How to get an EIN as a non-US founder, two routes and what each takes

The IRS issues Employer Identification Numbers to companies owned by people who live outside the United States, and it does not require a Social Security Number to do it. What changes for a non-US founder is the method, because the IRS's online application depends on where the business is located and on whether the responsible party holds a US taxpayer number, and everyone who falls outside it applies by a different route.

This guide explains the two routes that matter in practice, what each one requires and how long it takes according to the IRS, how to fill in Form SS-4 for a Delaware C-Corp with foreign founders, and the mistakes that cost the most time. It also covers the two other options the IRS lists, the telephone line for international applicants and the mail route, so that you can compare all four, and it separates what the IRS says about turnaround from what a provider plans for end to end.

What an EIN is and when a non-US founder needs one

An EIN is a nine-digit number that the IRS assigns to a business for tax filing and reporting. A Delaware C-Corp needs one to open a US bank account, to file its federal tax return, and to be identified on forms such as the W-9 that customers and vendors will ask for, and a corporation uses an EIN for tax purposes even when it has no employees.

In the process Inkle follows, the EIN application comes after the certificate of incorporation has been filed, because the number is issued to a company that already exists, and that sequence also gives you the legal entity details the form asks for. Our guide on how long Delaware incorporation takes shows where the EIN sits in the overall timeline.

Who counts as the responsible party

Form SS-4 asks for a responsible party, and the IRS defines that person as the individual who ultimately owns or controls the entity, or who exercises ultimate effective control over it. The person named should have a level of control over, or entitlement to, the company's funds and assets that lets them, directly or indirectly, manage and direct the entity and what happens to its money. If more than one person qualifies, the IRS allows the applicant to identify the person it wants the IRS to recognize.

For a company that is not a government entity the responsible party must be a natural person and not another company. If that person has no Social Security Number or ITIN and is not eligible for one, the IRS tells applicants to enter "foreign" or "N/A" on line 7b of the form, and the field must not be left blank.

That definition is why Inkle does not support the route where a friend with a US Social Security Number is named as the responsible party so that the application can go online. The IRS says nominees cannot apply and should not be listed on the form, and the founder who actually controls the business is the person named, whatever the cost in time.

A service provider can still help in a different role. A third-party designee is a person the responsible party authorizes, by completing the designee section and signing the form, to answer questions about the application and to receive the newly assigned EIN. The authorization ends when the EIN is assigned and released, and the responsible party on the form is still the real controller of the company.

Route one, the online application for founders with a US SSN or ITIN

The online application is the IRS's recommended route, it is free, and it issues the EIN to the applicant during the session. The IRS's current application page sets two conditions that both have to be met. The business must have its principal place of business in the United States or its territories, and the responsible party must hold an SSN or an ITIN, so an SSN on its own does not establish eligibility. The applicant also has to be the responsible party or an authorized representative, and a designee needs signed authorization. An EIN can stand in for an SSN or ITIN only when the applicant is a government entity.

The IRS directs businesses whose principal place of business is outside the United States to apply by phone, fax, or mail instead. In the process Inkle follows, founders who hold a US Social Security Number use the online route when the IRS's conditions are met, with Inkle completing the application on the IRS website during a call so that the EIN issues right away, and founders who do not use the faxed Form SS-4 route. If you are unsure whether your company meets the location test, ask before you apply.

The online session cannot be saved, and the IRS ends it after 15 minutes of inactivity, so have your information ready before you start and print or save the confirmation when the EIN issues. The IRS also limits EIN issuances to one per responsible party per day, whatever the method, so a second submission on the same day will not speed anything up.

The IRS lists these current hours for the online application, all in Eastern time.

Older guides, including some IRS publications, still show the weekday 7:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m. window, so check the IRS page before you book a call. Convert the hours for the date you plan to apply, remembering the US clock change in early November and mid-March. For example, 6:00 a.m. Eastern is 3:30 p.m. in India while the US is on daylight saving time and 4:30 p.m. in India while it is on standard time.

