Tax ID

Getting an EIN without a Social Security number

By the Atiko team · Last reviewed October 2026

The Employer Identification Number is the federal tax ID of a US company. Founders who live outside the United States often assume they cannot obtain one because they have no Social Security number. That assumption is incorrect. The IRS issues EINs to companies owned by people with no SSN and no ITIN. What changes is the route the application takes.

This guide explains what the EIN is used for, why the online application is closed to most non-resident founders, how the fax, mail and phone routes work, and what tends to slow an application down. The IRS alone decides when a number is issued, so every time frame given here is typical and none is guaranteed.

What the EIN is and what depends on it

An EIN identifies a business to the IRS in the same way a Social Security number identifies an individual. Despite the word employer in its name, a company needs one whether or not it has employees. It is issued once and stays with the company for its whole life.

For an e-commerce founder the practical weight of the EIN lies in what it unlocks. A US business bank account cannot be opened without it. Stripe and Shopify Payments ask for it when verifying a US company. Marketplaces, suppliers and sales tax registrations ask for it as well. Federal filings, including the Form 5472 required of a foreign-owned single-member LLC, are made under it. In practice, the company can exist legally without an EIN and still be unable to operate.

The EIN, the SSN and the ITIN are three different numbers

Much of the confusion comes from mixing up three identifiers. The SSN is issued to individuals by the Social Security Administration, mostly to US citizens and people authorized to work in the country. The ITIN is issued by the IRS to individuals who have a US tax filing need and are not eligible for an SSN. The EIN is issued by the IRS to entities.

A company’s EIN does not require its owner to hold either personal number. The IRS asks who the responsible party is, and if that person has no SSN or ITIN the application says so. Obtaining an ITIN first is therefore unnecessary for the purpose of getting an EIN. Whether you personally need an ITIN for other reasons is a separate question for a licensed tax professional.

Who the responsible party is

Form SS-4, the application for an EIN, requires the company to name a responsible party. This is the individual who ultimately owns or controls the entity and who directs its funds and assets. For a single-member LLC it is normally the member. For a corporation it is typically a principal officer or the controlling shareholder.

The responsible party should be the real person behind the company. The IRS associates the EIN with that person, and banks and payment providers later compare the name on the IRS confirmation with the owners shown in the formation documents and the operating agreement. Naming someone else to make the application faster creates an inconsistency that tends to surface during bank or payment verification, which is exactly the moment you least want it.

Why the online application is usually unavailable

The IRS offers an online EIN application that issues a number at the end of the session. It is the route most US residents use. The online application requires the responsible party to have an SSN or an ITIN, and the system will not proceed without one. A founder who has neither cannot use it.

This is a limitation of one channel and has no effect on eligibility. The same Form SS-4 can be submitted by fax or by mail, and international applicants may also apply by phone. These routes are processed by IRS staff, which is why they take longer than the automated online tool.

Applying by fax, by mail or by phone

The fax route is the one most commonly used for non-resident founders. The completed and signed Form SS-4 is sent to the IRS unit that handles applications from entities without a US-based responsible party, and the IRS returns the form with the assigned EIN. Mail follows the same process with postal delays added in both directions, so it is generally the slowest option.

International applicants may also call the IRS and complete the application with an agent. The caller must be authorized to answer questions about the form, and the lines can be difficult to reach. Whichever route is used, the IRS issues the EIN on its own schedule. It takes from several days to a few weeks, and the time varies with the IRS workload during the year.

• Online, available only when the responsible party has an SSN or ITIN
• Fax, the usual route for founders without either number
• Mail, the same form with postal delays added
• Phone, open to international applicants

What the form asks and where applications go wrong

Form SS-4 is a single page, and most delays come from small inconsistencies in it. The legal name must match the state formation document exactly, including punctuation and the LLC or Inc. designator. The entity type must reflect how the company is to be treated for federal tax purposes. The form also asks for the formation date, the state, the reason for applying, the principal activity and a mailing address.

The form can only be completed after the state has approved the formation, because it asks for details that do not exist beforehand. An application sent with a name that differs from the state record, a missing signature or an unclear entity type is typically returned or left unanswered, and the waiting period then starts again. Careful preparation is the only real way to shorten the process.

The confirmation and how it is used

When the EIN is assigned by fax, the first evidence is the returned Form SS-4 bearing the number. The IRS also issues a confirmation notice by mail to the address on the form. Banks and payment providers usually want to see an official IRS document showing the company name and the EIN together, so both documents should be kept permanently with the company records.

If the confirmation is lost, the IRS can issue a verification letter on request, which serves the same purpose. The EIN itself never expires and is not reissued. If the company later changes its responsible party or address, the IRS expects to be informed through a separate form, so the record stays accurate.

Where the EIN sits in the overall sequence

The order of operations is fixed by what each step requires. The state forms the company first. The operating agreement or bylaws are signed. The EIN application goes to the IRS. Once the number arrives, the bank application can be submitted, and payment processing follows the bank account because providers need somewhere to send payouts.

Because the EIN is the step with the least predictable timing, it usually determines how long the whole setup takes. The period can be used productively. The store’s policies, contact details and product pages can be finished while the IRS processes the form, so that the bank and payment applications are ready to send the day the number is issued. Atiko prepares and submits the SS-4 with you and follows it up, and the IRS decides when the EIN is released.