To verify an EIN, run 3 checks: confirm the 9-digit XX-XXXXXXX format, match the legal name beside it, and confirm it against an IRS source. Your own EIN verifies through a 147C letter; a business EIN verifies through IRS TIN Matching or a W-9.
No single tool verifies every EIN. To verify your own, call the IRS at 800-829-4933 for a 147C letter, reissued free in 1 to 2 business days. To verify a business EIN before a 1099, use IRS TIN Matching, which checks the number and name at $0. A public company's EIN sits on SEC EDGAR; a nonprofit's on IRS Tax Exempt Organization Search. A private company's EIN is confidential under 26 U.S.C. § 6109, so you collect a Form W-9 directly. No legitimate route ever charges a fee.
Verifying an EIN confirms a 9-digit Employer Identification Number is real, active, and tied to the correct legal name. 3 checks do it: the format, the name match, and an IRS source document. Every legitimate check costs $0.
An EIN, also called a Federal Tax ID, is assigned once and never expires. The IRS prints it as 2 digits, a hyphen, then 7 digits, for example 12-3456789. Verification splits into 2 jobs, and the right route depends on which one you need. For the anatomy of those 9 digits, read the EIN number format guide.
The single fact that governs every check: there is no public database that validates all 30 million-plus private EINs. Only your own EIN, plus public-company and nonprofit EINs, verify against an authoritative source. The table below routes each job to its correct free method.
| Your job | The verification route | Turnaround | Cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| Verify your own EIN is active | 147C letter from the IRS | 1 to 2 business days | $0 |
| Verify a vendor EIN for a 1099 | IRS TIN Matching plus a W-9 | Seconds to 24 hours | $0 |
| Verify a public company EIN | SEC EDGAR 10-K cover | Under 2 minutes | $0 |
| Verify a nonprofit EIN | IRS Tax Exempt Organization Search | Under 2 minutes | $0 |
Sources: IRS, IRS TIN Matching, SEC EDGAR, IRS Tax Exempt Organization Search, verified August 2026.
Request a 147C letter. Call the IRS Business & Specialty line at 800-829-4933, open 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. local time, Monday to Friday. The IRS confirms the EIN is active and faxes the 147C in 1 to 2 business days at $0.
An assigned EIN never expires and is never deactivated for inactivity, so a valid number stays valid for the life of the entity. The 147C is the official confirmation that the IRS still holds the number against your legal name. Before you call, match the 9 digits across 2 documents you already hold.
| Source you hold | Where the EIN prints | What it confirms |
|---|---|---|
| CP-575 assignment notice | Top block, beside legal name | The original assigned number |
| Form 1120 / 1120-S / 1065 | Box B or Box D, page 1 | A preparer verified it before filing |
| IRS Letter 147C | First line of the letter body | The IRS confirms it is active today |
| Business bank file | Account application header | The bank checked it against the CP-575 |
International callers without toll-free access dial 267-941-1099 instead. Only an authorized person receives the confirmation: the responsible party on line 7a of Form SS-4, a corporate officer, or a Form 2848 designee. The full 13-document checklist sits on the find a lost EIN number page, and the deep 147C guide is the EIN verification letter (147C) page.
Match the source to the entity. Collect a Form W-9 for a private vendor, then run IRS TIN Matching. Search SEC EDGAR for a public company, or IRS Tax Exempt Organization Search for a nonprofit. Each route to verify a business EIN costs $0.
A private LLC will never appear in a public search, so you verify its EIN through the paperwork it hands you. A listed corporation and a registered charity both disclose their EIN in mandatory federal filings, so those verify against a public record. The find an EIN for a business page walks each source field by field.
| Entity type | Where to verify the EIN | What confirms it | Cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| Private vendor or LLC | Form W-9 line 7, then TIN Matching | Name plus EIN agree at the IRS | $0 |
| Public company | SEC EDGAR 10-K cover, page 1 | Filed under penalty with the SEC | $0 |
| 501(c) nonprofit | IRS TEO Search, Form 990 | 1.8 million exempt records | $0 |
| Counterparty at scale | Paid data broker | Unverified scraped record | $50–$250 |
Sources: IRS Form W-9, IRS TIN Matching, SEC EDGAR, IRS Tax Exempt Organization Search, verified August 2026.
