How to Find Your EIN Number (2026): 6 Ways to Look It Up If You Lost It

Published: June 16, 2026

A Message from Slava

I'm Slava, founder of Jupid. Before this, I built Anna Money, where we worked with more than 60,000 small businesses and grew to $40M ARR. In all those conversations with owners, one tiny problem came up over and over: someone needed their EIN right now, and they had no idea where it was.

It's almost never a crisis until it is. You're filling out a loan application, opening a new bank account, onboarding to a payment processor, or your accountant asks for it at the worst possible moment. Your nine-digit Employer Identification Number is the one piece of business identity you can't fake your way around, and it tends to live on a single piece of paper you filed away years ago and forgot.

The good news is that a lost EIN is one of the easiest business problems to solve. The IRS assigned it to you permanently, it never expires, and it's sitting in several places you already have access to. You almost never need to apply for a new one. You just need to know where to look.

This guide walks through six concrete ways to find your EIN, in the order I'd actually try them: fastest and free first, a phone call to the IRS last. I'll also cover how to get an official 147C verification letter when a bank wants proof on letterhead, how to look up another business's EIN, and how to apply if it turns out you never had one.

Here's what we'll cover:

• What an EIN is and where it shows up
• 6 ways to find your own lost EIN
• How to request a 147C letter from the IRS
• How to find another company's EIN
• When you actually need an EIN
• How to apply if you've never had one

What an EIN Is (and Where It Lives)

An Employer Identification Number (EIN) is a nine-digit number the IRS issues to identify a business for tax purposes. It's formatted as XX-XXXXXXX — two digits, a hyphen, then seven more. People also call it a Federal Tax Identification Number or, loosely, a "business tax ID." It's the business-world equivalent of a Social Security number, and you use it to file business tax returns, run payroll, open a business bank account, and apply for credit.

Two facts make a lost EIN easy to recover. First, your EIN is permanent — once the IRS assigns it, that number belongs to your business for life and does not expire, even if you close the business for a while. Second, because you use it on so many official documents, it ends up recorded in multiple independent places. You don't have to find the one original letter. You just have to find any one of the dozen places it's already written down.

If you're earlier in the process and still setting up the business, our guide on EIN, registered agents, and more — what you need to start an LLC covers how the EIN fits alongside the other pieces of forming a company.

The 6 Ways to Find Your Lost EIN

Here's a quick map before the details. Work down the list — most owners find their number in the first two or three rows without ever picking up the phone.

1. Find your CP 575 confirmation letter

When the IRS first assigned your EIN, it sent a confirmation notice called CP 575. This is the original "birth certificate" of your business tax ID. If you applied online, you also got a downloadable PDF version at the end of the application — check your email and your downloads folder for a file from the IRS dated around when you formed the business.

The EIN is printed near the top of the CP 575. If you have this letter, you're done. The catch is that the IRS does not reissue the CP 575 — it's a one-time notice. If yours is gone, that's exactly what the 147C letter (covered below) replaces.

2. Check a prior business tax return

If your business has filed even one tax return, your EIN is on it. It appears in the identification box near the top of the first page:

• Form 1120 / 1120-S (corporations and S corporations) — top of page 1
• Form 1065 (partnerships and multi-member LLCs) — top of page 1
• Form 941 / 940 (employment tax returns) — top of the form
• Schedule C (sole proprietors and single-member LLCs) — line D, only if you obtained an EIN

One thing to know about sole proprietors and single-member LLCs: many file Schedule C using their Social Security number instead of an EIN, because the IRS doesn't require an EIN for a one-owner business with no employees. If line D on your Schedule C is blank, you may simply never have had an EIN — see the section below on whether you need one. For more on how these businesses file, see our single-member LLC taxes guide.

3. Look at bank, loan, and license paperwork

You can't open a business bank account or take a business loan without an EIN, so the number is recorded everywhere you did either. Check:

• Your business bank account opening documents, or the legal/tax details section inside your online banking dashboard
• Any business loan or line-of-credit application
• State or local business licenses and permits
• Your seller's permit or state sales-tax registration

If you can't find a document, your bank can look the EIN up for you — they have it on file for the account. If you opened the account recently, our walkthrough on how to open a business bank account shows where the EIN gets recorded during setup.

