How do you apply for an EIN without an SSN?
Complete Form SS-4, enter Foreign on line 7b, sign it, and fax it to the IRS. Use 855-641-6935 when the entity has a US address and 855-215-1627 when it has none. The IRS charges $0.
The IRS estimates 52 minutes to prepare and send Form SS-4, and 42 minutes to learn the rules behind it. Preparation is not the slow part of an EIN application without an SSN. Processing is, and a single wrong field restarts it.
- Register the entity with your state first. The IRS issues EINs to entities that legally exist. Line 1 takes the approved legal name and line 11 takes the state approval date.
- Download Form SS-4 from irs.gov. The IRS charges $0 for the form and $0 for the EIN. The form runs 18 numbered fields plus one signature block.
- Name one person on line 7a. The responsible party is the individual who controls the entity and its funds. The IRS accepts one, and it must be a person.
- Enter Foreign on line 7b. Line 7b takes an SSN, an ITIN, or an EIN. An applicant holding none of the three writes the single word Foreign.
- Complete lines 1 through 18. Line 13 needs a number in all three boxes, and 0 is a complete answer. Line 7b decides the route; lines 8 and 9 decide the tax class.
- Add your own fax number and sign the form. An unsigned SS-4 gets returned unprocessed. A fax number in the header is where the IRS faxes the EIN back.
- Fax the form to the IRS. Send to 855-641-6935 when the entity has a US address, or to 855-215-1627 when it has none.
Two limits shape the route. The IRS issues 1 EIN per responsible party per day, so a founder registering 3 companies files across 3 days. And the IRS assistant at irs.gov runs Monday to Friday, 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. Eastern, which is a schedule no applicant without an SSN needs, because that tool rejects line 7b the moment it reads Foreign.
Sources: IRS Form SS-4 and its instructions, including the Paperwork Reduction Act time estimates, for the form and the 1-per-day limit; IRS, Apply for an Employer Identification Number (EIN) Online, for the assistant hours. Both verified July 2026.
What do you enter on line 7b without an SSN?
Enter the word Foreign. Line 7b accepts 4 entries: an SSN, an ITIN, an EIN, or Foreign. The IRS issues EINs to responsible parties who hold none of the first three, and no identity document is required.
| Line 7b entry | Who uses it | Online tool | Route that follows |
|---|---|---|---|
| SSN | A US citizen or permanent resident | Accepted | irs.gov, 15 minutes, $0 |
| ITIN | A person with an IRS-issued individual tax ID | Accepted | irs.gov, 15 minutes, $0 |
| EIN | A responsible party that already holds one | Accepted | irs.gov, 15 minutes, $0 |
| Foreign | A responsible party with none of the above | Blocked | Fax Form SS-4, $0 |
Source: IRS Instructions for Form SS-4, line 7b, verified July 2026.
Line 7a decides who line 7b describes
Line 7a takes one individual: the person who controls the entity, its funds, and its assets. The IRS accepts 1 responsible party per application, and it must be a human being. A parent company on line 7a fails. A formation agent on line 7a fails. An accountant on line 7a fails.
For a single-member LLC, line 7a names the member. For a multi-member LLC, it names the member who controls the funds, and line 8b carries the member count. That count sets federal tax treatment: 1 member defaults to a disregarded entity, 2 or more defaults to a partnership.
The 4 fields a foreign applicant answers differently
Line 7b takes Foreign. Lines 4a and 4b take a foreign mailing address, including the province, the postal code, and the country. Lines 5a and 5b stay blank when there is no US street address, and a P.O. box is never accepted on line 5a. Line 6 takes the state of formation and its county, copied from the formation document.
A single-member LLC with a foreign owner checks disregarded-entity treatment on line 9a and then files Form 5472 with a pro-forma Form 1120 every year. The IRS penalty for failing to file Form 5472 is $25,000 per year, per entity. The EIN application is the moment that obligation starts.
Source: IRS, Instructions for Form 5472, verified July 2026.
Every field, in order, with its IRS rule and its foreign-applicant note lives on the Form SS-4 18-field checklist.
How do you fax Form SS-4 to the IRS without an SSN?
