Which EIN Route Applies to Your LLC?
Applicants with an SSN or ITIN use the free IRS online assistant and finish in 15 minutes. Applicants with neither file Form SS-4 on paper by fax, mail, or the international phone line.
| Your situation | Where to go | Time | Cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| You have an SSN | irs.gov online assistant | 15 minutes | Free |
| You have an ITIN | irs.gov online assistant | 15 minutes | Free |
| You have neither, filing yourself | Fax Form SS-4 with Foreign on line 7b | 4 to 8 weeks | Free |
| You have neither, we file it | einforllc.co Standard | Faxed within 7 business days, 16–19 total | $97 |
| You have neither, and the bank is waiting | einforllc.co Fast | Filed within 24 hours, 6 to 8 business days total | $127 |
Source: IRS Form SS-4 instructions, verified July 2026.
Read the first 2 rows before you read anything else on this page. If you hold a Social Security Number, the IRS issues your LLC’s EIN in one 15-minute session at $0, and paying anybody for it is money thrown away. The rest of this page exists for the last 3 rows, where the online assistant is closed and the paper route carries 6 fields that decide how the IRS treats the company forever. The two paid rows differ on speed alone: Standard is faxed within 7 business days with no IRS calls, and Fast is filed within 24 hours with the IRS phone follow-up included.
The online assistant runs Monday through Friday, 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. Eastern, and times out after 15 minutes of inactivity. It validates the responsible party against SSN and ITIN records, which is the exact screen that stops an applicant holding neither. That validation is not a bug and no workaround exists: the paper route is the IRS-sanctioned path, and it is spelled out in the Form SS-4 instructions.
Who Is the Responsible Party for an LLC With No SSN?
The individual who controls the LLC and its funds, named on Form SS-4 line 7a. Only 1 responsible party is permitted per EIN, and the IRS requires a human being rather than a company.
For a single-member LLC, that person is the member. For a multi-member LLC, it is the member with the greatest control over the funds, and the other members appear nowhere on Form SS-4. The IRS does not ask for their citizenship, their residence, or their tax status, which is why line 7b has an entry for applicants with no US tax number at all.
The 6 fields that carry the whole application
An LLC filing without an SSN lives or dies on 6 lines of Form SS-4. Four of them are LLC-only fields that no sole proprietor or corporation ever fills in.
| Line | What it asks | What you enter | Why it matters |
|---|---|---|---|
| Line 7a | Responsible party name | The member who controls the LLC and its funds | A human being. Only 1 per EIN. A registered agent or a parent company on this line triggers rejection. |
| Line 7b | SSN, ITIN, or EIN of that person | Foreign | This single word is what removes the SSN requirement. It also removes the online assistant as an option. |
| Line 8a | Is this application for an LLC? | Yes | Marks the entity as an LLC and opens lines 8b and 8c. No other entity type carries this block. |
| Line 8b | Number of LLC members | 1, or the real count | 1 member means a disregarded entity. 2 or more means a partnership filing Form 1065 every year. |
| Line 9a | Type of entity | The classification line 8b implies | This is the field that decides federal tax treatment for the life of the LLC. It follows line 8b. |
| Line 11 | Date the business started | The state's recorded formation date | Taken from the Articles of Organization, not the date the paperwork was signed or mailed. |
Source: IRS Form SS-4 and its instructions, verified July 2026.
The IRS requires a natural person on line 7a, never a company. A parent LLC, a holding company, a registered agent or a formation service in that field rejects the application, which is the single most common defect in filings prepared by an agency.
Naming a responsible party grants no ownership. The field is an administrative contact for the EIN, not a statement of who owns what, so a member listed there holds no extra claim on the business. Ownership lives in the operating agreement and in the Schedule K-1 allocations.
Choose someone still reachable in 3 years. Whoever sits on line 7a is the person the IRS authenticates against on every later verification call, and moving it afterwards means filing Form 8822-B within 60 days of the change.
No SSN. No passport upload.
What Changes on Lines 8a, 8b, and 9a Without an SSN?
Nothing changes. Line 8b takes the real member count, and line 9a follows it. A single-member LLC stays a disregarded entity and a multi-member LLC stays a partnership filing Form 1065.
