How to Get an EIN Verification Letter From the IRS

To get an EIN verification letter from the IRS, call the Business and Specialty Tax Line at 800-829-4933, verify your identity with the agent, and ask for Letter 147C to be faxed to you while you stay on the line. The IRS issues the original EIN confirmation (the CP 575 notice) only once and will not reprint it, so the 147C letter is the standard replacement banks, lenders, and government agencies accept as proof of your EIN, legal name, and address on file.¹

What to Have Ready Before You Call

The agent will run you through security questions before releasing anything. If any answer doesn’t match IRS records, the call ends without a letter. Have these in front of you:

Your nine-digit EIN, exactly as assigned.
Your legal entity name as it appears on your formation documents — articles of incorporation, articles of organization, or partnership agreement.
The mailing address currently on file with the IRS, which may not be your current physical address if you haven’t updated it.
Your role in the business. The caller must be an authorized party: a corporate officer, general partner, sole proprietor, or managing member listed on the account.

Expect questions about your entity type and prior filing history as well. If you know your records at the IRS are stale, fix that before you call (see below).

Making the Call

Dial 800-829-4933. The line is open Monday through Friday, 7:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. in your local time zone; Alaska and Hawaii follow Pacific time.² Select your language, then the option for employer identification numbers, and you’ll be routed to a live agent.

After identity verification, the agent will ask how you want the letter delivered. Ask for it by name: “Letter 147C, EIN Previously Assigned.”¹

Fax Delivery

Give the agent your fax number and stay on the line. The agent usually sends the letter while you’re still connected, so you have it the same day. Be near the fax machine to pick it up; the IRS prefers not to leave tax information sitting on a shared tray. If the transmission fails, the agent will fall back to mailing the letter.

Mail Delivery

A mailed 147C goes to the address the IRS has on file, and delivery takes several weeks depending on IRS workload. Backlogs have been significant: as of early 2026, business-related general correspondence received in mid-2025 was still being processed.³ If your bank or lender is on a deadline, choose fax.

An Entity Transcript May Work Instead

Some banks and agencies will accept an entity transcript in place of a 147C letter. The transcript prints the same core information: EIN, legal name, and address on file.¹ Ask the institution what it will take before you commit to sitting on hold.

You can get an entity transcript three ways:

Online through an IRS Business Tax Account, which lets verified sole proprietors, S corporation shareholders, and C corporation officers view and download the transcript immediately at IRS.gov.⁴
By phone at 800-829-4933, requesting the transcript instead of the 147C letter.⁵
By mail using Form 4506-T, Request for Transcript of Tax Return.⁶

The online route is the fastest by a wide margin. Setting up a Business Tax Account before you need verification pays off the next time a lender asks.

Calling From Outside the United States

If your business’s principal place of operations is outside the U.S., the 800 number won’t work. Call the IRS international line at 267-941-1099, open Monday through Friday, 6:00 a.m. to 11:00 p.m. Eastern time.¹ The number is not toll-free, so expect international charges. The verification process is otherwise the same, and fax delivery matters more here because international mail is slower and less reliable.

Having a CPA or Attorney Request It for You

A tax professional cannot call the IRS about your account without authorization already on file. Two forms cover this at different levels:

Form 2848, Power of Attorney and Declaration of Representative, lets a qualified professional represent your business before the IRS, including requesting letters, responding to notices, and negotiating on tax matters.⁷
Form 8821, Tax Information Authorization, lets a designated person or firm inspect and receive your confidential tax information but not represent you or act on your behalf.⁸

Either form is enough for a 147C request, since the representative only needs to receive information. File the authorization first and allow time for the IRS to process it before the call.

Update Your Address or Responsible Party First

If your business has moved or the responsible party has changed since the EIN was assigned, fix the record before you request the letter. A mailed 147C goes to whatever address the IRS has, and identity verification during a phone request fails when your answers don’t match the file.

File Form 8822-B, Change of Address or Responsible Party – Business, to update either. Changes to the responsible party must be reported within 60 days.⁹ Allow four to six weeks for processing before requesting the 147C letter. When an address change takes effect, the IRS mails confirmation notices to both the old and new addresses.¹⁰

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Internal Revenue Service. Employer Identification Number
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Internal Revenue Service. Telephone Assistance Contacts for Business Customers
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Internal Revenue Service. Processing Status for Tax Forms
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Internal Revenue Service. Business Tax Account
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Internal Revenue Service. Get a Business Tax Transcript
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Internal Revenue Service. About Form 4506-T, Request for Transcript of Tax Return
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Internal Revenue Service. About Form 2848, Power of Attorney and Declaration of Representative
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Internal Revenue Service. About Form 8821, Tax Information Authorization
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Internal Revenue Service. About Form 8822-B, Change of Address or Responsible Party – Business
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Internal Revenue Service. Address Changes