IRS EIN Reference Number 104: The Third-Party Designee Conflict
Last updated September 6, 2026 · Written by the EIN Registration filing team
We file as your designee with our own contact details, by fax, so a 104 cannot happen.
Start Now →What the designee section is for
Form SS-4 lets the applicant authorize a third-party designee: a person or firm allowed to receive the EIN on the applicant’s behalf and to answer the IRS’s questions about the application. Accountants and filing services use it so the IRS can talk to them instead of to the client. The designee gives their own name, address, and phone, and the applicant signs to authorize them.
The IRS checks that the designee is distinct from the applicant. If the designee’s phone number matches the applicant’s phone, or the designee’s address matches the applicant’s physical or mailing address, the online tool returns 104.
How people get here
- Filling in the designee section with yourself. The most common cause. The section is optional; a sole owner applying for their own business should leave it blank.
- A spouse or business partner as designee, at the same address. Same phone, same house, same result.
- A formation service that reused your details. Some services enter themselves as designee but paste the client’s phone into the designee phone field. The IRS sees a match.
- A virtual office address used for both. If your accountant and your business both use the same suite at a mail center, the addresses collide.
Fix it
If you are applying for your own business
Start the application again and skip the third-party designee section entirely. Nothing about the EIN changes; the section only controls who the IRS may speak to.
If a real designee is filing for you
The designee enters their own office address and phone, not yours. If the designee genuinely shares your address, the online tool cannot be used with the designee section filled in; either drop the section or file Form SS-4 by fax, where the conflict is reviewed by a person.
It is not a name or SSN problem
104 says nothing about the responsible party’s details. Do not change the legal name or the SSN in response to it; those produce 101 and 102 or 103 respectively, and changing them to escape a 104 only risks creating one of those instead.
Quick answers
Does a 104 count as an attempt for the daily limit?
No EIN was issued, so the day’s allowance is still there. A run of quick retries will still trigger a 105 lockout, so fix the section before trying again.
Do I need a designee at all?
No. It is a convenience for people who want someone else to deal with the IRS about the application. Most owner-filed applications leave it blank.
Every reference number in one place
IRS EIN reference numbers 101 to 115, explained.
Get Your EIN the Easy Way
Answer a few questions in about 5 minutes. Our specialists prepare your IRS Form SS-4, file it, personally handle any rejection or name conflict along the way, and get your EIN to you, typically within 2 to 4 business days. One flat $197 service fee. No upsells, no subscriptions.
- ✓ Prepared and filed by specialists
- ✓ Error 101 and rejection handling included
- ✓ Data encrypted (AES-256)
- ✓ Order tracking and email updates
Related guides
- IRS EIN Reference Numbers 101 to 115, Explained Every code the IRS online application can return, what it means in practice, and the fix. Which ones are your answers, which are the IRS, and which two you must not retry.
- IRS Error 101 (EIN Reference Number 101): How to Fix It Error 101 is a business name conflict the online application cannot resolve. What it means and the two ways past it.
- IRS EIN Reference Numbers 102 and 103: Responsible Party Mismatch Codes 102 and 103 mean the name and SSN or ITIN you entered for the responsible party do not match IRS or SSA records. The usual causes, and the one retry that is worth making.
- Form SS-4 Instructions, Line by Line Every line on the EIN application and what actually goes in it, with the entity-specific traps: Line 9a, Line 10, the responsible party, and the date the IRS wants.
EIN Registration is an independent document preparation and filing service and is not affiliated with the IRS or any government agency. You can also apply for an EIN directly with the IRS at irs.gov at no cost.