4. Check payroll and 1099/W-2 forms

If you have employees, your EIN is the number identifying you as the employer. It prints in Box b of every Form W-2 you've issued, and on every quarterly Form 941 your payroll provider files. Pull up your payroll software and it's almost certainly displayed on the company settings or tax-setup page.

If you're an independent contractor or single-member business, the EIN also shows up on any Form W-9 you completed for a client and on the 1099 forms clients issued to you. A W-9 is where you tell a payer which tax ID to report payments under — our W-9 form guide explains exactly which box the EIN goes in and when to use it instead of your SSN.

5. Call the IRS Business and Specialty Tax Line

If the paper trail comes up empty, the IRS will look up your number for you. Call the Business and Specialty Tax Line at 800-829-4933, open Monday through Friday, 7:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. local time (Alaska and Hawaii follow Pacific time).

You must be an authorized person — a sole proprietor, partner, corporate officer, trustee, or someone with a signed authorization on file. The agent will verify your identity, then read your EIN to you over the phone at no charge. Have your name, your business name, your address, and your role ready before you call. This is the most reliable method when documents have vanished, and it costs nothing.

6. Request a 147C letter (when you need official proof)

Sometimes a phone-read number isn't enough. A bank, lender, or vendor may want the EIN on official IRS letterhead. The document for that is Letter 147C, "EIN Previously Assigned." It serves the same legal purpose as the original CP 575 and is the standard replacement when the CP 575 is lost.

You request it on the same call to 800-829-4933. Ask the agent to send a 147C letter, and choose delivery:

• By fax — often arrives the same day if you stay on the line with a fax ready
• By mail — typically takes up to four to six weeks

The IRS will not email a 147C letter, and only an authorized person can request one. If a bank is asking for "proof of your EIN" and won't accept a screenshot, the 147C is the document to ask for by name.

A Worked Example: Recovering an EIN for a Loan

Here's how this plays out in practice for a single-member LLC owner applying for a business credit card that requires EIN documentation.

Situation: LLC formed in 2022, EIN obtained online, CP 575 lost in a move.
Lender requires: official IRS document showing the EIN.

Step 1  Check downloads/email for the CP 575 PDF       → not found
Step 2  Pull the 2024 Form 1065 (multi-member) or
        2024 Schedule C (single-member)                → EIN found on page 1 / line D
Step 3  EIN confirmed — but lender wants letterhead

Step 4  Call 800-829-4933 (Mon-Fri, 7am-7pm local)
        Verify identity (name, EIN, business address, role)
        Request Letter 147C, delivered by fax

Result: 147C letter in hand the same afternoon.
Cost:   $0

The pattern holds for almost every situation: the number itself is easy to find on a past return, and the only reason to call is when you need IRS letterhead as proof.

How to Find Another Business's EIN

A company's own EIN is sometimes treated as confidential, but many EINs are part of the public record. If you need a vendor's, client's, or partner's number — say, to issue them a 1099 — here's where to look.

• Ask them directly. The fastest route. For a contractor or vendor, request a completed Form W-9, which is the standard way a payer collects a payee's tax ID before issuing a 1099.
• Public companies — SEC EDGAR. Publicly traded companies disclose their EIN (labeled "IRS Number") in SEC filings. Search the company on the SEC's EDGAR database at sec.gov and open a recent filing such as a 10-K; the IRS Number is listed on the cover page.
• Nonprofits — IRS and ProPublica. Tax-exempt organizations' EINs are public. Use the IRS Tax Exempt Organization Search or ProPublica's Nonprofit Explorer, which lets you search the full text of millions of filed Form 990 returns, where the EIN appears.
• Existing paperwork. If you've already paid the business, check any invoice, W-9, or 1099 you exchanged — the EIN is likely printed there.

For a private company that isn't a nonprofit or publicly traded, there's no free public database. Asking for a W-9 is the legitimate path.

When You Actually Need an EIN

Before you spend time hunting, it's worth confirming you ever had one. The IRS requires an EIN if any of the following is true for your business:

• You have employees
• You operate as a corporation or partnership (including a multi-member LLC taxed as a partnership)
• You file employment, excise, or alcohol/tobacco/firearms tax returns
• You withhold taxes on income (other than wages) paid to a non-resident alien
• You have a Keogh or solo 401(k) retirement plan
• You're involved with certain trusts, estates, or nonprofits

A solo business with no employees — a freelancer or single-member LLC — is the common exception. The IRS lets you file using your Social Security number instead. Many owners still get an EIN anyway, because it keeps your SSN off W-9s and invoices and is required to open most business bank accounts. If you're weighing the structure decision, our single-member LLC taxes guide covers when an EIN becomes worth it even when it isn't strictly required.

