Apply for EIN Without an SSN: Foreign Owner Guide
You can obtain an EIN even when the responsible party does not have an SSN. The important question is which IRS route applies to your facts. This guide separates online eligibility, the international telephone route, the correct fax destinations, Form SS-4 entries, and the Form 5472 issue that many foreign-owned U.S. LLCs must evaluate.
Can you get an EIN without an SSN?
Yes. A foreign responsible party who has no SSN or ITIN can still obtain an EIN. The IRS instructions say “foreign” or “N/A” may be entered on Form SS-4 line 7b when that person does not have and is ineligible to obtain an SSN or ITIN. Whether you can use the online, telephone, fax or mail route depends on the entity’s U.S. location and the responsible party’s taxpayer-identification situation.
Foreign EIN Route Planner
This page should not send every foreign owner to the same fax number or assume every person without an SSN is an “international applicant.” Use this tool to identify the IRS route that best matches the facts you enter. It does not collect an SSN, ITIN, passport number or other sensitive identifier.
Who This Guide Is Actually For
This guide is primarily for owners of U.S. LLCs whose responsible party does not have an SSN. That group often includes non-U.S. citizens and nonresident owners, but citizenship alone does not determine the IRS application route. A person without an SSN may have an ITIN, and an international applicant is defined by the lack of a U.S./territory legal residence, principal place of business, principal office or agency—not simply by nationality.
You may be able to use a route that is unavailable to someone with neither an SSN nor ITIN. Use the current IRS eligibility rules rather than assuming “foreign owner = phone/fax only.” See our Apply for EIN Online guide for the online eligibility test.
Phone, Fax and Mail Routes Compared
Telephone
Available only if there is no legal residence, principal place of business, principal office or agency in the U.S. or U.S. territories. Current IRS hours: Monday–Friday, 6 a.m.–11 p.m. ET. Not toll-free.
Fax
Use the fax number that matches the entity’s U.S. location. If the IRS can approve the application and you provide a return fax number, it generally returns the EIN by fax.
Mail remains available. The correct IRS address depends on whether the entity has a U.S./D.C. legal residence or principal place of business/office. Follow the current SS-4 instructions.
If the entity has a legal residence, principal place of business, or principal office/agency in a U.S. state or D.C., the IRS lists 855-641-6935. If it has none of those in a state or D.C., the IRS lists 855-215-1627 when faxing from within the U.S. and 304-707-9471 when faxing from outside the U.S.
Form SS-4: Fields Foreign Owners Commonly Get Wrong
The old page contained several field-number errors. This rebuilt map follows the current December 2025 IRS instructions and separates the entity’s physical location, responsible party, tax classification, reason for applying and business start date.
Use the legal name of the LLC/entity for which the EIN is requested. For a formed U.S. LLC, use the approved legal entity name.
Enter the address where the entity wants IRS correspondence sent. The IRS instructions explain how to format foreign addresses.
Provide the entity’s physical address if different from its mailing address. Do not use a P.O. box on these lines.
The IRS says to enter the entity’s primary physical location. Do not automatically substitute the state/county of formation just because the LLC was registered there.
For most non-government applicants, the responsible party must be a natural person who ultimately owns or controls the entity or exercises effective control over it.
If the responsible party does not have and is ineligible to obtain an SSN or ITIN, the current IRS instructions say to enter “foreign” or “N/A.” An entry is required. Do not make “Foreign” the only allowed answer.
Identify whether the applicant is an LLC, the number of members, and whether it was organized in the United States. These answers feed into the tax-classification instructions.
A domestic single-member LLC accepting disregarded-entity treatment generally checks “Other” and writes “disregarded entity.” A U.S. disregarded entity wholly owned by a foreign person that is requesting an EIN for Form 5472 purposes should follow the IRS instruction to write “Foreign-owned U.S. disregarded entity-Form 5472.” Other classifications have different instructions.
Line 10—not line 9b—is where you select one reason. The IRS gives choices such as started new business, hired employees, banking purpose, changed type of organization, or Other. A foreign-owned U.S. disregarded entity required to file Form 5472 may use the IRS’s specified “Other” wording.
For foreign applicants, the IRS says this is the date you began or acquired a business in the United States. If changing ownership form, use the date the new ownership entity began. Do not automatically substitute “state approval date” in every case.
International Telephone Route
The IRS telephone EIN application is not a general “foreign-owner shortcut.” It is for an international applicant that has no legal residence, principal place of business, principal office or agency in the United States or U.S. territories. Current IRS instructions list 267-941-1099, Monday through Friday, 6:00 a.m. to 11:00 p.m. Eastern Time. The call is not toll-free.
