To change your EIN business name with the IRS, most businesses simply check a “Name change” box on the next federal tax return they file and enter the new legal name. Sole proprietors and single-member LLCs treated as disregarded entities send a signed letter instead. Your nine-digit EIN does not change; a name update and a structural change are handled differently, and a rebrand or legal name update alone never triggers a new number.1Internal Revenue Service. Understanding Your EIN
Which Method Applies to Your Business
The path depends on how your business files its federal return.
Corporations and S Corporations
On Form 1120, check the “Name change” box on Page 1, Line E, Box 3, and enter the new legal name in the name field.2Internal Revenue Service. Form 1120 – U.S. Corporation Income Tax Return On Form 1120-S, the equivalent box is on Page 1, Line H, Box 2.3Internal Revenue Service. Using the Correct Name Control in E-Filing Corporate Tax Returns A corporate officer signs the return. The EIN stays in its usual place.
Partnerships
Partnerships check the box on Page 1, Line G, Box 3 of Form 1065 and enter the new name.4Internal Revenue Service. Form 1065 – U.S. Return of Partnership Income A partner or authorized representative signs. The update processes when the IRS accepts the return.
LLCs
An LLC follows the route that matches its federal tax classification. Taxed as a corporation: use the 1120 or 1120-S method. Taxed as a partnership: use the 1065 method. A single-member LLC treated as a disregarded entity uses the sole proprietor process below.5Internal Revenue Service. Business Name Change
Sole Proprietors and Disregarded Entities
There’s no checkbox for you. Send a signed letter to the IRS at the address where you filed your most recent return.5Internal Revenue Service. Business Name Change Include your current legal name, the new legal name, your EIN, and the business address on file. The owner or an authorized representative signs it. No IRS form is required.
Tax-Exempt Organizations
Nonprofits check the “Name change” box in Item B on Page 1 of Form 990. The update goes through when the annual return is processed.
If You Already Filed This Year’s Return
The checkbox only works on a return you’re about to file. If your return for the year has already gone in, corporations, S corporations, and partnerships all switch to the same fallback: write to the IRS at the address where you filed. Corporations and S corporations need an officer’s signature; partnerships need a partner’s signature.5Internal Revenue Service. Business Name Change This is the same letter-based route sole proprietors use by default.
Send the letter with tracking. The IRS does not publish a set processing time for name changes, so allow at least 30 to 60 days before expecting updated records.
When a Name Change Actually Requires a New EIN
A rebrand or legal name update by itself does not require a new EIN.6Internal Revenue Service. When to Get a New EIN A change in the underlying structure usually does. The most common triggers:
- A sole proprietor incorporates or takes on partners.
- A corporation receives a new charter from the secretary of state.
- A partnership ends and one partner continues the business as a sole proprietor.
- A new corporation is formed after a statutory merger. If your corporation is the surviving entity in the merger, you keep your existing EIN and just update the name.
Getting this wrong causes problems in both directions. Applying for a new EIN when only a name change was needed leaves two numbers attached to one business and complicates matching old filings to the new account. Skipping a new EIN when the structure actually changed can lead the IRS to reject returns filed under the old number.
Confirming the Change Went Through
The most reliable confirmation is Letter 147C. Request it by calling the IRS Business and Specialty Tax Line; the letter shows your EIN alongside the name currently on file with the IRS.8Internal Revenue Service. Employer Identification Number Banks, lenders, and state licensing agencies frequently ask for it as proof that your EIN and updated name match, so it’s worth requesting even when everything appears to have processed smoothly.
Reporting a Change in Responsible Party
A name change sometimes coincides with a change in the person the IRS treats as the business’s responsible party, meaning the individual who controls or manages the entity’s funds. If that person changes, file Form 8822-B within 60 days. The requirement is mandatory. There isn’t a specific penalty for filing late, but if your responsible party or mailing address is wrong in IRS records, you may never receive notices about tax deficiencies, and penalties and interest continue to accrue whether you see the notices or not.9Internal Revenue Service. Form 8822-B – Change of Address or Responsible Party – Business The correct mailing address is on the form’s instructions and depends on your business location.
Updating Records Beyond the IRS
The IRS filing is one step in a longer chain. In most states, the legal name change happens first through an amendment filed with the secretary of state or equivalent office. Fees for a name amendment generally range from $25 to $60, and some states charge more. The name you report to the IRS should match what the state has approved.
After the IRS update is confirmed, work through everything else. Banks typically want a copy of the state amendment paperwork and Letter 147C to update business accounts. Payroll providers need the new name so W-2s and quarterly employment tax returns file correctly. State tax agencies, professional licensing boards, insurance carriers, and any counterparty holding a contract or permit in your business name should also be updated. Handling these in the weeks after IRS confirmation prevents a slow buildup of mismatched records that gets harder to fix the longer it sits.