IRS Form 2363, Master File Entity Change, is an internal IRS document that agency employees use to update taxpayer records in the IRS Master File. You do not fill it out or submit it. When your business changes its legal name, mailing address, responsible party, or fiscal year, you notify the IRS through a specific channel — an annual return, a signed letter, or Form 8822-B — and IRS personnel then use Form 2363 on their end to enter the change into the system.1Internal Revenue Service. Individual Master File (IMF) Account Numbers
So if you searched for Form 2363 hoping to download and complete it, the practical question is different: which method does the IRS want you to use for the change you’re trying to report?
What Form 2363 Actually Is
The Master File is the IRS’s central ledger linking every Employer Identification Number to the entity’s name, address, filing requirements, and account history. Form 2363 is the paper request that non-Entity IRS personnel in Examination, Taxpayer Service, and Collection use to ask the Entity Control Unit to update those records.1Internal Revenue Service. Individual Master File (IMF) Account Numbers It has a “FROM” section showing the account as it currently appears and a “TO” section for the new information. Form 2363-A is the related version used for exempt organizations on the Business Master File.2Internal Revenue Service. Determination Letter Processing of Exempt Organizations
The header fields on the PDF — “Prepared by,” “Organization symbols,” “Area Office Number,” “Routing to” — confirm the form is designed for IRS staff. Your job is to report the change through the correct method so those staff have what they need.
How to Report a Business Name Change
A name change by itself does not require a new EIN. Sole proprietorships, corporations, partnerships, LLCs, estates, and trusts all keep their existing EIN after a name or location change.3Internal Revenue Service. When to Get a New EIN What you owe the IRS is notification, and the method depends on timing.
If you have not yet filed this year’s return, put the new name in the name field on the return itself. That applies to corporations filing Form 1120, partnerships filing Form 1065, and sole proprietors filing Schedule C. The IRS updates the record when it processes the return.4Internal Revenue Service. Business Name Change
If you have already filed this year’s return, write a letter to the IRS service center where you filed. A corporate officer signs for a corporation, a partner signs for a partnership, and the owner or an authorized representative signs for a sole proprietorship.4Internal Revenue Service. Business Name Change
If the EIN was recently assigned and no return has been filed yet, send the name change request to the address where your return type would normally go.
The IRS does not require you to attach amended articles of incorporation or other supporting legal documents.4Internal Revenue Service. Business Name Change Keeping a copy of the state-level amendment in your own records is still worthwhile in case the IRS raises questions later.
How to Report an Address or Responsible Party Change
Address changes and responsible party changes go on Form 8822-B, Change of Address or Responsible Party — Business. Any entity with an EIN uses this form to report a new mailing address, a new business location, or a change in the person the IRS treats as the responsible party.5Internal Revenue Service. About Form 8822-B, Change of Address or Responsible Party – Business
Responsible party changes have a firm deadline. You have 60 days from the date of the change to file Form 8822-B. If you don’t receive confirmation from the IRS within 60 days after mailing the form, send a second copy marked “Second Request.”6Internal Revenue Service. Responsible Parties and Nominees
Form 8822-B goes to either the Kansas City or Ogden service center depending on the state your business is in. The current split is published on the IRS’s “Where to File Form 8822-B” page.7Internal Revenue Service. Where to File Form 8822-B Processing generally takes four to six weeks, and longer during peak filing season. Keep the completed form and a mailing receipt in case you need to prove timely compliance.
Changes for Tax-Exempt Organizations
Exempt organizations have their own reporting paths, and the IRS uses Form 2363-A internally to process most of these updates.8Internal Revenue Service. Exempt Organizations/Business Master File and Support Processing
Name Changes
Organizations that file Form 990 or Form 990-EZ report a name change by checking the “name change” box on page 1 of their next annual return. Supporting documentation is required: incorporated organizations attach an amendment to their articles of incorporation, and trusts attach a copy of the amendment to the trust instrument showing the effective date and signed by at least one trustee.9Internal Revenue Service. Change of Name – Exempt Organizations
Form 990-N filers (the e-Postcard) cannot report a name change through that form. They send a letter or fax to IRS Customer Account Services stating the full prior name, the new name, the EIN, and the signature of an officer or trustee along with their capacity, such as “Jane Doe, President.”9Internal Revenue Service. Change of Name – Exempt Organizations
Address and Fiscal Year Changes
Exempt organizations filing Form 990 or 990-EZ can report a new address by checking the “address change” box on the next return, or by filing Form 8822-B separately.10Internal Revenue Service. Change of Address – Exempt Organizations
Changing the fiscal year-end requires filing a short-period return covering the abbreviated tax year created by the switch. Write “Change in Accounting Period” at the top of that short-period return. If the organization has already changed its accounting period within the past 10 calendar years, it must file Form 1128, Application to Adopt, Change, or Retain a Tax Year, instead.11Internal Revenue Service. Exempt Organizations Annual Reporting Requirements – Filing Procedures: Change in Accounting Period
When You Need a New EIN Instead
Name, address, and responsible party changes never trigger a new EIN. Certain structural changes do, and it’s worth knowing which side of the line your situation falls on before you send anything.3Internal Revenue Service. When to Get a New EIN
- Sole proprietors need a new EIN if they incorporate, form a partnership, or declare bankruptcy.
- Corporations need a new EIN if they receive a new charter from the secretary of state, convert to a partnership or sole proprietorship, or merge to create a new corporation. They do not need one for bankruptcy, for a reorganization that changes only identity or location, or for an S corporation election.
- Partnerships need a new EIN if they incorporate, dissolve and form a new partnership, or a single partner takes over as a sole proprietor.
- LLCs need a new EIN if they terminate the existing LLC and form a new entity, or if a single-member LLC must begin filing excise or employment taxes.
- Trusts need a new EIN when a revocable trust becomes irrevocable, a living trust converts to a testamentary trust, or trust property is distributed to a residual trust.
If your situation is unclear, IRS Publication 1635, Understanding Your EIN, walks through the analysis.
What to Expect After the IRS Updates Your Records
After the IRS processes an address change reported through Form 8822-B or an employment tax return, it sends two confirmation notices. CP 148A goes to the new address confirming the change, and CP 148B goes to the old address as a security measure, giving the previous contact a chance to flag an unauthorized change.12Internal Revenue Service. Understanding Your CP148A Notice13Internal Revenue Service. Understanding Your CP148B Notice Both notices relate to address changes only.
For a name change, the IRS does not issue a new CP 575 (the original EIN assignment notice). If you need written proof that the name on your EIN has been updated, call the IRS Business and Specialty Tax Line and request a verification letter reflecting the current entity name. Name change updates reported by letter typically process within two to four weeks, longer during busy periods.
Late Updates and False Statements
There is no specific civil penalty for failing to report a name or address change on time.4Internal Revenue Service. Business Name Change The practical risk is missed correspondence: IRS notices, penalty letters, and refund checks can go to the old address, and you may miss response deadlines on proposed assessments.
Submitting false information is a separate matter. Knowingly making a materially false statement to a federal agency can carry a fine of up to $250,000 for an individual or up to five years in prison.14Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 U.S.C. 3571 – Sentence of Fine15Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 U.S. Code 1001 – Statements or Entries Generally That applies to any communication with the IRS, including name change letters and Form 8822-B. Whoever signs must have legal authority to act for the entity and must certify that the information is accurate.