Do I need a new EIN if my business changes?

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Usually not. An EIN belongs to the legal entity, so it survives almost everything that happens inside that entity. Changing the company's name, moving it to a new address, taking on or losing an owner, hiring your first employee if you already have one, or electing to be taxed as an S corporation all keep the same number. What forces a new one is the business becoming a different entity in the eyes of the IRS. When a new number is required A sole proprietor who forms an LLC or a corporation needs a new EIN, because the old one was tied to them personally. A partnership that incorporates needs one, and so does a partnership that ends and starts again with different partners. A corporation that takes a new charter from the state, or that merges into a new corporation, needs one. An LLC that closes and re-forms as a corporation needs one. The cases that look like they need one and do not An LLC that elects to be taxed as a corporation or an S corporation usually keeps its EIN. A corporation that converts at the state level without changing its structure, moving from one state to another for example, keeps its EIN. A corporation or partnership in bankruptcy keeps its number too. A sole proprietor in bankruptcy is the exception and needs a new one. When in doubt, the IRS page titled Do You Need a New EIN sets out the rules by entity type, and it is short. The change you do have to report If the responsible party changes, meaning the person named on the original application is no longer the one who controls the company, the IRS wants to know within sixty days, on Form 8822-B. The same form covers a new mailing address. It is a one-page form, it is free, and it is the piece most founders forget when a co-founder leaves.

Do I need a new EIN if my business changes?

When a new number is required

The cases that look like they need one and do not

The change you do have to report

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