Yes. Foreign companies often need to obtain a U.S. Employer Identification Number, and in many cases they are required to. An EIN is the nine-digit tax ID the IRS assigns to business entities, and foreign corporations, partnerships, and single-member entities organized under another country’s laws are all eligible to receive one. If your company earns U.S.-source income, hires anyone on U.S. soil, sells U.S. real property, opens a U.S. bank account, or wants to claim reduced withholding under a tax treaty, you will need an EIN to satisfy federal requirements.
What Triggers the Need for an EIN
Several situations create the obligation. Any one of them is enough on its own.
U.S.-Source Income
A foreign corporation engaged in a trade or business in the United States must file Form 1120-F to report its income and calculate its federal tax, and filing the return requires an EIN. The same obligation reaches a foreign corporation that has U.S.-source income without actively doing business here, unless tax withheld at the source fully covers the liability.1Internal Revenue Service. Instructions for Form 1120-F (2025)
Hiring U.S. Employees
One employee on U.S. soil is enough. Employers have to withhold federal income tax and pay Social Security and Medicare on wages, and the EIN is how the IRS tracks those obligations. Failing to withhold and remit payroll taxes carries steep penalties, and personal liability can attach to the individuals responsible for the oversight.
FATCA
The Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act requires foreign financial institutions and certain other foreign entities to report information about accounts held by U.S. persons. Entities that fail to comply face a 30% withholding tax on certain U.S.-source payments made to them.2Internal Revenue Service. FATCA Information for United States Entities An EIN or a Global Intermediary Identification Number is generally needed to participate in the FATCA reporting framework.3Internal Revenue Service. Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA)
Selling U.S. Real Property
Under FIRPTA, buyers must withhold 15% of the sale price when a foreign person or entity sells a U.S. real property interest.4Internal Revenue Service. FIRPTA Withholding Both buyer and seller must provide a Taxpayer Identification Number on Forms 8288 and 8288-A, and for a foreign entity that TIN is an EIN. Without one, the seller will not receive the stamped copy of Form 8288-A needed to claim credit for the withheld amount on its tax return.5Internal Revenue Service. Reporting and Paying Tax on U.S. Real Property Interests
Banking and Contracts
Most U.S. banks require an EIN before they will open a business account, partly to meet their own customer-identification obligations. Government contracts, certain commercial leases, and other business arrangements in the U.S. financial system also typically require the number before payments can be processed.
Applying With Form SS-4
The application process centers on Form SS-4, Application for Employer Identification Number.6Internal Revenue Service. About Form SS-4, Application for Employer Identification Number (EIN) The form asks for the entity’s legal name, mailing address, type of entity, the reason for applying, and the maximum number of employees expected in the next 12 months. The employee count helps the IRS decide whether the entity will file payroll returns quarterly or annually.7Internal Revenue Service. Instructions for Form SS-4 (Rev. December 2025)
The Responsible Party
Every EIN application must name a responsible party, meaning the individual who ultimately owns or controls the entity and its funds. This must be a natural person; the IRS does not allow another entity to serve as the responsible party unless the applicant is a government body.8Internal Revenue Service. Instructions for Form SS-4 (12/2025)
The responsible party normally provides a Social Security Number or Individual Taxpayer Identification Number on Line 7b. If the responsible party is a foreign individual who does not have and is not eligible for either number, the applicant enters “Foreign” on that line.7Internal Revenue Service. Instructions for Form SS-4 (Rev. December 2025) That entry has a practical consequence: the IRS online EIN application requires the responsible party to have a valid SSN, ITIN, or EIN, so writing “Foreign” takes the online portal off the table.9Internal Revenue Service. Employer Identification Number
Third-Party Designee
Foreign companies commonly hire a U.S.-based attorney, CPA, or enrolled agent to handle the application. Line 18 of Form SS-4 lets the entity authorize a third-party designee to receive the EIN and answer the IRS’s questions about the form. That authority ends as soon as the EIN is assigned and does not extend to other tax matters. One catch: if the designee’s address or phone number matches the applicant’s, the IRS will not process the application online or by phone, so it has to be mailed or faxed.8Internal Revenue Service. Instructions for Form SS-4 (12/2025)
Filing Methods and How Long Each Takes
Foreign entities whose principal place of business is outside the United States cannot use the online application.9Internal Revenue Service. Employer Identification Number Three alternatives remain.
- Phone. Call 267-941-1099, Monday through Friday, 6 a.m. to 11 p.m. Eastern time. The caller must be authorized to receive the EIN, meaning the responsible party or a third-party designee. If the questions are answered satisfactorily, the EIN is issued during the call.