Fax the signed form to 855-641-6935 when the entity has a principal office in a US state, or to 855-215-1627 when it has none. Put your own fax number on the form so the IRS faxes the EIN back.
| Channel | Number | Who uses it | IRS fee |
|---|---|---|---|
| IRS fax, US-based entity | 855-641-6935 | Principal office inside a US state | $0 |
| IRS fax, international | 855-215-1627 | No legal residence or office in any state | $0 |
| IRS international phone line | 267-941-1099 | International applicants calling the IRS | $0 |
Source: IRS, Where to File Your Taxes for Form SS-4, verified July 2026.
What to send, and what comes back
Send the signed Form SS-4 and nothing else. No passport page, no formation certificate, no cover letter of explanation. The IRS asks for 18 fields and a signature. The instructions state a return fax within 4 business days when the applicant supplies a fax number, which makes that one header field the difference between a fax back and a mailed letter weeks later.
A fax has no tracking number and no online status page. Nothing confirms receipt, and nothing tells you the form landed in the right queue. That silence is the entire problem with the no-SSN route, and it is the reason a filing service exists at all.
The Third Party Designee block
Below line 18, Form SS-4 carries a Third Party Designee block: a name, an address, a phone number, and a fax number. Signing it authorizes that person to receive the EIN and answer IRS questions about the application. The authority ends the day the EIN issues.
That block is how a service receives your number without holding your identity documents. It grants exactly 1 thing, for exactly 1 application, and it expires on delivery.
The full fax procedure, cover-sheet contents, and what to do when a fax bounces are covered on the ein by fax page.
Can you apply for an EIN by phone without an SSN?
The IRS issues EINs by phone on 267-941-1099, open 6 a.m. to 11 p.m. Eastern, Monday to Friday. The line is not toll-free. Complete all 18 fields of Form SS-4 before dialing, because the agent reads them in order.
The caller must be authorized to receive the EIN. That means the responsible party named on line 7a, or a person named and signed into the Third Party Designee block at the bottom of the form. An agent who reaches an unauthorized caller ends the call without issuing a number.
Two facts decide whether the phone route fits. It runs on a 5-day week in a single US time zone, which puts it in the middle of the night across much of Asia and Europe. And it issues nothing in writing during the call: the CP-575 still arrives by mail afterwards.
Hold times, the exact script, and what the agent asks for are covered on the apply for ein by phone page.
Source: IRS, International Taxpayers — Employer Identification Number, verified July 2026.
How long does an EIN take without an SSN?
The IRS instructions state a return fax within 4 business days when you supply a fax number. Mailed forms take 4 weeks. einnumber.co Standard lands 12–14 business days total, and Fast lands under a week.
| Method | Time to EIN | SSN required | Written proof | Cost |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| IRS online assistant | 15 minutes | Yes | Immediate | $0 |
| IRS fax, with return fax number | 4 business days | No | Return fax | $0 |
| IRS fax, no return fax number | Days to weeks | No | CP-575 by mail | $0 |
| IRS mail, Form SS-4 | 4 weeks | No | CP-575 by mail | $0 |
| IRS international phone | One call | No | CP-575 by mail | $0 |
| einnumber.co Standard | 12–14 business days total | No | EIN + CP-575 | $67 |
| einnumber.co Fast | Under a week | No | EIN + CP-575 | $97 |
Source: IRS Instructions for Form SS-4, verified July 2026. Business days are Monday to Friday, excluding US federal holidays.
Standard, at $67, is filed by fax within 5 business days of receiving your completed details, with no IRS calls on that tier. Fast, at $97, is filed within 24 hours and the IRS call is made inside the same window. Your filing confirmation prints the date the form went out, and missing that window makes the filing free.
One number never changes across all 7 rows above. The IRS fee is $0 on every route, and year 2 costs $0 as well, because an EIN never renews and never expires.
What documents do you need to apply for an EIN without an SSN?
You need 1 document: the state approval that created the entity. Form SS-4 asks for no passport, no driver's licence, and no proof of address across all 18 of its numbered fields. No identity upload is part of the process.
The legal name, character for character. Line 1 copies the state approval exactly. LLC and L.L.C. read as 2 different entities to the IRS.
The state approval date. Line 11 takes the date the state approved the entity, not the date you paid the filing fee.