Request a Form W-9 before the first payment, not after. Line 7 carries the 9-digit EIN, and the IRS requires a W-9 from any vendor you pay $600 or more in a calendar year. A vendor who refuses triggers 24 percent backup withholding under Section 3406, reported on Form 945 by January 31. Keep the completed W-9 for 3 to 7 years.
IRS TIN Matching checks an EIN and legal name against IRS records before you file a 1099. Interactive mode verifies 25 records per session; bulk mode verifies up to 100,000 records within 24 hours. A match returns code 0, and the tool costs $0.
TIN Matching is the closest thing to an official EIN validator, but it is reserved for payers who file information returns. Register through IRS e-Services, then submit a name and number pair. The response tells you whether the EIN and name agree, so a wrong pair never reaches a filed 1099-NEC or 1099-MISC.
| Mode | Capacity | Turnaround | Cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| Interactive | 25 records per session | Seconds, on screen | $0 |
| Bulk | Up to 100,000 per file | Within 24 hours | $0 |
A mismatch on a filed 1099 draws a CP-2100 notice from the IRS. After 2 unheeded notices, the payer must start 24 percent backup withholding on that vendor. Verifying with TIN Matching first prevents both the notice and the withholding, at a cost of $0 per check.
A verified EIN confirms 3 facts: valid 9-digit format, that the IRS issued the number, and the matching legal name. It confirms 0 about a company's finances, licences, or good standing. A valid EIN is not proof a vendor is legitimate.
Verification answers a narrow question: is this the real tax identity of this legal name? It does not answer whether the business is solvent, insured, or trustworthy. Those checks live in credit reports, state registrations, and licence boards, not in the EIN itself.
| An EIN check confirms | An EIN check does not confirm |
|---|---|
| Valid 9-digit XX-XXXXXXX format | Whether the business is solvent |
| The IRS issued the number | Credit score or D-U-N-S rating |
| The EIN matches a legal name | State licences or permits held |
| The entity is active with the IRS | Good standing or insurance cover |
Most verification failures are typos, not fraud. Confirm the number is exactly 9 digits, not the 10 of a state ID. Confirm the shape is 2 digits, a hyphen, then 7, not the 3-2-4 shape of a Social Security Number. Then confirm the same 9 digits appear on a second independent document. A single source is only a lead.
Because 26 U.S.C. § 6109 classifies a private EIN as confidential taxpayer identifying information. The IRS runs no public validator, releasing a private EIN only to the responsible party, an authorized officer, or a Form 2848 representative. Over 30 million private EINs stay unlisted.
The IRS issues roughly 5 million new EINs each year, and the vast majority belong to private LLCs, sole proprietors, and closely held corporations. None of those numbers reaches a public search. A site that claims a free validator for any private EIN is scraping W-9s, court records, or credit files, not querying an IRS database.
Two groups escape the rule by their own filings. A public company waives confidentiality the moment it files a 10-K with the SEC. A 501(c) nonprofit waives it by filing Form 990, which the Internal Revenue Code makes open for public inspection. That single legal line explains why about 8,000 corporations and 1.8 million charities verify freely, while 30 million private firms do not. The EIN number lookup hub maps every route.
Yes. The 147C is the IRS-issued EIN verification letter and the strongest proof a number is active. It prints the 9-digit EIN beside the legal name on 1 page of IRS letterhead. Banks and payment platforms accept it in place of the CP-575, at $0.
The IRS prints exactly 1 CP-575 per EIN and never reprints it, so a 147C is the standard proof when the original is lost. Both letters show the same 9-digit number. A bank, Stripe, PayPal, or Amazon seller account accepts either one for EIN verification.
| Proof document | Issued | Delivery | Cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| CP-575 | 1 time, at assignment | Mail only | $0 |
| 147C letter | On request, unlimited | Fax in 1-2 days, or mail in 4-6 weeks | $0 |
The step-by-step 147C request script, the 3 items the IRS verifies, and the exact delivery windows sit on the EIN verification letter (147C) page. That page is the deep guide; this one shows every other way to verify an EIN first.
Recover the number first, then verify it. Read the 13-document checklist to find your own EIN, or use a public source for another business. Once you hold the 9 digits, run the 3 verification checks against an IRS record.
