How to fill out Form SS-4

Who needs this form

File Form SS-4 when an entity has no EIN but must show one on a tax return or other tax document. Common cases from the form's "Do I Need an EIN?" chart:

• You hire, or will hire, employees, including household employees.
• You form a partnership, a corporation or an LLC with two or more members.
• You run a single-member LLC that needs its own EIN for employment or excise taxes, a state requirement, Form 8832, or Form 5472 (foreign owner).
• You are a sole proprietor who files excise or employment returns, or sets up a qualified retirement plan.
• You create a trust (other than most grantor trusts), administer an estate, or become a plan administrator.
• You buy a going business or change the type of organization.
• You are a withholding agent, or a foreign person who needs an EIN for withholding rules or a treaty claim.

The IRS recommends applying online when you can: it is free and gives you the EIN at once. It works only if the entity was formed in the United States or a U.S. territory, its principal place of business is there, and the responsible party has an SSN or ITIN. Everyone else applies by fax, by mail, or (international applicants) by phone.

This form is not for a personal tax number. An individual who cannot get a social security number applies for an ITIN on Form W-7; anyone eligible for an SSN applies at ssa.gov.

What to have ready

• The exact legal name from the formation document or social security card, and any trade name (DBA).
• The mailing address and, if different, the street address.
• The responsible party's full name and SSN or ITIN.
• The entity type and, for an LLC, the number of members and where it was organized.
• For a corporation, where it was incorporated and the return it will file (Form 1120 or 1120-S).
• The start or acquisition date and the month your accounting year ends.
• Expected employees in the next 12 months and the first wage date.
• What the business sells, makes or does, and any EIN it had before.

Step by step

1. Enter the names Line 1 to Line 3

   On Line 1, write the legal name exactly as on the formation document, including a suffix such as Inc. A sole proprietor writes their own name here, never the business name. An estate with no legal name uses the decedent's name followed by "Estate". Put a DBA on Line 2 only if it differs. On Line 3, a trust enters the trustee and an estate the executor; other entities may name a "care of" person.

2. Give the addresses Line 4a to Line 6

   Line 4a and Line 4b are where the IRS sends mail (the line 3 person's address, if any). Abroad, write the full country name, not an abbreviation. Fill in Line 5a and Line 5b only if the physical address differs, never with a P.O. box. Line 6 takes the county and state of the main location.

3. Name the responsible party Line 7a and Line 7b

   The responsible party is the person who ultimately owns or controls the entity and its funds: the owner, a principal officer, a general partner, a trust's grantor. Unless the applicant is a government entity, it must be a natural person, not a company. Enter their full name on line 7a and their SSN or ITIN on line 7b. If they have neither and cannot get one, write "foreign" or "N/A". Never leave it blank.

4. Answer the LLC questions Line 8a to Line 8c

   Check Yes on Line 8a for an LLC or foreign equivalent and give the number of members on Line 8b (spouses in a community property state who treat it as disregarded enter "1"). Line 8c asks whether it was organized in the United States.

5. Pick the entity type Line 9a and Line 9b

   Check one box on Line 9a. For an LLC, the box follows its tax treatment:

   • Single-member LLC treated as a disregarded entity: check Other and write "Disregarded entity".
   • U.S. single-member LLC with a foreign owner filing Form 5472: check Other and write "Foreign-owned U.S. disregarded entity-Form 5472".
   • Multi-member LLC taxed as a partnership: check Partnership.
   • LLC electing corporation or S corporation status: check Corporation and write the return form (single-member LLCs add "Single-member").

   A sole proprietor enters their SSN or ITIN next to the box, or "N/A" if a nonresident alien with no effectively connected U.S. income. Estates enter the decedent's SSN, trusts the grantor's TIN. With Other, describe the entity ("N/A" is not accepted). A corporation names its state or country of incorporation on Line 9b.

6. Give the reason for applying Line 10

   Check one box only and add the detail it asks for. A foreign-owned U.S. disregarded entity checks Other and writes "Foreign-owned U.S. disregarded entity filing Form 5472".

7. Enter the dates Line 11 and Line 12

   Line 11 is the start or acquisition date (foreign applicants: when the U.S. business began; trusts: funding date; estates: date of death). Line 12 is the last month of the accounting year, December for a calendar year.

8. Report employees and the Form 944 choice Line 13 and Line 14

   On Line 13, enter the most agricultural, household and other employees you expect at one time in the next 12 months, with 0 where none. With no employees, skip Line 14. Check it only if you expect $1,000 or less of employment tax a year (generally $5,000 or less in wages) and want to file Form 944 yearly instead of Form 941 quarterly. You then stay on Form 944 until the IRS says otherwise.

9. Enter the first wage date Line 15

   Give the date wages or annuities were or will first be paid. A withholding agent gives the date income is first paid to a nonresident alien. With no employees, write "N/A".

10. Describe the activity Line 16 and Line 17

    Check one box on Line 16 for the main source of income, or Other with a description. Line 17 needs detail, such as "General contractor for residential buildings".

11. Disclose any earlier EIN Line 18

    Check Yes if the line 1 entity ever received an EIN, and write it in.

12. Third Party Designee

    Complete it only to let someone, such as an accountant, receive the EIN and answer questions about the form. Their authority ends when the EIN is released, and the notice is still mailed to you. If their address or phone matches yours, you must fax or mail the form.

13. Sign and date

    An individual signs for themselves; a corporation, its president, vice president or other principal officer; a partnership, government entity or other unincorporated organization, a duly authorized member or officer; a trust or estate, the fiduciary. Foreign applicants may use any duly authorized person. Add your phone number, and your fax number if faxing.

Common mistakes

Where it goes

The form goes to the IRS. Never pay for an EIN: the IRS charges no fee.

Online. At IRS.gov/EIN, U.S. and territory applicants only. Finish in one session (15 minutes of inactivity ends it); the EIN appears at once.

Fax. The EIN generally comes back by fax within 4 business days, so include your fax number.

• Legal residence, principal place of business or office in one of the 50 states or D.C.: 855-641-6935.
• None of those in a state or D.C. (for example, a U.S. territory or abroad): 855-215-1627 from within the United States, or 304-707-9471 from outside it.

Mail. Mail the signed form at least 4 to 5 weeks before you need the number; the EIN arrives by mail in about 4 weeks. Call 800-829-4933 to check on a mailed application.

• From the 50 states or D.C.: Internal Revenue Service, Attn: EIN Operation, Cincinnati, OH 45999.
• From a U.S. territory or abroad: Internal Revenue Service, Attn: EIN International Operation, Cincinnati, OH 45999.

Phone, international applicants only. With no residence, business or office in the United States or its territories, call 267-941-1099 (not toll free), 6:00 a.m. to 11:00 p.m. Eastern, Monday to Friday. The caller must be authorized to receive the EIN. Fill in the form first, then write the EIN on it, sign and keep it; send it within 24 hours if the IRS asks.