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Cheapest way to obtain EIN?
 

From my understanding I will have to spend a couple hundred minimum to start an LLC or other business model before I can get an EIN. Is there a cheaper way around this or do I have to shell out the money before I can get an EIN?

Re: Cheapest way to obtain EIN?
 

My understanding is an LLC isnt required, you can get an EIN as a sole proprietor
How to Apply for an EIN

Re: Cheapest way to obtain EIN?
 

If I do the sole proprietor then the only way for me not to have my real name is making a DBA doing business as? When I upgrade to a business account in paypal I am going to have to use a business name so it can match up with the irs, otherwise I would not be able to use a stealth name on paypal

Re: Cheapest way to obtain EIN?
 

If an EIN is issued to an LLC, Partnership or Corporation, then the name in the IRS records would be the BUSINESS NAME, which is what they will use to match on. If the EIN is issued to an Individual as a Sole Proprietorship, then the name in the IRS records will be YOUR NAME.

D/B/A's are normally used in two instances. The first is for a sole proprietorship. You become "Jim Smith d/b/a Pizza Plaza". For this type of a d/b/a, the assumed name is usually applied for at the county level. The second instance would be a corporation or an LLC using an assumed name to conduct business. An example of this would be "Stevens Enterprises, LLC d/b/a Subway Restaurant #4278". This type of d/b/a is normally issued by the same office (at the State level) that handles corporations and LLC's - usually the Secretary of State. In this case, the IRS records would match on the name of the d/b/a.

There is no limit to the number of d/b/a's that one person, corporation, or LLC can own.

Think about that for a second...

Re: Cheapest way to obtain EIN?
 

thanks, great info! So if you apply at the county level, the irs name will still go by your actual name and not your dba name? But at the state level which means you have to have some type of corporation of LLC, the irs will recognize the dba name? So based on this it would be pointless to do this at the county level.

The reason I say that is because you ended your paragraph with "in this case, the IRS records will recognize the name on the dba" meaning that wouldn't apply to the first scenario at the county level? Or did I just interpret that wrong and the county level would also be fine for the irs to recognize my dba name?