To get an EIN for an estate online for free, the person serving as executor or administrator applies through the IRS EIN Assistant at IRS.gov, selects “Estate” as the entity type, and receives the number on screen as soon as the application is validated. The IRS charges nothing for this. The whole session takes about fifteen minutes if you have the decedent’s information and your own identification ready before you start.
What You Need Before You Open the Application
The online session times out after 15 minutes of inactivity and cannot be saved and resumed.1Internal Revenue Service. Get an Employer Identification Number Gather three sets of information first.
About the estate: the full legal name formatted as “Estate of [Decedent’s Full Name],” a mailing address where the IRS can send correspondence, and the entity type, which is “Estate.”
About the decedent: full legal name, last known address, Social Security Number, and exact date of death. The date of death is what the IRS treats as the start of the estate’s existence as a tax entity.
About you as the fiduciary: your full legal name, your title (executor, administrator, or personal representative), your Social Security Number or ITIN, and a phone number.
The estate’s name on the application has to match the name used in the probate court records exactly. A mismatch becomes a problem later when you try to open a bank account in the estate’s name or file the estate’s income tax return.
Who Is Allowed to Apply
Only the fiduciary can submit the application. That is the executor named in the will, or the administrator appointed by the probate court if there was no will. The court confirms the appointment through Letters Testamentary or Letters of Administration.
On the application you are listed as the “responsible party,” meaning the individual who controls the estate’s funds and assets. Your personal SSN or ITIN is used only to identify you. Once the EIN is assigned, every tax filing and financial account for the estate uses the EIN rather than your personal number.
One scheduling limit matters if you handle more than one estate: the IRS assigns only one EIN per responsible party per day.1Internal Revenue Service. Get an Employer Identification Number
If you would rather have an attorney or CPA submit the application, you can authorize them as a third-party designee by completing that section of Form SS-4 and signing it. The designee’s authority ends the moment the EIN is assigned, and the official EIN notice is still mailed to the estate rather than the designee.2Internal Revenue Service. Instructions for Form SS-4
Step by Step Through the Online Application
The EIN Assistant is open during these hours, Eastern Time:
- Monday through Friday, 6:00 a.m. to 1:00 a.m. the following morning
- Saturday, 6:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m.
- Sunday, 6:00 p.m. to midnight
Open the EIN Assistant page on IRS.gov and select “Estate” as the entity type. When the system asks for the specific subtype, choose “Estate (deceased individual).” From there the application walks through estate name, mailing address, the decedent’s name and SSN and date of death, your details as the responsible party, and the reason for applying.
After you submit, the EIN appears on screen immediately.1Internal Revenue Service. Get an Employer Identification Number Save the confirmation page as a PDF and print a copy. That on-screen confirmation is your working proof of the number until the IRS mails the official notice, called CP 575, which is sent only once. Treat both documents as records you will need to produce at a bank and attach to the estate’s files.
The EIN Is Free
The IRS does not charge for an EIN, and the agency specifically warns applicants to be cautious of websites that charge a fee for the service.1Internal Revenue Service. Get an Employer Identification Number Paid sites that advertise “EIN filing” for anywhere from $50 to $300 are submitting the same free application you can submit yourself. The only legitimate online application lives on IRS.gov. If a URL looks close but is not IRS.gov, close the tab.
If the Online Application Will Not Work for You
Fax and mail are both options when the online tool is not available to you.
Fax Form SS-4, signed by the fiduciary, to 855-641-6935 if you are in one of the 50 states or D.C. The IRS generally returns the EIN by fax within four business days, so include a clear return fax number on the form.3Internal Revenue Service. Instructions for Form SS-4
Mail Form SS-4 to Internal Revenue Service, Attn: EIN Operation, Cincinnati, OH 45999. Processing takes four to five weeks.4Internal Revenue Service. Where to File Your Taxes for Form SS-4 Most fiduciaries need the EIN within days to open a bank account for the estate, so mail is realistic only if you are not working against any deadline.
If the fiduciary lives outside the United States and cannot use the online application, the IRS accepts phone applications at 267-941-1099, Monday through Friday, 6 a.m. to 11 p.m. Eastern Time. Fax and mail applications from international applicants go to the IRS EIN International Operation in Cincinnati.5Internal Revenue Service. Employer Identification Number
Why the Estate Needs the Number in the First Place
Once someone dies, income earned by their assets, including interest, dividends, rent, and business revenue, belongs to the estate rather than to the deceased individual. The EIN is what keeps that income properly attributed to the estate. Banks and brokerages will not open an account in the estate’s name without the EIN, which means you cannot practically manage the decedent’s financial affairs until the number is in hand.
The EIN is also required to file Form 1041, the estate’s income tax return, which the estate must file for any tax year in which it has $600 or more in gross income or a beneficiary who is a nonresident alien. If the EIN has not arrived by the time Form 1041 is due, the IRS instructs filers to write “Applied for” and the date you applied in the EIN space on the return.6Internal Revenue Service. Instructions for Form 1041 and Schedules A, B, G, J, and K-1
If You Lose the EIN Later
Misplacing the number is common when months go by between opening the estate and filing the first return. Before calling the IRS, check the saved confirmation page, the paperwork from the bank where you opened the estate account (the bank recorded the EIN at that time), or any tax return already filed for the estate.
If none of those turn up the number, call the IRS Business and Specialty Tax Line at 800-829-4933, Monday through Friday, 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. local time. After you verify your identity as the authorized fiduciary, the agent will give you the EIN by phone.5Internal Revenue Service. Employer Identification Number