Route two, Form SS-4 by fax for founders without an SSN

Founders without a US Social Security Number or ITIN apply with Form SS-4, and in the process Inkle follows, the completed form is faxed to the IRS. Fax is also the alternative whenever the online route is unavailable, for example because the business is located outside the United States. The IRS fax lines run 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, so the form can be sent at any time.

The fax number depends on the applicant's circumstances and not on citizenship, so apply the location test first and then use the number for where the fax is sent from.

Long-distance charges apply, the IRS says the numbers may change without notice, and the Fax-TIN numbers can only be used to apply for an EIN. The form must include a return fax number, because the IRS faxes the EIN back to that number, and the IRS describes the response as a cover sheet that carries the EIN and not as your Form SS-4 returned with the number written on it.

The IRS describes the turnaround for faxed applications as generally within four business days. Treat that as the IRS's own processing target and not as an end-to-end deadline. The IRS warns that high application inventories can cause delays, and Inkle's published workflow estimate for its fax flow is 4 to 6 weeks, compared with a few minutes for the SSN route. That difference matters for planning the bank account, customer onboarding, or a tax deadline, because you should budget for your provider's stated workflow and for the day you actually receive the confirmation, not for the fourth business day after sending the form.

The other two options the IRS lists

The IRS also lists a telephone option for international applicants only, meaning applicants whose principal place of business is outside the United States or its territories. They can call 267-941-1099, which is not a toll-free number, between 6:00 a.m. and 11:00 p.m. Eastern time, Monday to Friday, and obtain an EIN on the call. The person calling must be authorized to receive the EIN and to answer questions about Form SS-4, and if the IRS representative asks, the signed form must be mailed or faxed within 24 hours.

The phone line can avoid the fax-processing wait, but it is not an unrestricted shortcut for every foreign shareholder of a US business, and the IRS no longer issues EINs by phone to domestic applicants.

The mail route is the slowest of the four options the IRS lists, and the IRS tells applicants to complete the form at least four to five weeks before they need an EIN, and it says the number arrives by mail in approximately four weeks. The mailing address depends on the same location test as the fax numbers.

The attention line matters even though the city and ZIP code are the same, so do not assume that every foreign-owned corporation belongs in the international category. Apply by one method only for each entity, because the IRS warns that using more than one can result in more than one EIN for the same company, which means you should not fax an application and then submit a fresh mail or online application just because a response has not arrived.

How long does it take to get an EIN by fax, and by each route

Inkle's published planning estimate for its own fax flow is 4 to 6 weeks, and its workflow says US banking setup can begin once the EIN application has been submitted. Bank preparation can therefore overlap with the wait, although the bank's own evidence requirements still have to be met.

How to fill in Form SS-4 for a Delaware C-Corp with foreign founders

The IRS tells applicants to follow the instructions line by line to avoid delays, and the company's facts matter more than a generic template. The legal name, mailing address, physical business location, and responsible party all answer different questions on the form.

Many templates write N/A across lines 13 to 15 for a company without employees, and that is the most common small error, because the three lines have different instructions: zero on line 13, skip line 14, and N/A on line 15.

If you formed a single-member LLC owned by a foreign person instead of a corporation, do not copy the C-Corp entries. The instructions say to check the Other box on line 9a and write "Foreign-owned U.S. disregarded entity-Form 5472" when the EIN is needed for that filing.

After you receive the EIN

Save the online confirmation or the faxed EIN response, and keep the mailed notice as well, because the IRS says the notice is still mailed to the taxpayer when an EIN is released to a designee by fax, so make sure the mailing address is one that works. The bank account is applied for next, and in the process Inkle follows the applicant provides a passport soft copy and a bank statement from the last 90 days that clearly shows their name and residential address. Banks may also ask for the EIN evidence alongside formation documents, identification, beneficial ownership information, and proof of address, and the exact list depends on the bank.

