Whether you can look up a TIN number depends on whose number it is and what type. You can retrieve your own Social Security Number, ITIN, or business EIN through your tax records or by contacting the IRS or Social Security Administration. Business EINs for other companies are often part of the public record. Personal numbers belonging to someone else are protected by federal law, and there is no legitimate public database for finding them.
Finding Your Own Social Security Number
Start with paper you already have. Form 1040 shows your SSN near the top of the first page.1Internal Revenue Service. How to Apply for an ITIN Your physical Social Security card, IRS correspondence, W-2s from employers, bank and brokerage records, and prior-year tax transcripts through your IRS online account all display it as well.2Internal Revenue Service. Online Account for Individuals
If you can’t find any of those, request a replacement card. In most states you can begin the application through a personal my Social Security account at ssa.gov without mailing paperwork.3Social Security Administration. How Do I Apply for a Replacement Social Security Number Card Online? Otherwise, complete a paper Form SS-5 and provide proof of identity such as a U.S. driver’s license, state-issued ID, or passport.4Social Security Administration. Application for Social Security Card The card arrives by mail, usually within two weeks. You’re limited to three replacement cards per year and ten in a lifetime, though legal name changes and certain other exceptions don’t count toward the limit.
Retrieving Your Own ITIN
Call the IRS individual assistance line at 1-800-829-1040, open Monday through Friday from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. local time. The representative can verify your ITIN after you answer identity questions.5Internal Revenue Service. Let Us Help You Have your full legal name, date of birth, and previous mailing address ready.
Written requests go to the IRS ITIN Operation, P.O. Box 149342, Austin, TX 78714-9342, the same office that processes new applications and address changes.6Internal Revenue Service. Instructions for Form W-7
Looking Up Your Own Business EIN
The most direct source is the CP 575 confirmation notice the IRS mailed when the EIN was first assigned. If that notice is gone, the number should appear on prior business tax returns, bank account applications, and state licensing paperwork where you provided it.
If none of those records are available, call the IRS Business and Specialty Tax Line at 800-829-4933, Monday through Friday, 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. local time, and ask for Letter 147C, which confirms a previously assigned EIN.7Internal Revenue Service. Employer Identification Number The representative will verify that you’re an authorized person for the business before releasing the number. You can also request an entity transcript, which contains the EIN along with other tax account details.8Internal Revenue Service. Telephone Assistance Contacts for Business Customers
Looking Up Another Business’s EIN
Business EINs aren’t confidential the way personal SSNs are. How you find one depends on the type of entity.
Publicly Traded Companies
Public corporations must include their EIN on the cover page of SEC filings. Search the SEC’s EDGAR database at sec.gov for the company’s Form 10-K or other filings; the number sits near the top alongside the company name and state of incorporation.9SEC.gov. Form 10-K Annual Report Pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934
Private Companies
The simplest approach is to ask. Vendors who need to issue a Form 1099 routinely request a completed Form W-9 from the payee’s accounting department, and most businesses provide one because they’re required to furnish their TIN to any payer who needs it for tax reporting.
Secretary of State records generally won’t help here. Articles of organization and incorporation are filed before a business applies for an EIN, so the number typically isn’t part of the state record. If a private company won’t share its EIN, remaining options are limited to paid commercial databases built for business credit and due diligence rather than casual lookups.
Nonprofit Organizations
Tax-exempt organizations are the easiest to research. The IRS Tax Exempt Organization Search lets you search by name or EIN and view an organization’s status and filings, drawing from Pub. 78 data, the auto-revocation list, determination letters, and Form 990 returns.10Internal Revenue Service. Search for Tax Exempt Organizations Candid’s GuideStar database covers roughly 1.9 million organizations and offers financial trend data and side-by-side snapshots for organizations that file a full Form 990.11Candid learning. Conduct a Search in GuideStar Since nonprofits file Form 990 annually and those returns are public, the EIN appears on the first page.
Getting a Deceased Person’s TIN
To handle a final return or manage an estate, you’ll need legal authority before the IRS will release anything. An executor, administrator, or personal representative files Form 56 to notify the IRS of the fiduciary relationship.12Internal Revenue Service. Instructions for Form 56 Notice Concerning Fiduciary Relationship
To request the decedent’s tax information, provide a copy of the death certificate along with either Letters Testamentary (also called Letters of Administration) from the probate court, or Form 56 accompanied by those court letters.13Internal Revenue Service. Request Deceased Person’s Information Without proof of authority, the IRS will not release the records. Once approved, the fiduciary is treated as the taxpayer for purposes of accessing records and filing returns.
Why You Can’t Look Up Someone Else’s Personal TIN
There is no legitimate public database for looking up another person’s SSN or ITIN. Online tools that promise to find one are either scams or operate outside the law.
Under 26 U.S.C. § 6103, all tax returns and return information, including the taxpayer’s identity and TIN, are confidential and cannot be disclosed by government employees except through narrow statutory exceptions.14Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 26 U.S. Code 6103 – Confidentiality and Disclosure of Returns and Return Information Willful unauthorized disclosure is a felony carrying up to a $5,000 fine and five years in prison, with termination for federal employees convicted of the offense.15Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 26 U.S. Code 7213 – Unauthorized Disclosure of Information The Privacy Act of 1974 separately makes it a misdemeanor, punishable by a fine of up to $5,000, for any government officer or employee to willfully disclose protected personal records, or for any person to obtain such records under false pretenses.16Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 5 U.S. Code 552a – Records Maintained on Individuals
Using another person’s SSN or identifying information to commit fraud is separately prosecutable under the federal identity fraud statute. Penalties run from up to 5 years for basic misuse to up to 15 years when the fraud involves a government-issued document like a Social Security card, and higher when tied to drug trafficking or terrorism.17Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 U.S. Code 1028 – Fraud and Related Activity in Connection with Identification Documents, Authentication Features, and Information Business EINs don’t carry these protections because they identify commercial entities rather than individuals.