Verification and recovery are 2 steps, not 1. You cannot verify a number you do not have, so recovery always comes first. For your own entity, the find a lost EIN number page lists all 13 places the EIN prints. For a third party, the find an EIN for a business page maps every public source.
One reference table for every fixed value a verification relies on: the IRS contact lines, the disclosure thresholds, and the statutes behind each route. Business days exclude the roughly 11 US federal holidays.
| Reference | Value |
|---|---|
| EIN length and shape | 9 digits, as 2-7 |
| Verification checks | 3 (format, name, IRS source) |
| TIN Matching, interactive | 25 records per session |
| TIN Matching, bulk | 100,000 per file, 24 hours |
| IRS domestic Business line | 800-829-4933 |
| IRS international line | 267-941-1099 |
| IRS fax, US-based entity | 855-641-6935 |
| IRS fax, international | 855-215-1627 |
| 147C fax delivery | 1 to 2 business days |
| 147C mail delivery, US | 4 to 6 weeks |
| SEC EDGAR active filers | About 8,000 |
| Nonprofit EINs in IRS search | 1.8 million |
| Private EINs outstanding | Over 30 million |
| New EINs issued per year | About 5 million |
| W-9 vendor threshold | $600 per year |
| Backup withholding, Section 3406 | 24 percent |
| Form 945 filing deadline | January 31 |
| W-9 record retention | 3 to 7 years |
| Paid broker price per record | $50 to $250 |
| EIN assignment centralized | Year 2001 |
| Governing EIN statute | 26 U.S.C. 6109 |
| Third-party authorization form | Form 2848 |
| Corporate tax rate | 21 percent |
| Self-employment tax | 15.3 percent |
| einnumber.co new-EIN filing | $67 Standard, $97 Fast |
Sources: IRS, IRS TIN Matching, 26 U.S.C. 6109, SEC EDGAR, verified August 2026.
9 more questions on EIN verification, TIN Matching, and cost. Every legitimate route costs $0. Your own EIN verifies through a 147C letter; a business EIN verifies through IRS TIN Matching, a W-9, SEC EDGAR, or IRS nonprofit search.
Run 3 checks. Confirm the number is 9 digits printed as 2, a hyphen, then 7. Match the legal name printed beside it. Then confirm it against an IRS source: a 147C letter for your own EIN, or IRS TIN Matching for a vendor. Each route costs $0.
Yes. To verify a business EIN, request a Form W-9, search SEC EDGAR for a public company, or query IRS Tax Exempt Organization Search for a nonprofit. Payers filing 1099s use IRS TIN Matching. All 4 routes cost $0; paid data brokers charge $50 to $250.
IRS TIN Matching is a free e-Services tool that checks an EIN and legal name against IRS records before a 1099 is filed. Interactive mode verifies 25 records per session. Bulk mode verifies up to 100,000 records within 24 hours. A match returns a code of 0.
Only for payers and nonprofits. IRS TIN Matching verifies EINs for anyone filing 1099s, and Tax Exempt Organization Search verifies 1.8 million nonprofit EINs. The IRS runs no public validator for private EINs, because 26 U.S.C. § 6109 treats them as confidential taxpayer data.
Request a 147C letter. Call the IRS Business & Specialty line at 800-829-4933, open 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. local time. The IRS confirms the EIN is active and faxes the 147C in 1 to 2 business days at $0. An EIN never expires once assigned.
Only for 2 groups. A public company's EIN sits on page 1 of every 10-K on SEC EDGAR, covering about 8,000 filers. A nonprofit's EIN sits on Form 990 in IRS search, covering 1.8 million entities. A private company's EIN is confidential, so you request a W-9 directly.
Yes. The 147C is the IRS-issued EIN verification letter and the strongest proof a number is active. It prints the 9-digit EIN beside the legal name on 1 page of IRS letterhead. Banks, payroll providers, and payment platforms accept it in place of the CP-575, at $0.
Read line 7 of the Form W-9, where the vendor prints the 9-digit EIN. Then run it through IRS TIN Matching to confirm the number and legal name agree. A vendor paid $600 or more per year must return a W-9, or face 24 percent backup withholding.
A verified EIN confirms 3 facts: valid format, that the IRS issued it, and the matching legal name. It confirms 0 about a company's finances, credit, licences, or good standing. A valid EIN is not proof a vendor is solvent, insured, or legitimate.