When you opened your business, you had to apply for EIN, an identification number that the IRS uses to keep track of a business’s tax obligations. If you dissolve your business entity or corporation, your EIN remains yours and no one else’s. EINs are treated like social security numbers, and the IRS will never assign the same number to another entity. Nor will it dissolve the number. However, if you want to cover all your bases, you can contact the IRS and close the account.
When you close your EIN account, your number will be “put aside,” ready to be used again should you ever decide to revive your business. If you do decide to revive your business, you need not submit another EIN number application.
Just as you needed to submit a tax ID application and meet other requirements to obtain an EIN, you also need to submit an application and fulfill requirements to close your account. To properly close your account, you must do the following:
Be aware that in order to close your account, you must also be up to date on all federal taxes and have filed any final employment tax forms. Employers must also receive any final withholding and wage information before the IRS will consider your request. There are additional requirements which you must meet in order to shut down your EIN, which your accountant can help you figure out.
Apply for a personal service corporation application or click here to learn more about a different entity.