The Short Answer
An EIN is the nine-digit number the IRS uses to identify a business, and getting one is free. If the person responsible for the business has a US Social Security Number or ITIN, the fastest route is the IRS online application, which issues the number in a single session. If they do not, the online route is closed and you file Form SS-4 by fax or by mail instead, which takes business days rather than minutes. International applicants can also call the IRS to apply by phone. You need your legal entity name, mailing address, entity type and responsible party details before you start, and you should form the company first so the name on the application matches the name on your formation documents.
What Is an EIN?
An EIN, short for Employer Identification Number, is a nine-digit number issued by the IRS to identify a business entity for tax purposes. You will see the same number called a federal tax identification number, a federal EIN, or a FEIN — these are different labels for one identifier, not different numbers.
The comparison people find most useful is this: a Social Security Number identifies a person, an EIN identifies a business. It follows the entity rather than the owner, which is why the number stays the same when your address changes, when new members join, and when your accountant changes. It also means the EIN is not proof of anything beyond identity: it does not register your company, it does not create a bank account, and it does not put your business in good standing with any state.
The name is misleading in one respect. You do not need employees to need an EIN. Most businesses that will never hire anyone still need the number, because banks, payment processors and federal filings all key off it.
Who Needs an EIN, and Who Does Not
You need an EIN if your business is a corporation or a partnership, if you will hire employees, if you file employment or excise tax returns, if you want a business bank account in the company's name, or if you are onboarding to a payment processor or marketplace as a business rather than as an individual. Multi-member LLCs need one by default. Single-member LLCs are the ambiguous case on paper — a single-member LLC with no employees can often use the owner's Social Security Number for federal income tax purposes — but in practice almost every founder gets an EIN anyway, because banks and processors ask for it and because using a personal SSN as a business identifier defeats the separation you formed the entity to create.
Non-resident founders are the clearest case of all: without a US SSN, the EIN is the only tax identifier your business has, so it is required rather than optional.
The Four Ways to Get an EIN
1. Online
The IRS online application is the fastest method and issues the number during the session, but it has a hard eligibility rule: the responsible party listed on the application must have a valid US Social Security Number or ITIN. The application also has to be completed in one sitting — the session expires after a period of inactivity and cannot be resumed — and it is only open during the IRS system's published hours. If you qualify, this is the route to take.
2. By Fax
Faxing a completed Form SS-4 to the IRS is the practical route for anyone the online application excludes, and it is the method most non-resident founders end up using. You send the signed form and the IRS returns the assigned number, typically within a few business days. A digital fax service works fine and gives you a delivery record, which matters when you need to prove you filed.
3. By Mail
Mailing Form SS-4 works and requires nothing but postage, but it is the slowest option by a wide margin — measured in weeks, and longer from outside the United States. Use it only when fax is not available to you.
4. By Phone (International Applicants)
Applicants outside the United States can apply by telephone through the IRS line for international EIN requests. An agent takes the SS-4 information over the phone and can assign the number during the call. The caller must be authorized to receive the number and to sign the application, and calls have to be placed during the line's operating hours in US time.
Whichever route you take, the IRS charges no fee. If you are paying, you are paying a provider for handling the filing — never the IRS for the number itself.
How Long Does It Take to Get an EIN?
Online is immediate. Fax is a matter of business days. Mail is a matter of weeks. Phone assigns the number during the call itself. Two things realistically slow people down more than the method: applying with information that does not match the state formation record, which sends the application into manual review, and applying during the IRS busy season, when every non-instant channel stretches.
Plan the timing backwards from what you actually need. If a bank appointment or a processor onboarding is waiting on the number, choose the fastest channel available to you rather than the most convenient one.
What You Need Before You Apply
Form SS-4 is short but unforgiving, because several answers cannot be casually corrected later. Have ready the exact legal name of the entity as registered with the state, any trade name you operate under, the mailing address where the IRS should send correspondence, the entity type, the responsible party's name and their SSN or ITIN if they have one, the reason you are applying, the date the business started or was acquired, the closing month of your accounting year, whether you expect to have employees, and your principal business activity.