This is the mechanism most no-SSN applicants get wrong. They assume a foreign owner triggers some separate classification, so they hand-edit line 9a into something that contradicts line 8b, and the IRS either rejects the form or assigns a treatment the owner never intended. The owner’s passport has no effect on any of these 3 fields. Member count alone drives them.
| LLC structure | Line 8b | Default classification | Annual federal filing |
|---|---|---|---|
| Single-member, US owner | 1 | Disregarded entity | Schedule C on Form 1040 |
| Single-member, foreign owner | 1 | Disregarded entity | Form 5472 + pro-forma 1120 |
| Multi-member, any owners | 2 or more | Partnership | Form 1065 |
| LLC electing corporate status | 1 or more | Corporation or S corporation | Form 1120 or 1120-S |
An LLC changes this treatment only by electing it: Form 8832 for corporate treatment, Form 2553 for S corporation treatment, which is due within 2 months and 15 days of the start of the tax year it takes effect. S corporation status carries a shareholder-eligibility rule that excludes non-resident aliens, so it is closed to most owners reading this page. Read the full breakdown on llc tax classification or the election mechanics on Form 8832 for an LLC.
Which IRS Fax Number Does Your LLC Use?
Fax 855-641-6935 if the LLC is based in one of the 50 states, and 855-215-1627 if it is not. The line is chosen by where the entity is based, never by where the owner lives.
This trips up nearly every foreign owner, because the instinct is to pick the international line. A Wyoming LLC run from Lagos or Lahore is still an entity based in a US state, so it belongs on 855-641-6935. The 855-215-1627 line is for entities with no legal residence, principal office, or principal agency in any of the 50 states.
| Where the LLC is based | Where the owner lives | IRS channel |
|---|---|---|
| Wyoming | Outside the US | Fax 855-641-6935 |
| Delaware | Outside the US | Fax 855-641-6935 |
| Florida | Outside the US | Fax 855-641-6935 |
| New Mexico | Inside the US | Fax 855-641-6935 |
| No US state office or agency | Outside the US | Fax 855-215-1627 |
| Any state, applying by phone | Outside the US | Call 267-941-1099 |
Source: IRS “Where to File Your Taxes for Form SS-4”, verified July 2026.
The IRS international line at 267-941-1099 answers 6 a.m. to 11 p.m. Eastern and is open only to applicants whose entity is outside the US. The caller must hold the authority to receive the EIN and must have the completed Form SS-4 in front of them, because the agent reads the form line by line. There is no fee on any of these 3 channels.
How Long Does an LLC EIN Take Without an SSN?
Fax runs 4 to 8 weeks, mail runs 4 to 6 weeks, and the international phone line runs 1 to 2 weeks. einforllc.co Standard is faxed within 7 business days and runs 16–19 business days in total. Fast is filed within 24 hours and runs 6 to 8 business days in total.
| Channel | Time to EIN | Tracking | Cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| IRS online assistant | Closed without an SSN or ITIN | Instant | $0 |
| IRS fax, Form SS-4 | 4 to 8 weeks | None | $0 |
| IRS mail, Form SS-4 | 4 to 6 weeks | None | $0 |
| IRS international phone line | 1 to 2 weeks | None | $0 |
| einforllc.co Standard | 16–19 business days | Written filing deadline | $97 |
| einforllc.co Fast | 6 to 8 business days | Written filing deadline | $127 |
Source: IRS Form SS-4 instructions, verified July 2026.
The word missing from rows 2, 3 and 4 is tracking. The IRS issues no reference number for a paper SS-4, publishes no status page, and reports a rejection by mail rather than by email. An applicant who faxes on day 1 and hears nothing by day 40 has no way to learn whether the form is in a queue or was rejected in week 2 for a name mismatch. That silence, not the raw wait, is what turns a 6-week filing into a 4-month one.
Our clock is different and written down. Filing happens within 1 business day of receiving your completed details, the filing deadline appears in your confirmation before we file, and business days mean Monday through Friday excluding US federal holidays. On Standard: filed by fax within 7 business days, or that fee is refunded. On Fast: filed and the IRS call made within 24 hours, guaranteed, or that fee is refunded.
Why Do No-SSN LLC EIN Applications Get Rejected?
Four errors account for most rejections: a name that mismatches the Articles, filing before state approval, a wrong member count on line 8b, and a company named as the responsible party.
