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How to Cancel an EIN with the IRS (“close an account”)
Cancelling an EIN with the IRS is technically called “Closing a Business Account”, since EINs are never really cancelled. They just stop being used.
Notes:
– If you owe taxes for this tax year, you must file them first before mailing in the Cancellation Letter.
– You don’t need to wait for this EIN to be closed before getting a new EIN.
1. Download EIN Cancellation Letter
Download our free Cancel EIN Letter below in either PDF or Microsoft Word format. They are both the exact same form:
• Cancel/Close an EIN (PDF)
• Cancel/Close an EIN (Word)
2. Mail Cancellation Letter to the IRS
The Entity Department at the IRS doesn’t have a fax number. The only way to send your Cancel EIN Letter to the IRS is by mail.
Mail your EIN Cancellation letter to the IRS at:
Internal Revenue Service
Mail Stop 343
Cincinnati, OH 45999-0023
Attn: BMF Entity Department
(BMF stands for “business master file”)
Confirmation of EIN cancellation:
The IRS will send a letter confirming their receipt of the updated information within 45 days or less. Our cancellation letter above makes this request for you.
3. Request confirmation if not received in 45 days
If you have not received the confirmation letter within 45 days, you can either mail or fax a copy of the original letter to the IRS again.
Send it to the same address listed above and write “Second Request” somewhere near the top (you can just handwrite it).
IRS Contact Information
If you have questions about your EIN account, you can contact the IRS at 800-829-4933. Their hours are 7:00am to 7:00pm local time. If you’re in Alaska or Hawaii, please follow Pacific time.
IRS Phone prompts:
– press option 1 (for English)
– then option 1 (for Employer Identification Number information)
– then option 3 (for other assistance)
36 Comments
I love this YouTube channel! its very very helpful!
Awesome! Thanks for the lovely comment Cheyenne. Glad we can help :-)
Thank you for making it easy.
You’re very welcome Syed!
Thank You Matt for this information. Much appreciated!
You’re very welcome Manoj!
Does it have to be mailed? Can I send by fax? If so, what is the fax number?
Hey Nihat, great question. The IRS Entity Department doesn’t have a fax number, so the only way to send the letter is by mail. We just updated the lesson making this note. Thanks for helping us make the lesson better!
Thank you for the valuable info and the update. :)
You’re welcome Nihat!
Thanks so much for this! I thought it would be an arduous process but this info simplifies it amazingly.
You’re very welcome Aerick! Glad the process was easy :)
I have an Ein number since 2016. The information at the Florida department of state division of corporations was wrong , they set it as an INC. I sent anew fee and the firm to corrected, but never happened, the Inc shows as inactive, the EIN # was assigned to the llc. It seems that the form wasn’t the correct one. I paid taxes as a self employed . I need to close it? And ask for a new one with a new name?
Hi Joseph, I don’t fully follow the entire story, but it sounds like you’ll want to dissolve the first entity (which is either an LLC or a Corporation) and then cancel the EIN. I recommend looking at our Florida LLC course for you new LLC. Hope that helps.
Thanks Matt for the info love the way you explain it, so easy.
You’re welcome Umer! Thanks for the nice comment :)
Matt,
I have an Amazon business and if you get suspended you need a new EIN to open another account. I have already used my SSN, then a EIN I got for my sole proprietorship. Right now I formed a multi member LLC with my brother to get a new EIN to create a new Amazon account. I do everything and he is not actually involved in the business. Can I just put that he owns only 1% or that I take all of the profit? And also, if I cancel my EIN from my sole proprietorship can I get a new EIN with a single member LLC?
Thanks!
Hi Jose, yes, cancelling an EIN does not prevent you from obtaining another one. Regarding the 1%, the IRS doesn’t ask for ownership percentages. They just ask for the Responsible Party for the LLC. Hope that helps.
I filed for an EIN March 14, 2018 and was given one. I understand from above that I need to send a letter to cancel/close this EIN. I also filed form 2553 for a subchapter S election, in April 2018. How do I cancel/close this?
Hi Liz, if you want to revoke the S-Corp election, you can find that info here: LLC revoking S-Corp election. If you want to also shut down the LLC, you’ll need to dissolve the LLC and have your accountant file a final return next year. Hope that helps.
I read in the IRS website that you can I cancel and EIN number once it’s established you can close the account but you can’t cancel the EIN number . If you have any other information that can be verified with the IRS that is contrary to this please share
Hi Alford, that is correct. The EIN is never “deleted”, the account it simply marked as “closed”. This is for audit and historical purposes. Hope that helps.
The LLC is using my SSN and other information. I want out of the business… however, I did not take off my name and SSN or cancel the EIN for year 2017. Am I still liable for the year? I did not receive any type of income. Thanks
Hi Sally, if this is Single-Member LLC, you can dissolve the LLC, file a final tax return, then cancel the EIN. If this is a Multi-Member LLC, you’ll want to have the other Member(s) file an IRS Form 8822-B and change the EIN Responsible Party. Hope that helps.
Thank you for your help!