The responsible party field deserves particular attention: it must be an individual who controls or directs the entity, not a company, and not your accountant or agent. Our field-by-field guide to Form SS-4 walks through the entries that most often cause rejections.
How to Get an EIN Without an SSN
This is the single most common blocker for founders outside the United States, and it has a clean answer: you do not need a Social Security Number, and you do not need an ITIN, to get an EIN for your company. What you cannot do is use the online application, because it validates the responsible party's US taxpayer identification number. Instead you complete Form SS-4, indicate that the responsible party has no US identifier where the form asks for one, and submit it by fax or by mail — or apply by phone through the international line.
An ITIN is a separate matter that answers a different question: personal filing obligations, not business identity. Our comparison of EIN and ITIN for non-residents explains when you genuinely need each, and our guide to getting an EIN as a non-resident business owner covers the submission itself, including where founders lose weeks unnecessarily.
What You Can Do Once You Have Your EIN
The number unlocks the operational layer of the business. You can open a US business bank account in the company's name, which is the step most founders are waiting on — our walkthrough on opening a US business bank account as a non-resident covers what banks ask for alongside the EIN. You can complete tax identity verification with payment processors, and our guide to setting up Stripe and PayPal with a US company explains where those checks tend to fail. Beyond that: payroll, marketplace seller verification, state tax registrations, contractor onboarding, and every federal return your entity files.
Save the Confirmation Notice Immediately
When the EIN is assigned, the IRS issues a confirmation notice called the CP-575, and it is sent exactly once. It is never reprinted. Save it as a PDF the moment you receive it, store it with your formation documents rather than in an email thread, and give your accountant a copy.
If that notice is already gone, the situation is recoverable but slower: the IRS issues a verification letter instead, and our guide on replacing a lost EIN confirmation letter walks through the recovery order, while our detailed article on requesting a 147C letter covers the call itself. For background on what the notice contains and why institutions ask for it, see our guide to the EIN letter from the IRS.
Common Mistakes When Applying
Applying twice is the most expensive one. If you are not certain whether your entity already has an EIN, check before you file — a duplicate number splits your filing history and takes far longer to unwind than a search would have taken. Our method for finding a lost EIN number covers where to look.
The rest are avoidable in minutes. Applying before the company is formed produces a name mismatch with the state record. Entering a shortened or informal version of the legal name causes bank verification to fail later. Naming a company or an advisor as the responsible party instead of an individual triggers rejection. Using a mailing address you do not control means IRS correspondence — including the confirmation notice — goes somewhere you never see. And paying a third-party site that presents itself as the IRS gets you a form you could have filed yourself for free.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is an EIN the same as a federal tax ID number?
Yes. EIN, FEIN and federal tax identification number all refer to the same nine-digit business identifier issued by the IRS.
How much does it cost to get an EIN?
Nothing. The IRS does not charge for an EIN. Any fee is for a service handling the filing on your behalf.
Can I get an EIN before forming my company?
You can, but you generally should not. Forming first means the legal name on your application matches your state record, which is what banks verify later.
Can a single-member LLC use the owner's SSN instead?
Sometimes, for federal income tax purposes with no employees. In practice most banks and processors will ask for an EIN, and mixing a personal SSN into business records undercuts the separation the LLC is meant to provide.
Can I get an EIN without a US address?
Yes. The application asks for a mailing address, and a foreign address is acceptable. Use one you actually control, because the confirmation notice goes there.
What if I lose my EIN number?
The number can be recovered from prior returns, bank records, payroll systems and state filings, and the IRS can verify it by phone. You do not need to apply for a new one.
Getting Your EIN Without the Back and Forth
Most EIN delays come from small mismatches: a name that does not match the state record, a responsible party entered incorrectly, an address that was never yours. Our EIN application service handles the filing end to end and keeps your entity records consistent from the start, so the number arrives once, correctly, and your bank and processor onboarding is not waiting on a second attempt.
This article is general information, not tax advice. IRS procedures, eligibility rules and processing times change; confirm current details with the IRS or a qualified tax professional before acting.
Özgür Kuşkonmaz
Head of Business Development at Clemta
