The IRS issues Employer Identification Numbers through two channels: online (irs.gov for US residents with SSN/ITIN) and fax SS-4 (for non-residents and edge cases). This Anonymousllc.co reference covers the portal mechanics, the right channel for each buyer, the responsible-party rule, common rejection reasons, and how Anonymousllc.co's $99 EIN service works.
An Employer Identification Number is the IRS's 9-digit tax ID for a business entity. Format: XX-XXXXXXX. The EIN is required to: open a US business bank account, hire employees, file federal tax returns, set up Stripe/PayPal Business, apply for business credit, and (where applicable) file BOI with FinCEN. The EIN is issued by the IRS regardless of state of formation — Wyoming, NM, Delaware, Nevada, and all other states use the same federal EIN. The IRS does not charge a fee for an EIN; Anonymousllc.co's $99 EIN service is a fulfillment fee for handling the application and dealing with the IRS, not a pass-through of any IRS charge.
The online portal is at irs.gov/businesses/small-businesses-self-employed/apply-for-an-employer-identification-number-ein-online. Requirements: a responsible party with a valid US SSN or ITIN. The portal is open Monday-Friday 7 AM - 10 PM ET. Completion time is typically 10-15 minutes. The EIN is issued IMMEDIATELY at the end of the session — the CP-575 confirmation is downloadable as PDF. Key portal limits: • One EIN per responsible party per day. If you applied for an EIN earlier today, you must wait until tomorrow. • The session times out after 15 minutes of inactivity. The session cannot be saved and resumed — restart if it times out. • The portal only works from a US IP address. Non-residents using the online portal from outside the US will fail at the verification step. Anonymousllc.co's $99 EIN service uses the online portal for all US-resident customers. Turnaround: same business day after intake.
Form SS-4 (Application for Employer Identification Number) is faxed to the IRS at (855) 641-6935 (domestic) or (304) 707-9471 (international). The IRS processes faxed SS-4s and issues the EIN by mail or fax response in 4-6 weeks. There is no expedited option. The fax channel is the ONLY option for: • Non-resident responsible parties (no SSN or ITIN) • Online-rejected cases (e.g., responsible party already has multiple EINs) • Specific edge cases (LLCs taxed as S-Corp electing differently from default, etc.) Anonymousllc.co's $99 EIN service uses the fax channel for non-resident customers. Turnaround: 4-6 weeks, occasionally extending to 8 weeks during IRS backlogs. Mercury and Relay accept the formation documents and provisionally open the bank account before EIN delivery in most cases.
Form SS-4 Line 7a requires the 'responsible party' — the individual with effective control over the entity. The IRS rule (Rev. Proc. 2014-24) is that the responsible party must be a real human, must have a valid SSN/ITIN/foreign tax ID, and must be the person who actually controls the LLC. What the rule prohibits: a nominee, a registered agent acting as nominee, or a corporate entity in the responsible-party field. The IRS validates the SSN/ITIN against its records during online application and rejects mismatches. What the rule allows: any real human owner, including non-US residents using a passport-based foreign tax ID. The Anonymousllc.co fax SS-4 workflow lists the non-resident customer as responsible party with their passport number on Line 7b. Misrepresenting the responsible party is a federal violation. Anonymousllc.co's intake collects the actual responsible-party identity and uses it on the SS-4. State-records anonymity (Wyoming, NM, DE, NV) is preserved; IRS-records identity is required.
1. Responsible party already obtained an EIN today (one-EIN-per-day rule). Fix: wait until tomorrow. 2. Responsible party's SSN/ITIN doesn't match IRS records. Fix: check the SSN/ITIN spelling, confirm with the IRS by phone, or switch to fax SS-4. 3. LLC name conflicts with an existing IRS record. Fix: check that the LLC was actually filed and approved at the state SOS first. The IRS pulls from state SOS records; if the state hasn't transmitted approval yet, the IRS won't recognize the LLC. 4. Session timeout (15 minutes inactive). Fix: restart from the beginning. 5. Non-US IP address. Fix: use a US-based connection or switch to fax SS-4. 6. Address mismatch between SS-4 Line 4a/b and the registered agent's state. Fix: use the LLC's mailing address (not necessarily in the formation state) and the registered-agent address separately on the correct lines.
Anonymousllc.co's EIN Acquisition (SVC_006) is $99 standalone. It is also bundled into every formation package — Anonymous LLC $397 all-in, Wyoming $397, NM $347, DE $407, NV $722 — at no additional cost. For US-resident responsible parties, Anonymousllc.co uses the online portal as third-party designee. Turnaround: same business day. EIN delivered to the customer via WhatsApp as a CP-575 PDF. For non-resident responsible parties, Anonymousllc.co uses fax SS-4. Turnaround: 4-6 weeks (occasionally 8 during IRS backlogs). Anonymousllc.co tracks the IRS response window and follows up if no response by week 5. The service includes one re-submission if the first application is rejected. Beyond one re-submission, additional applications are $50 each (which we rarely need — almost every rejection is fixable on the first re-submit).
Government, regulator, and primary-source documents underpinning this page.
5-minute WhatsApp intake. 5-10 day turnaround.