Have you recently registered a company in Kentucky, or are you thinking of forming a new company in Kentucky? If so, you will most likely need to apply for, and obtain an EIN number. EIN stands for “Employer Identification Number.”
It doesn’t matter if you are forming a new Kentucky Corporation (Inc) or registering a Kentucky Limited Liability Company (LLC). The next step after this is to obtain your federal tax ID number.
To obtain your EIN number in Kentucky you have to know how to complete an SS4 form and submit it to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). If you are comfortable filling out forms, specifically government ones, then you should be able to successfully complete and submit form SS4 yourself to obtain your federal tax ID number.
Here is the latest IRS SS4 application form (last revised in December 2019).
However, most people that don’t like filling in forms (that’s most of us!), or do not know what needs to be entered on an SS4 EIN application form prefer to use the services of a company that specializes in obtaining your EIN number for your Kentucky company.
This makes life much easier, it ensures your form is not rejected by the IRS and means that there is one less worry when forming your new business and getting your Kentucky EIN.
If you want to apply for your company’s EIN online yourself, you can click HERE and you will find a link that takes you to the IRS online process.
Learn How to Get an EIN Number in Kentucky
The process through which you obtain your Kentucky EIN can seem daunting at first, but if you know what you are doing and follow the instructions, or if you decide to hire a specialist company to apply for your federal tax ID, the task of receiving your employer identification number becomes a much more straightforward process.
Navigating US government forms and making sure you complete them correctly can be challenging, and if it is not something you are comfortable with or have not done before, we strongly recommend using the services of a professional document filing service, and someone that is a registered agent for the IRS to help you.
If you are a foreign national and do not have a U.S. social security number, ITIN, or legal residence in the U.S., the process is much more challenging if you try to do it by yourself – but you can still obtain an employer identification number for your KY company without a social security number or an ITIN.
Once you have been issued your tax ID number, the IRS will send you a notification and you will receive via mail, your official EIN number Kentucky confirmation.
After receiving your federal employer identification number for your Kentucky company, you are now in a position to open up a business bank account. To open a corporate bank account, you will need to take your Kentucky certificate of incorporation or LLC registration along with your EIN confirmation letter that you received from the IRS.
The bank you choose to use will need to make a copy of both original forms, and you should also take your photo ID and anything else they ask you to bring. If you do not have a U.S. driver’s license, a passport will usually suffice.
How to Get Your Kentucky EIN
The other challenge most people have is that the process you have to go through (when applying yourself) to get your Kentucky EIN has to be done online and you have to apply for your EIN in one session.
What does this mean? Well, if you go to the EIN Online IRS Page, you will have to fill everything out in 15 minutes or less otherwise your session will end and you’ll have to start the process all over again.
If you are a foreign national and do not have a U.S. social security number and are not a legal resident of the U.S., then you cannot apply online, you must print the SS4 form and fill it out first.
Yes, I need help applying for my EIN number and would like a professional document filing company to do this for me. Please complete the form below and we will get back to you promptly:
If this all sounds quite difficult and stressful for you, then you should seriously consider having a professional document filing company take care of your Kentucky EIN for you for an affordable (fixed) fee. Ultimately, it will save you time and money, and also a lot of anguish.
Additionally, these companies are typically enrolled agents with the IRS who have earned the privilege of representing you before the Internal Revenue Service through either passing a three-part comprehensive test or through experience as a former IRS employee.
I am a Foreign National – How do I get an EIN number in Kentucky?
This is a question that gets asked often and there is a lot of misinformation out there. Many foreign nationals are advised that if they do not have a U.S. social security number or ITIN, that they cannot apply for a Kentucky EIN.
This is not true, but what is true, is that you cannot apply for an EIN number in Kentucky in the same manner that a U.S. citizen or someone with a U.S. social security number can. The process is different. If you are a foreign national, please do not try to go through the online process on the IRS website – it will not work.
If you are going to attempt to apply for your company’s EIN yourself, which has its own challenges, then you must download the SS4 application form (a link for this is further up the page), and fill the form out first. Once completed, you must either call the IRS and apply by telephone, reading off the information you have filled in, or you can fax or mail the form to the IRS.
Neither of these scenarios is ideal because getting hold of the IRS on the phone is not always the easiest thing to do (if you are overseas you also have time zone issues to deal with), faxing can be a challenge because fax machines are rarely used nowadays, and sending forms in the mail can take a long time and you run the risk of your SS4 application being “lost in the mail.”
In addition to this, you will find yourself having to chase up the IRS to find out the status of your application, and it can be a tedious and frustrating process.
The easiest and most hassle-free way for a foreign national to apply for an EIN Number in Kentucky is to use the services of a professional document filing company, that for one affordable fee they will take care of everything for you.
These companies are doing this all the time and specialize in helping foreign nationals and will fax your SS4 form and application directly to the IRS, handle all the communication back and forth with them, chase them if there are any delays or issues, and mail you the original forms once they are received.
The service is a complete “no-hassle” process and you will have your Kentucky EIN in no time (usually within a few weeks). You can then open your business bank account.
SS-4 Fax Number
If you are a U.S. citizen or permanent legal resident that resides in the U.S. and your principal business, office, or agency is in one of the 50 states or the District of Columbia, then you should mail or fax Form SS-4 to the following:
Internal Revenue Service Attn: EIN Operation Cincinnati, OH 45999 Fax: (855) 641-6935
If you have no legal residence, principal place of business, or principal office or agency in any US state, essentially, if you are a foreign national, then you should mail or fax Form SS-4 to the following:
Internal Revenue Service Attn: EIN International Operation Cincinnati, Ohio 45999 United States Fax: (855) 215-1627 (within the US) Fax: (304) 707-9471 (outside the US)
Doing Business in Kentucky
When doing business in the U.S. it is important to know the business climate and the advantages of doing business within that state. Kentucky has been considered by many as one of, if not, the best state to do business in the U.S., with extremely low business costs, and efficient networking, there are an abundance of benefits that come with doing business in Kentucky, here are some of them:
- Location – Kentucky is situated in the middle of the U.S., within a day’s drive of two-thirds of the nation’s population. This has subsequently led to the Bluegrass State becoming a national distribution point for goods and materials to a huge consumer market, making starting a business in Kentucky an attractive proposition.
- Networking – Kentucky is home to a plethora of highways, major railway networks, barge traffic on the Ohio and Mississippi rivers, five commercial airports, and multiple regional airports. This means that the strong transportation network will lead to efficiency when moving products by air, rail, road, and water to any location globally or within the U.S.
- Business Costs – According to CNBC, Kentucky ranks 1st in the U.S. for the cost of doing business. Kentucky has many tax incentive programs and provides financial assistance to all businesses that are relocating or starting up within the state.
- Workforce Training – This next point is certainly beneficial for all businesses big and small that are, or planning on doing business in Kentucky. The Bluegrass state offers workforce and training assistance for new and existing employees at no charge!
- Education – Colleges and Universities in Kentucky are always planning for the future by teaching students the fundamental aspects of doing business. Kentucky takes education extremely seriously.