An issued EIN can be used immediately for most business needs, including opening a bank account, applying for licenses, and filing a tax return by mail. The IRS says to allow up to two weeks before using it for IRS TIN matching, e-filing a tax return, or making electronic tax deposits or payments.

If a corporation's return falls due before its EIN arrives, the Form 1120 instructions allow "Applied For" and the application date in the EIN space, but that does not remove the electronic filing requirement, because an EIN is required when the corporation files electronically. If the responsible party changes, the company must report it on Form 8822-B within 60 days.

Foreign ownership also calls for a separate Form 5472 review. A US corporation is treated as 25% foreign-owned if at least one direct or indirect 25% foreign shareholder holds an interest during the tax year, and the form is generally required when the corporation has a reportable transaction with a related party, so foreign ownership on its own is not the whole test. A foreign-owned US disregarded entity has a different procedure, attaching the form to a pro forma Form 1120. Our guide on whether a non-US founder can own a Delaware C-Corp or LLC explains what else follows, and for the difference between an EIN, an ITIN, and an SSN, see our post on EIN vs ITIN vs SSN.

Common mistakes when applying for an EIN from outside the US

Naming a nominee as the responsible party is the one that creates real risk, because the IRS expects the responsible party to be the person who controls the company, and Inkle does not support the arrangement. Assuming that an SSN alone opens the online route is the second, since the business location test applies as well. Leaving line 7b blank is the third, because the IRS requires an entry and "foreign" or "N/A" is the answer when there is no SSN or ITIN.

Omitting the return fax number is the fourth, and it leaves the IRS with nowhere to send the EIN. Choosing the fax number by citizenship instead of by the location test is the fifth. A legal name that differs from the certificate of incorporation is the sixth, and it is the sort of mismatch that makes the bank question the number later. Applying twice by different methods is the seventh, and it can produce a duplicate EIN that then has to be sorted out.

How Inkle helps

Inkle Incorporate includes EIN application support in its Delaware C-Corp formation service. Founders with a US Social Security Number go through the online route during a call when the IRS conditions are met, and founders without one use the faxed Form SS-4 route, which can be started at any time. Inkle's published workflow lists a few minutes for the SSN route and 4 to 6 weeks for the fax flow, so confirm the timeline for your situation and your chosen bank's requirements before promising an account-opening date.

Learn more about Inkle Incorporate.

Frequently asked questions

Can a non-US citizen get an EIN?

Yes, because the IRS issues EINs to businesses owned by non-US citizens and non-residents, and a Social Security Number is not required. A responsible party with no SSN or ITIN who is ineligible for one enters the word foreign or N/A on line 7b of Form SS-4, and the application is made by fax, by mail, or, for eligible international applicants, by telephone.

How do I get an EIN without an SSN?

If you have an ITIN and your business meets the online location requirement, the online application may still be available. If you have neither an SSN nor an ITIN, complete Form SS-4 with the line 7b entry and fax it using the number that matches your circumstances, or mail it, or, if you are an eligible international applicant, call 267-941-1099 between 6:00 a.m. and 11:00 p.m. Eastern time, Monday to Friday.

How long does it take to get an EIN by fax?

The IRS says you can generally receive your EIN by fax within four business days. That is not a guaranteed end-to-end deadline, because the IRS warns of delays when inventories are high and Inkle separately publishes a 4 to 6 week estimate for its fax flow, while the mail route takes about four weeks.

Can I apply for an EIN online from outside the US?

Check the company's principal place of business and the responsible party's identification, not nationality alone. The IRS's current tool requires a principal place of business in the United States or its territories and a responsible party with an SSN or ITIN, and it directs applicants whose principal place of business is outside the United States to phone, fax, or mail.

Can a friend with an SSN be the responsible party for my company?

Not merely to obtain online access, because the responsible party must satisfy the IRS's ownership or control definition, and the IRS says nominees cannot apply and should not be listed on Form SS-4. A provider can act as an authorized third-party designee to help with the application without replacing the real responsible party.