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What is an EIN, and why does your US LLC actually need one?
An EIN is the IRS's free federal tax ID for a business. It belongs to the company, not to you, which is why a non-US citizen can hold one without an SSN or ITIN.
The IRS calls it an Employer Identification Number and issues it to businesses, tax-exempt organizations and other entities [3]. Ignore the word "employer." You do not need employees. A single-member LLC with one foreign owner and zero staff still needs an EIN.
Here is the distinction that trips people up. A TIN is the umbrella term for taxpayer identification numbers, issued either by the Social Security Administration or by the IRS [1]. Your SSN or ITIN is a personal number. Your LLC's EIN is an entity number. Two different things, two different applications.
Why you need the entity one, in practice:
- US business bank account. Almost every bank and fintech asks for the EIN on the application.
- Stripe and payment processors. Onboarding forms ask for the company's tax ID before they approve your account.
- W-9 requests. A US client that pays you will ask for a W-9, and the W-9 wants the EIN. Without it, some clients withhold or stall payment.
- Federal filings. Your LLC's returns go out under the EIN.
It costs nothing. The IRS issues EINs free [3]. Any number you see attached to an EIN is a provider or agent service fee, not a government fee. Keep those two buckets separate when you budget.
If you have not formed the entity yet, start with US LLC formation for non-residents. The EIN comes after the Articles of Organization are filed, because the IRS wants your formation date and legal name.
Can you use the IRS online EIN application without an SSN or ITIN?
No. The online assistant requires the responsible party to enter a valid SSN or ITIN, and it validates that number against IRS records. With neither, you cannot get past that screen.
This is the most common wall non-US founders hit. You read that the IRS lets you apply online in minutes [3], you open the form, you reach the identification field, and you are stuck. A foreign address does not get you past it. A passport number does not get you past it. The tool is checking for an SSN or ITIN, full stop.
Who can use the online route: US citizens, green-card holders, and anyone who already holds an SSN or ITIN. That includes some non-residents. If you already have an ITIN from a previous US tax filing, try the online application first.
Now the part people misread. You do not need to be a citizen, a resident, or an ITIN holder to get an EIN. The IRS issues EINs to entities, and a foreign-owned entity qualifies. You are eligible. You are just not eligible for that particular tool.
The IRS publishes the EIN routes side by side: online, fax, and mail [2]. Online is the fast lane. Fax and mail are the lanes open to you.
Do not apply for an ITIN just to open the online form. An ITIN takes months and exists for your personal tax return, not your company's tax ID. If you genuinely need one later, read how to apply for an ITIN then.
Filing Form SS-4 by fax or mail: the route that works for non-residents
File Form SS-4, Application for Employer Identification Number, and send it by fax or mail. Fax is faster because you give the IRS a return fax number and they send the EIN back the same way.
Official form (IRS.gov): Form SS-4 official PDF
The mechanics:
- Download the current SS-4 from irs.gov. Do not use a copy a friend saved two years ago.
- Fill it in, then print and sign where required, or complete it electronically if your version supports it.
- Fax it to the number listed in the SS-4 instructions for applicants with no legal residence in the US.
- Or mail it to the IRS address for entities without a US legal residence.
Say your LLC was formed in Wyoming last week and you are sitting in Pune with the SS-4 open. You fill it out, fax it on a Monday, and put your own fax number on the return line. By Friday the EIN comes back on the fax machine. That is the whole process, and it costs you the price of a fax.
Suppose instead you mail it because you do not have a fax. The same form goes by post, the IRS opens it weeks later, and the reply letter travels back to India. Plan on that being slow.
The phone route is not open to you. The IRS phone line for EINs serves applicants who can identify themselves with an SSN or ITIN.
What do you put on the SS-4 when you have no SSN or ITIN?
Leave the SSN and ITIN fields blank where they do not apply, and complete the entity, responsible-party and reason-for-applying fields accurately. A blank personal ID field is correct here. A wrong one causes a rejection.
The lines that matter for a foreign-owned LLC:
- Line 1, legal name. Copy it exactly from your Articles of Organization. "Tech Labs LLC" and "Techlab LLC" are different names to the IRS.
- Line 2, trade name. Your brand name, if it differs. Otherwise leave it blank.
- Lines 4 and 5, mailing address. Your Indian address is fine. The IRS does not require a US address on the SS-4.
- Line 7a, entity type. Check "Limited liability company" and enter the number of members.
- Line 7b, LLC classification. A single-member LLC owned by one person checks "Disregarded entity" and enters the owner's name. A multi-member LLC checks "Partnership." Pick wrong here and the IRS will question the whole filing.
- Line 8, reason for applying. "Started new business" fits most founders. "Banking purpose" fits if the bank is the one demanding the EIN.
- Line 9. Skip it unless you are a corporation or a specific exempt entity.
- Line 10, reason. "Banking purpose" or "To open a US business bank account" is enough.
- Line 11, date business started. Your formation date.
- Line 18, responsible party. The human who controls the entity. More on this below.
A foreign phone number on the form is acceptable. So is a foreign mailing address. The IRS is asking who you are, not where your office is.