Hello,
I recently purchased an existing LLC business and went online to apply for a new EIN#. (The name of the business is not changing btw.) The online system rejected my application and directed me to call the IRS to find out why it was denied. As it turns out; as an LLC, I am not able to obtain a new EIN# unless the current existing one gets closed/cancelled. It takes about 45 days of processing time to accomplish this. My question is: Is there ANY way I can apply for a new EIN# for the same business (LLC) while waiting for the account closing confirmation? I have been told that I have to wait the full 40-45 days before I can apply for a new EIN#, but how am I supposed to operate and hold bank accounts if I don’t have an EIN#? Does the account stay active until the end of the paperwork processing time frame? It just doesn’t seem reasonable for business owners to maintain operation after acquisitions under these policies.
Do you remember which reference number (error message) you received at the end of the EIN online application? Because I don’t think the information you were given was correct. There could have just been a name conflict (meaning it was a common name) so the IRS is requesting that you apply for an EIN via SS-4. Hope that helps.
I filed for an EIN close to ten years ago but never moved to establish the business related to the tax ID. It totally forgot about it. Fast forward..I did not file file taxes for a couple of years and the IRS estimated an egregious amount owed to them with interest of course. I paid what they say I owed because I had no way to dispute at the time. I recently filed for those past years in question. I am going cancel the EIN with the help of the PDF letter I downloaded from your site. Do you think it will be possible to recoup my over payment once proved I never actually use the number for business?
Hi Bev, you’ll want to speak with an accountant to get into the details and see if a refund or a credit is possible. We’re not sure. Hope that helps.
Hey Matt,
Thanks for all the help above. I recently applied for an EIN/Business Name. I will not be moving forward in opening the business. I am currently mailing IRS letter to cancel EIN. Is there anything or anyone else I need to inform regarding cancelling EIN? I am in the state of CA. My main concern is being penalized or owing taxes on a business that I will not be starting.
Hi Zohaib, did you form an LLC in California? Or were you just operating as a Sole Proprietorship? If it was a Sole Proprietorship, and there was no activity, then you don’t have to send any notices/updates to the state. Hope that helps.
Hi Matt,
I have an EIN number connected with a sole proprietor. I recently moved states and closed down the business in the state I moved from. I am now in the state of Oregon and I want to restart the business under a little different name and form an LLC. Do I need a new EIN number to start the business with an LLC. Or can I still use the EIN number I have. I was told that the EIN number moves with you and you can use it if you move. I’m so confused. Help!
I hired northwest registered agent LLC and put my EIN number and than called them to ask and they told I have to call the IRS and sort it out.
Thanks!!
Hi Monica, if you write a letter to the IRS, the EIN can be transferred from the Sole Proprietorship to your LLC, however, is there a reason you want to keep it? It often makes for more organized records to get a new EIN after your LLC is approved. Hope that helps.
Hello, Matt! Happy to have stumbled across this page.
I am in the State of Colorado. I filed a single-member LLC in 2017 to receive income as an independent agent in the insurance industry. I registered an EIN so I could create a bank account to receive those funds.
I have the LLC still open, although I am no longer in the insurance industry and the need for this business entity no longer exists. I did not receive any income during the 2018 year and wanted to close my EIN and dissolve the LLC before the end of this year.
Would I have to file a $0.00 return tax return on the LLC, then dissolve the LLC with CO state, and THEN submit the request to cancel the EIN with the IRS?
I called the IRS and they said I was not obligated to file taxes for the 2018 year since I did not receive income, but CO State requires LLCs to file for income every year, regardless (to the best of my knowledge).
Thanks in advance.
Hi Aria! You’re correct that you don’t have to file federally. This is because your LLC didn’t have income or expenses (or credits or deductions) to report and your LLC is taxed in its default status (a single-member LLC is taxed as a Sole Proprietorship).
(For others reading, if the LLC were taxed as a Corporation – an LLC with S Corp election or an LLC with C Corp election – the LLC would still have federal reporting requirements.)
In terms of your Colorado state return (and any local return, if applicable), you’d want to speak with an accountant about that. We’re unable to address this as things vary by state, county, town, industry, etc. Thank you for your understanding. We also recommend asking an accountant if a final return is needed for federal, state, and local. If so, file those, then after that you can cancel the EIN. There isn’t really a need (or a rush) to cancel your LLC’s EIN. You can also just file final returns and that’s that.
You could also consider just leaving the LLC open in case you have a need for it in the future. The Colorado LLC Periodic Report (Annual Report) is only $10, which is extremely reasonable compared to other states’ annual LLC fees.
However, if you do decide to move forward and dissolve your Colorado LLC, you don’t have to file the taxes and cancel the EIN first. You would actually proceed with the Colorado LLC dissolution first. Then as a part of the LLC’s “winding up” process, you would close the bank account, file final returns (if applicable), and then later (if you wanted to; again, not required) cancel the EIN. Hope that helps!
HI MATT
I SOLD MY BUSINESS TO MY PARTNER 2016 BUT HE NEVER TRANSFER EIN NUMBER TO HIS NAME . WE SEND 8822B ON MAY 2016 BUT NEVER UPDATE ON IRS. WHAT I CAN DO