Do I need an EIN? When a US business needs one, and when your SSN is enough

When the IRS requires an EIN

According to the IRS, you need an Employer Identification Number if you:

• have employees;
• pay employment, excise, or alcohol, tobacco and firearms taxes;
• withhold taxes on income, other than wages, paid to a non-resident alien.

Partnerships, LLCs, corporations and tax-exempt organizations are also listed as needing one.

Sole proprietors without employees

A sole proprietor with no employees and no excise tax obligation is not on the IRS list. You report income on Schedule C under your own taxpayer number, and to pay self-employment tax you need a Social Security number or an ITIN.

You may still request an EIN when a bank or your state asks for one. Giving clients an EIN on Form W-9 instead of your SSN also keeps your SSN off other people’s files.

Single-member LLCs

A single-member LLC is disregarded for income tax but treated as a separate entity for employment taxes and certain excise taxes. It needs its own EIN if it has employees or must file those excise returns.

If you are not a US person and own a US single-member LLC, the LLC files its own information return (Form 5472 with a pro forma Form 1120), which requires an EIN for the LLC.

Recording it in your company profile

In your company profile you can record an EIN, record that you applied for one, or record that you use the owner’s SSN or ITIN. The number itself is never asked for in the last case, and an EIN is shown only to people you allow to see it.