The state and county of formation. Line 6 takes both, copied from the formation document, when there is no US office.
One responsible party and their address. Line 7a takes the person. Lines 4a and 4b take the mailing address, foreign addresses included.
An employee headcount for the next 12 months. Line 13 takes 3 numbers: agricultural, household, and other. 0 in each box is a complete answer.
An ITIN is not on that list, and waiting for one adds weeks to a filing the IRS accepts today. The two numbers serve different purposes: an ITIN identifies a person on a personal tax return, and an EIN identifies a business. Line 7b accepts Foreign in place of both.
A trade name is not on the list either. Line 2 takes a DBA only when it differs from line 1, and a DBA never receives its own number. That rule is unpacked on the ein for dba page.
Why do EIN applications without an SSN get rejected?
A name on line 1 that differs from the state record causes most rejections. Four more causes: a company on line 7a, a blank line 13, a start date on line 11 before state approval, and a missing signature.
Line 1 does not match the state record. One character decides it. A comma, a period, or Inc versus Inc. reads as a different entity.
Line 7a names a company. The IRS requires a person. A parent LLC, a nominee, or a filing agent on line 7a fails.
Line 13 is blank. All 3 boxes need a number. Enter 0 for agricultural, 0 for household, and 0 for other.
Line 11 predates state approval. The IRS issues EINs to entities that already exist. Use the date printed by the state.
The form is unsigned. An unsigned SS-4 returns unprocessed, and the wait restarts from zero on a route with no tracking.
The word Foreign on line 7b is not on that list. It is the correct answer, not a defect, and the IRS instructions name it directly. Applications get rejected for the same 5 reasons whether the responsible party holds an SSN or not.
The IRS reports a rejection by mail, not by email. On a fax filing with no tracking, that notice arrives weeks after the mistake, and the 18 fields start again. Reading line 1 back against the formation document before the form leaves removes the single largest cause.
What arrives after the IRS approves the application?
You receive the 9-digit EIN and the official IRS CP-575 confirmation letter. The CP-575 prints the EIN and the legal name from line 1. Banks and payment platforms verify the business against that one document.
The EIN prints in a 2-digit and 7-digit format, separated by a hyphen. The IRS issues 1 CP-575 per EIN and never reprints it. A replacement arrives only as a 147C letter, which the IRS sends on request to the responsible party.
Store a copy before opening any account. Banks, payment processors, and marketplaces request the CP-575 during business verification, and they check the name printed on it against the formation document. A 1-character mismatch on line 1 surfaces here, months after filing, at the moment money is waiting to move.
The number lasts the life of the entity. It never renews and never expires, which puts the year 2 cost at $0 and the cost of every year after that at $0. An EIN issued in 2026 without an SSN is the same permanent number an SSN holder receives in 15 minutes online.
How much does it cost to apply for an EIN without an SSN?
The IRS charges $0, on the fax route and every other route. Year 2 costs $0, because an EIN never renews. einnumber.co charges $67 to file by fax, or $97 to file within 24 hours.
| Filed by | Price | Filing guarantee in writing | Year 2+ |
|---|---|---|---|
| Yourself, direct to the IRS | $0 | None | $0 |
| einnumber.co Standard | $67 | Filed by fax within 5 business days | $0 |
| einnumber.co Fast | $97 | Filed and the IRS call made within 24 hours | $0 |
| Northwest | $200 | Not stated | $0 |
| ZenBusiness | $99 | Not stated | $0 |
| Rocket Lawyer | $59.99 | Not stated | $0 |
Competitor prices verified July 2026. Northwest reflects the no-SSN rate.
Read this before paying anyone, including us. Holding an SSN means the IRS issues your EIN at irs.gov in 15 minutes for $0, and paying $67 buys you nothing at all. The $67 exists for the applicants the online tool blocks at line 7b: a paper form, a fax line with no tracking, and 18 fields that have to be right the first time or cost weeks.
What the fee covers is execution and a filing deadline. We prepare all 18 fields and verify line 1 against your state record character by character. Standard, at $67, faxes the form within 5 business days. Fast, at $97, files within 24 hours and makes the IRS call in the same window. Miss the window and the filing is free.
See how much an EIN costs across every method, or use the EIN filing service from $67 now.