1, 2026.