IRS "Interviews" for EINs

Beginning Tuesday, October 9, 2007, taxpayers can apply for a federal Employer Identification Number (EIN) online and get it before disconnecting from the Internal Revenue Service website. The IRS calls this innovation an "interview-style" application.

This new process supplants the former process of online completion of an IRS Form SS-4:

No more need to file a Form SS-4! We ask you the questions and you give us the answers.

The application includes embedded help topics and hyperlinked keywords and definitions so separate instructions aren’t needed.

After all validations are done you will get your EIN immediately upon completion.

You can then download, save, and print your confirmation notice. It’s fast, free, and user-friendly!

A new EIN is issued upon completion of the online "interview". Then a taxpayer can use it as a "Taxpayer Identification Number" (TIN), as explained by the IRS in "Apply for an EIN Online":

This EIN is your permanent number and can be used immediately for most of your business needs, including: opening a bank account; applying for business licenses; and filing a tax return by mail.

However, no matter how you apply (phone, fax, mail, or online), it will take up to two weeks before your EIN becomes part of the IRS' permanent records. You must wait until this occurs before you can: file an electronic return, make an electronic payment, or pass an IRS Taxpayer Identification Number matching program.

See also: "Online EIN: Frequently Asked Questions".

Assuming that you have the proper system requirements (computer, connection, & browser), you can access the new form of online application during the following hours:

Monday - Friday:
6:00 a.m. to 12:30 a.m. Eastern time

Saturday:
6:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m. Eastern time

Sunday:
7:00 p.m. to 12:00 a.m. Eastern time

This new form of online EIN application will be made available beginning at 6 a.m. Eastern Time, on Tuesday, October 9, 2007.