- Fax. Send the completed Form SS-4 to 855-215-1627 from within the U.S. or 304-707-9471 from outside. The IRS generally returns the EIN by fax within four business days.8Internal Revenue Service. Instructions for Form SS-4 (12/2025)
- Mail. Send the signed Form SS-4 to Internal Revenue Service, Attn: EIN International Operation, Cincinnati, OH 45999. Expect the EIN in about four weeks.10Internal Revenue Service. Where to File Your Taxes for Form SS-4
Phone is the fastest by a wide margin, but the international line handles a heavy volume of calls. If you are working against a deadline, plan for hold times and have your completed Form SS-4 in front of you before dialing. Fax gives you a reasonable middle ground and a paper trail. Mail is a last resort, because four weeks stretches longer if the form has an issue, and you will not learn about the problem until the IRS writes back.
Using the EIN to Claim Tax Treaty Benefits
One of the strongest reasons to obtain an EIN is to claim reduced withholding under an income tax treaty. Without treaty relief, U.S.-source payments such as dividends, interest, and royalties are subject to a flat 30% withholding rate. Many treaties cut that rate significantly, sometimes to zero, but the entity has to prove it qualifies.
Treaty benefits are claimed by filing Form W-8BEN-E with the withholding agent, typically a bank or payer. When claiming a reduced rate, the entity must provide either a U.S. EIN on Line 8 or a foreign tax identification number on Line 9b.11Internal Revenue Service. Instructions for Form W-8BEN-E Income from actively traded stocks and debt obligations, mutual fund dividends, and certain unit investment trust distributions is an exception; no U.S. or foreign TIN is required on the form for those.
Getting the EIN in place before the first payment is due avoids a common trap. If the withholding agent cannot accept a complete W-8BEN-E, it will apply the full 30% and the entity has to file a return to claim a refund. That process can take a year or more.
Ongoing Obligations After You Have an EIN
Receiving an EIN starts the compliance clock rather than ending it. The IRS expects recurring filings, and some of the penalties for missing them are unusually harsh.
Form 1120-F
A foreign corporation engaged in a U.S. trade or business must file Form 1120-F each year. A corporation with a U.S. office files by the 15th day of the fourth month after its tax year ends; a corporation without a U.S. office gets two extra months. An automatic extension is available with Form 7004 filed before the original due date.1Internal Revenue Service. Instructions for Form 1120-F (2025)
Form 5472
Foreign-owned companies get into the most trouble here. Any 25% foreign-owned U.S. corporation, including a U.S. disregarded entity wholly owned by a foreign person, must file Form 5472 to report transactions with related parties. A foreign corporation engaged in a U.S. trade or business has the same obligation.12Internal Revenue Service. Instructions for Form 5472
The penalty for filing Form 5472 late is $25,000. If the IRS sends a notice and the failure continues for more than 90 days, another $25,000 accrues for each 30-day period (or part of one) that the failure continues.13Internal Revenue Service. Instructions for Form 5472 The numbers add up quickly. Ignoring the notice for six months after the 90-day window could push the total well over $100,000 on a single form. The same $25,000 penalty applies for failing to keep the required records.
Payroll Returns
If the entity has U.S. employees, it must file quarterly payroll tax returns on Form 941, or Form 944 annually for very small employers expecting $1,000 or less in annual employment tax liability.7Internal Revenue Service. Instructions for Form SS-4 (Rev. December 2025) Missed deadlines carry their own penalties and interest.
Keeping Responsible Party Information Current
When the responsible party changes, the entity must notify the IRS by filing a new Form SS-4 or by writing to the IRS. The EIN does not change, but the underlying information tied to it needs to stay current. Letting it drift causes problems later when the company needs to correspond with the IRS or authorize a representative.
Mistakes to Avoid
Applying too late is the most common one. If you wait until the day you need the number to open a bank account or close a real estate deal, even the phone method may not save you, because the international line has limited hours and heavy call volumes. Start as soon as you know you will need it.
Another mistake is assuming an EIN covers all U.S. registration requirements. It does not. An EIN is a federal tax ID and does not register the company to do business in any state. Foreign corporations conducting ongoing business in a state generally have to file a separate foreign qualification with that state’s secretary of state, with its own fees and annual reports. Those fees vary widely by state.
Finally, some foreign entities treat the EIN as a one-time event and miss the ongoing filings it creates. Even a dormant EIN attached to a foreign-owned disregarded entity can trigger Form 5472 requirements. If the entity has reportable transactions with a foreign related party, which can be as routine as a capital contribution, the form is due, and the penalties for skipping it are among the harshest in the Internal Revenue Code.