California doesn’t issue its own EIN. If you’re looking for a California state EIN number, what you actually need is a federal Employer Identification Number from the IRS, which is free and works nationwide, plus one or more separate California state ID numbers depending on what your business does. The state uses several identifiers, and they trip people up because none of them is called an EIN even though they do similar work at the state level.
The Three California State ID Numbers People Confuse With an EIN
Before applying for anything, it helps to know which number you’re being asked for. Three come up most often.
State Employer Identification Number (SEIN)
The California Employment Development Department assigns an eight-digit employer payroll tax account number once you register as an employer. This is also called a State Employer Identification Number, or SEIN, and you’ll use it for payroll tax returns, wage reports, and payments to the EDD.1Employment Development Department. Am I Required to Register as an Employer? Your SEIN is not your federal EIN. Different agency, different number, different purpose.
Secretary of State Entity Number
When you form a corporation, LLC, or limited partnership with the California Secretary of State, you get an entity number at the time of registration. Corporations receive a seven-digit number that starts with the letter “C.” LLCs and limited partnerships receive a twelve-digit number with no letter prefix.2California Secretary of State. Business Search – Frequently Asked Questions This is your identifier in the state’s business records.
Franchise Tax Board Entity ID
The Franchise Tax Board uses a state-issued entity ID to manage your California income and franchise tax account. It can be 7, 10, 11, or 12 digits, and for incorporated businesses it’s usually the same number the Secretary of State issued when you formed the entity.3Franchise Tax Board. 199N e-Postcard – Entity ID or California Corporation Number The FTB no longer accepts a federal EIN for registering with MyFTB, adding a business to your account, or requesting a Tax Information Authorization. You have to use an ID issued by the State of California.4Franchise Tax Board. Business Entity ID Number Help
How to Get a Federal EIN
A federal EIN costs nothing. The IRS issues it directly, and the fastest route is the online EIN Assistant on irs.gov, which returns your number as soon as you finish the application.5Internal Revenue Service. Get an Employer Identification Number The online tool runs Monday through Friday from 6:00 a.m. to 1:00 a.m. Eastern, Saturdays from 6:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m., and Sundays from 6:00 p.m. to midnight.
If you can’t apply online, fax or mail Form SS-4 to the IRS. Faxed applications come back with an EIN in about four business days. Mailed applications take roughly four weeks.6Internal Revenue Service. Employer Identification Number The application asks for the business’s legal name, mailing address, entity type, and reason for applying. You’ll also identify a “responsible party,” the person who controls the entity and its assets, and provide that person’s Social Security Number or taxpayer ID.
One warning. Apply only at irs.gov. The Federal Trade Commission sent letters in 2025 to operators of look-alike sites that charge up to $300 for what the IRS provides free, often using domain names containing “IRS” and imitating the IRS site.7Federal Trade Commission. FTC Warns Operators of Websites that Charge for an Employer Identification Number If a site asks for a fee, close it.
If Your Business Is Outside the United States
If your principal place of business is outside the U.S. and you don’t have a Social Security Number or ITIN, call the IRS at 267-941-1099 (not toll-free) between 6:00 a.m. and 11:00 p.m. Eastern, Monday through Friday. Have a completed Form SS-4 ready before you call, and enter “foreign” or “N/A” on line 7b where the form asks for the responsible party’s taxpayer ID. If the IRS representative requests it, you’ll need to fax or mail the signed form within 24 hours.8Internal Revenue Service. Instructions for Form SS-4 You can also mail Form SS-4 to the IRS EIN International Operation in Cincinnati, Ohio, though that takes about four weeks.
When You Need a New EIN Later
Your EIN stays with the business permanently. Changing your name or address doesn’t require a new one. Certain structural changes do, and the IRS lists the triggers by entity type.9Internal 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 when they receive a new charter from the Secretary of State, become a subsidiary, convert to a partnership or sole proprietorship, or merge to create a new corporation.
- Partnerships need a new EIN if they incorporate, dissolve and start a new partnership, or if one partner takes over the business as a sole proprietor.
- LLCs need a new EIN if they terminate and form a new corporation or partnership, or if a single-member LLC begins filing excise or employment taxes.
- Trusts and estates need a new EIN when the trust type changes or a trust is created from estate funds.
If any of these apply, you go through the full application again. The old EIN stays on record with the IRS but can’t be used for the restructured entity.
Using Your Federal EIN With California Agencies
Once you have the federal number, three California agencies will want it during registration.
Employment Development Department
You must register with the EDD as an employer within 15 days of paying more than $100 in wages in a calendar quarter, or $750 in cash wages as a household employer.1Employment Development Department. Am I Required to Register as an Employer? The registration requires your federal EIN so that unemployment insurance tax credits apply correctly when you later file federal Form 940. Registration happens through the EDD’s e-Services for Business portal, and once you’re registered the EDD assigns the eight-digit SEIN you’ll use going forward.10Employment Development Department. Employers: Payroll Tax Account Registration
Department of Tax and Fee Administration
If your business sells tangible goods in California, you’ll need a seller’s permit from the CDTFA. Online registration asks for your federal EIN for partnerships, corporations, LLCs, and most other entity types, along with information about projected monthly sales and the products you plan to sell.11California Department of Tax and Fee Administration. Online Services — Registration
Franchise Tax Board
Your federal EIN may appear on California tax return forms, but the FTB manages your account by state entity ID. For incorporated businesses that’s typically the Secretary of State entity number. If you can’t find your entity ID, you can search the Secretary of State business database or call the FTB.3Franchise Tax Board. 199N e-Postcard – Entity ID or California Corporation Number
Finding a Lost EIN
Start with the confirmation notice the IRS sent when it assigned the number. Online applicants could download it immediately. Previous federal tax returns show the EIN near the top of the first page. Business bank paperwork, loan applications, and state or local license filings often carry it too.
If none of those turn it up, call the IRS Business and Specialty Tax Line at 800-829-4933, Monday through Friday, 7:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. local time (Alaska and Hawaii follow Pacific). An agent will verify your identity and read the number to you if you’re authorized to receive it.6Internal Revenue Service. Employer Identification Number
Updating the Responsible Party
If the responsible party on your EIN changes, you have 60 days to notify the IRS on Form 8822-B. This applies whenever someone new takes control of the entity or its assets, such as after a sale or a change of managing member.12Internal Revenue Service. Form 8822-B, Change of Address or Responsible Party Missing the deadline doesn’t trigger an immediate penalty, but outdated information causes problems later if the IRS needs to verify your identity for account access or EIN retrieval.
Closing Out an EIN You No Longer Need
The IRS won’t cancel an EIN, because it permanently belongs to the entity it was assigned to. What you can do is deactivate the account. File all outstanding tax returns and pay any taxes owed first.13Internal Revenue Service. If You No Longer Need Your EIN
To deactivate, mail a letter with the entity’s EIN, legal name, address, and the reason for deactivating. Include the original EIN assignment notice if you still have it. Send the letter to one of these addresses:
- Internal Revenue Service, MS 6055, Kansas City, MO 64108
- Internal Revenue Service, MS 6273, Ogden, UT 84201
Tax-exempt organizations use a slightly different process and should mail or fax the request to the IRS Exempt Organizations unit in Ogden, Utah, or fax it to 855-214-7520.13Internal Revenue Service. If You No Longer Need Your EIN