How to Apply If You've Never Had One

If the search confirms you never had an EIN, applying is free and fast. Be careful here: the IRS never charges a fee for an EIN. Any site that wants to charge you is a third party reselling a free government service — go straight to irs.gov.

Apply online (fastest). The IRS online EIN Assistant issues your number immediately at the end of the application. It's available Monday–Friday, 6:00 a.m. to 1:00 a.m. ET; Saturday, 6:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m.; Sunday, 6:00 p.m. to midnight. You must finish in one session — it times out after 15 minutes of inactivity — and you can download the confirmation right away.

Apply by fax or mail. Complete Form SS-4 and fax it (about four business days for a return fax) or mail it (roughly four weeks). International applicants without a U.S. principal business can apply by phone.

Two rules to know. To apply online, your principal business must be in the U.S. or a U.S. territory and you need a valid Social Security number or ITIN for the responsible party. And you can get only one EIN per responsible party per day, online or otherwise — so if you're forming several entities, space the applications out.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

Applying for a new EIN when you already have one. This is the big one. A lost EIN is recoverable in minutes; a duplicate EIN creates filing confusion for years. Exhaust the search methods above before you ever apply again.

Paying a third-party site. EINs are free from the IRS. If a page charges you "to obtain your EIN," you're paying someone to fill out a free form on your behalf.

Confusing the EIN with your SSN or a state tax ID. Your EIN (federal, nine digits, XX-XXXXXXX) is different from your Social Security number and from any state tax ID or sales-tax permit number. They're not interchangeable on tax forms.

Assuming a phone-read number is enough proof. If a bank or lender wants documentation, a number you wrote down won't satisfy them. Request the 147C letter so you have IRS letterhead.

Forgetting to update the responsible party. If the person who controls the business changes, the IRS asks you to report it within 60 days using Form 8822-B. An out-of-date responsible party can slow down identity verification when you call.

Keep Your Business Numbers in One Place: How Jupid Helps

Losing your EIN is usually a symptom of a bigger pattern: your business records are scattered across email, paper, three apps, and your accountant's inbox. When the documents live in one organized place, the EIN — and everything else — is there when you need it.

Jupid is an AI accountant that lives in WhatsApp and iMessage. Connect your business bank account, and Jupid pulls in every transaction and auto-categorizes it with 95.9% accuracy, so your books stay current without manual data entry. Instead of digging through statements at tax time, you ask a question in chat — "what did I spend on software this quarter?" — and get an answer in seconds.

That same always-current foundation is what makes the rest of business admin painless. Jupid handles automatic tax filing built on numbers that already match your accounts, gives you real-time financial insights on demand, and learns how you categorize transactions so the right treatment gets applied going forward. When a lender or new bank asks for your financials, they're ready — not reconstructed in a panic.

The point is simple: the less time you spend hunting for a number or rebuilding your books, the more time goes to the business itself. Try Jupid and keep your financial house in order automatically.

Action Checklist

• Search your email and downloads for the original CP 575 PDF
• Pull your most recent business tax return and check page 1 (or Schedule C line D)
• Check your business bank account documents or online banking tax details
• Look at any W-2 (Box b), 941, W-9, or 1099 tied to the business
• If documents fail, call the IRS Business line at 800-829-4933 (Mon-Fri, 7am-7pm local)
• Request a 147C letter if a bank or lender needs official proof
• Confirm you actually need an EIN before applying for a new one
• If you never had one, apply free at irs.gov — never pay a third party
• Save the EIN somewhere permanent so this never happens again

Sources

• IRS — Employer Identification Number (EIN)
• IRS — Get an Employer Identification Number
• IRS — Responsible Parties and Nominees
• IRS — Telephone Assistance Contacts for Business Customers
• Taxpayer Advocate Service — Getting an EIN
• SEC — EDGAR Full-Text Search
• ProPublica — Nonprofit Explorer

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This guide is for general educational purposes and does not constitute tax, legal, or accounting advice. EIN requirements and IRS procedures can change, and your situation may differ. Verify details against IRS.gov and consult a qualified tax professional before acting.