- Complete Form SS-4 before calling. The person making the call must be authorized to receive the EIN and answer SS-4 questions.
- Keep the entity records beside you. Use the exact legal name, addresses, responsible-party information, classification and reason for applying.
- Do not invent a TIN. If the responsible party meets the IRS rule for line 7b, use the permitted “foreign” or “N/A” entry.
- Write down any EIN and instructions the IRS gives you. Keep the completed SS-4 and resulting IRS correspondence in permanent business records.
Fax Route: Choose the Correct Number
The current IRS instructions route fax applications according to the entity’s legal residence/principal business or office location. That distinction matters more than the owner’s passport.
| Entity / sending situation | Current IRS fax | What to know |
|---|---|---|
| Legal residence / principal place of business / principal office or agency in a U.S. state or D.C. | 855-641-6935 | Domestic-routing fax number. |
| No such location in a U.S. state or D.C.; fax is sent from within the U.S. | 855-215-1627 | International-operation routing. |
| No such location in a U.S. state or D.C.; fax is sent from outside the U.S. | 304-707-9471 | International-operation routing; long-distance charges can apply. |
The IRS specifically tells fax applicants to provide a fax number so it can fax the EIN back. Under the Fax-TIN program, the IRS says an EIN can generally be received by fax within about four business days when the application is complete and approved.
Foreign-Owned U.S. LLCs and Form 5472
This topic is serious, but the old page was too broad. Not every foreign-owned LLC automatically files Form 5472 merely because the owner is foreign. The IRS treats a domestic disregarded entity wholly owned by a foreign person as a reporting corporation for limited section 6038A purposes. Generally, that entity must file Form 5472 when it had a reportable transaction with a foreign or domestic related party, subject to the rules and exceptions in the instructions.
| Form 5472 point | Current rule |
|---|---|
| Entity in scope | Foreign-owned U.S. disregarded entity is a domestic disregarded entity wholly owned by a foreign person. |
| Trigger | Generally, a reporting corporation files Form 5472 when it had a reportable transaction with a related party. |
| How a foreign-owned U.S. DE files | Attach Form 5472 to a pro forma Form 1120 and use the special IRS filing instructions. |
| Initial failure penalty | $25,000 for failure to file Form 5472 when due and in the prescribed manner; continuation penalties can follow after IRS notice. |
| Electronic filing | Current instructions say a foreign-owned U.S. disregarded entity cannot file Form 5472 electronically; use the dedicated fax/mail instructions. |
Capital contributions, distributions and other owner/entity transactions can be reportable transactions. Because classification and transaction facts matter, a foreign-owned U.S. LLC should have its Form 5472 exposure reviewed by a U.S. tax professional familiar with international information reporting.
Common EIN Mistakes for Foreign Owners
- Treating “foreign” as the only valid line 7b entry. Current instructions permit “foreign” or “N/A” when the responsible party has no SSN/ITIN and is ineligible to obtain one.
- Using the formation state on line 6 instead of the entity’s primary physical location.
- Calling the international EIN number merely because the owner is not a U.S. citizen. The telephone route has a location-based eligibility rule.
- Faxing every application to 855-641-6935. International-operation applications can use different fax numbers.
- Using a nominee as responsible party. IRS guidance says nominees cannot apply for an EIN and should not be listed as the responsible party.
- Ignoring Form 5472. A wholly foreign-owned U.S. disregarded entity can have major information-reporting obligations even when it has little or no revenue.
Optional Help for Foreign Owners: Northwest Registered Agent
You can apply for an EIN directly with the IRS without paying an EIN issuance fee. But some foreign owners prefer help with U.S. entity formation, registered-agent service or an EIN application that cannot use the normal online route. This is where a formation/registered-agent provider can be relevant.
Northwest publishes guidance specifically for non-U.S. citizens and currently offers registered-agent service plus a paid EIN obtainment service for applicants without an SSN.
- Northwest says non-citizens can form U.S. LLCs and provides a non-citizen LLC guide.
- Current published registered-agent renewal price: $125/year.
- Current published EIN service price for an applicant without an SSN: $200.
- The EIN itself is still issued by the IRS; the Northwest charge is for assistance/service.
Primary Sources & Verification
This guide contains high-change IRS routing and international information-reporting rules. The EIN application methods, Form SS-4 field instructions and Form 5472 penalty framework were rechecked against current IRS material in August 2026. Provider pricing and service features should also be rechecked before purchase.