Note: line numbers shift between revisions of the form. Check your entries against the revision you downloaded before you fax.
If you are unsure how your LLC is classified for US tax, the classification feeds directly into federal tax support for Form 5472 and Form 1120 later, so get it right now.
Responsible party vs contact person: who goes where on the form?
The responsible party is the real person who controls the entity. That can be you, sitting in Bengaluru with no SSN and no ITIN. The contact person is whoever the IRS can call about the application, and that can be a third party.
Put yourself down as responsible party. You own the company, you control it, and you are the person the IRS wants on record. A foreign address does not disqualify you. No SSN does not disqualify you.
Do not let an agent talk you into listing a nominee as responsible party. It creates a paper trail that contradicts your ownership, and it gets messy the first time a bank or the IRS asks who actually controls the LLC.
The contact person field is different. If a formation agent is filing on your behalf, they can be the contact person so the IRS calls them instead of you across time zones. You can also authorize a third-party designee to receive the EIN on your behalf.
Imagine you are traveling for three weeks and cannot watch a fax machine. You name your agent as contact person, they receive the EIN, and they forward it. Your name stays on the responsible party line. That is the clean version.
How long does it take, and how do you follow up if nothing arrives?
Online is immediate. Fax with a return fax number is days, not weeks. Mail is the slow route.
If nothing comes back, call the IRS Business & Specialty Tax Line and reference your fax date. Have a copy of the SS-4 in front of you, because they will ask for the legal name and the date you sent it.
If the IRS needs more information, they contact you using the details on the form. Answer fast. A stalled SS-4 stalls your bank account and your Stripe onboarding behind it.
If the EIN was issued but the letter never reached you, request an EIN verification letter, often called a 147C letter, by phone. It confirms the EIN on IRS letterhead, which is what a bank wants when you cannot produce the original notice.
Common Mistakes
Most rejections and delays come down to a handful of avoidable errors. None of them are exotic.
- Name mismatch. The legal name on the SS-4 must match your formation documents character for character. This is the number one cause of a bounce back.
- Wrong LLC classification on Line 7b. A single-member LLC marked as a partnership, or the reverse, gets questioned.
- Responsible party left blank or filled with the company name. It must be a real human.
- No return fax number. You fax the form, the IRS has no way to fax back, and you wait for a letter that takes weeks.
- Faxing to the domestic line. International applicants use a different number. Wrong fax, no EIN.
- Applying twice. One entity, one EIN. A second application creates duplicate records and a cleanup call.
- Using a US address you do not control. If the IRS mails a notice there and nobody forwards it, you never see it.
Heads-up: a rejected SS-4 does not just delay your tax ID. It delays the bank account and the payment processor that both want the number. Fix the form before you send it, not after.
What should you do with the EIN once it arrives?
The EIN is step one, not the finish line. Store the CP 575 notice or the 147C letter somewhere you will find it in two years, give the number to your bank and your payment processor, and use it on the returns your entity owes.
Official form (IRS.gov): Form 5472 official PDF
For a foreign-owned single-member LLC, the annual filing is Form 5472 attached to a pro forma Form 1120. That is a real obligation with real penalties, and it is the piece most founders discover a year too late.
On the payer side, your entity may provide Form W-8BEN-E to US payers. Whether a W-9 applies instead depends on how the entity is classified, and the two forms are not interchangeable. Get this wrong and a client withholds tax you then have to recover.
One more boundary. The EIN does not replace an ITIN. If you personally need to file a US individual return, you need the personal number separately. The company's EIN does nothing for your personal filing.
When you are ready to open the account, see opening a US business bank account as a non-resident. An EIN makes you eligible to apply. Approval stays the bank's decision.
NexFyla helps non-US founders form US companies and set up EIN and US business banking support. If you want help with US LLC formation, EIN and business setup, NexFyla can assist.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can a non-US citizen get an EIN without an SSN or ITIN? Yes. The EIN belongs to the entity, not the person. File Form SS-4 by fax or mail, because the online tool requires an SSN or ITIN.
Why did the IRS online EIN application block me? The online assistant validates the responsible party's SSN or ITIN against IRS records. Without one, it will not proceed. Use Form SS-4 instead.
Do I need an ITIN to get an EIN for my LLC? No. An ITIN is for your personal tax filing. The LLC's EIN is separate and does not require the owner to hold an ITIN.
How long does an EIN take by fax for a non-resident? Faster than mail, because you supply a return fax number. Confirm the current IRS-published processing time before you plan around it.
Can I be the responsible party on the SS-4 if I live outside the US? Yes. The responsible party is the person who controls the entity. A foreign address and no SSN do not disqualify you.
Does it cost anything to get an EIN from the IRS? No. The IRS issues EINs free. Any fee you see is a provider or agent service charge.
*Last updated: February 2026.*
Related reading
- Getting a US EIN as a Non-Resident Entity: What Speeds It Up
- Can Non-Residents Get an EIN in 3 Days? What to Expect
- IRS EIN for Non-Residents in 2026: Application Process Explained
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