The LLC name misses the Articles by one character. LLC versus L.L.C., a dropped comma before LLC, or an ampersand written as the word and. The IRS matches the string, not the intent, and a single character fails it.
The form went in before the state approved the LLC. Form SS-4 needs the approved legal name and the recorded formation date. Wyoming approves in 1 business day and New York runs up to 4 weeks, so the gap is real.
Line 8b carries the wrong member count. Writing 1 when a second member signed the operating agreement locks in disregarded-entity treatment for a company the IRS should be taxing as a partnership on Form 1065.
A company sits on line 7a. A registered agent, a formation provider, or a parent LLC on the responsible-party line triggers rejection. The IRS requires 1 human being who controls the funds.
Line 7b was left blank instead of reading Foreign. A blank field reads as an incomplete form. The word Foreign is the entry that tells the IRS the responsible party holds no SSN and no ITIN.
Every one of these costs the full wait again, because the IRS restarts the queue rather than correcting the form. That is the arithmetic behind our Articles review: a character-by-character name match and a second reader on lines 8a, 8b, and 9a before anything is transmitted. It is the cheapest 10 minutes in the whole process.
No SSN. No passport upload.
What Does the LLC Owe After the EIN Arrives?
A foreign-owned single-member LLC files Form 5472 with a pro-forma Form 1120 every year, even with $0 of income. The penalty for missing it is $25,000 per year.
This is the part the fax route never tells you. The EIN is not the finish line; it is the number the annual filing goes under. Internal Revenue Code section 6038A imposes the $25,000 penalty per year, and the obligation attaches from year one, whether the LLC traded, banked, or sat dormant. Section 6109 is what makes the EIN the LLC’s identifier on all of it.
Form 5472 plus a pro-forma Form 1120, annually. Required of every foreign-owned single-member LLC, at $0 of revenue, from the first year the LLC exists.
Form 1065 if the LLC has 2 or more members. A partnership return each year, with a Schedule K-1 issued to every member.
The CP-575 letter, stored before you open anything. The IRS issues it once and never reprints it. A replacement arrives only as a 147C letter on request.
Nothing in year 2 for the EIN itself. An EIN never renews and never expires, so year 2 and every year after costs $0.
Read the penalty rules in full on form 5472, and the downstream banking checklist on EIN for an LLC bank account.
This page states federal tax rules current as of July 2026. It is not legal or tax advice. Confirm your LLC’s position with a licensed CPA or attorney before filing.
What Does an LLC EIN Cost Without an SSN?
The IRS charges $0 on every channel. einforllc.co charges $97, or $127 filed within 24 hours. Rocket Lawyer charges $59.99, ZenBusiness $99, and Northwest $200 at its no-SSN rate. The EIN never renews, so year 2 costs $0.
| Feature | einforllc.co | DIY at IRS | Northwest | ZenBusiness |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Price without an SSN | $97, or $127 fast | $0 | $200 | $99 |
| Time to EIN | 16–19 business days, or 6 to 8 fast | 4 to 8 weeks | No deadline | No deadline |
| Line 8a, 8b, 9a review | Yes, every order | You decide | No | No |
| Articles name match | Character-by-character | You verify | No | Accuracy guarantee |
| Filing deadline in writing | Yes, or that fee is refunded | Not applicable | No | No |
| Formation sold alongside | Optional add-on, +$197 | None | Formation, agent | Formation, agent |
| Year 2 and beyond, EIN | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
Competitor prices verified July 2026. Full breakdown on the LLC EIN cost page.
Read this before paying anyone, including us. The EIN itself is free. The IRS has never charged for one and never will. The $97 buys the Articles review, the classification check on 3 form lines that set federal tax treatment for the life of the company, the SS-4 faxed within 7 business days, and that deadline in writing. The $127 tier buys speed: filed within 24 hours with the IRS call included. The EIN is priced on its own, so if your LLC already exists that is the whole invoice, and we will tell you to leave the $197 formation add-on unchecked rather than sell it to you. If you hold an SSN, close this tab and use the IRS online assistant instead.
No SSN. No passport upload. · Miss the filing deadline and that fee is refunded
Prefer to read the offer end to end first? Start at the $97 LLC EIN specialist service.