Finally got my EIN confirmation in under 2 hours

Filed the SS-4 online last Tuesday morning from my kitchen table. By the time I finished my second cup of coffee, the PDF was in my inbox. Has anyone else noticed the IRS website being actually fast lately, or did I just get lucky?

3 comments

3 Comments

the_laura5d ago

Oh yeah, same thing happened to me last week! Filed my SS-4 on my lunch break and had the confirmation before I even finished my sandwich. I honestly thought I was dreaming (or maybe the IRS website just had a really good day). For real though, I've been hearing other people say the same thing lately, so maybe they finally updated their system or something. It's about time, right?

thomas.river5d ago

This happened to me a couple months ago too. I was honestly shocked because the SS-4 used to take forever, like I filed one for my buddy's LLC back in 2022 and we waited almost 6 weeks. What I figured out is that if you file online during their non-peak hours, like early morning or late evening, it processes way faster. @the_laura might have hit that sweet spot with their lunch break timing. Just make sure you have all your info ready beforehand because the form kicks you out if you idle too long.

danielowens3d ago

Man I've been seeing the same buzz online too. I think I read somewhere on a tax forum that they quietly rolled out a new backend system for the SS-4 around late last year. Some people were saying it used to route through like three different agencies before, but now it's all automated on their end. That would explain why the lunch break trick actually works now, if there's no human having to manually enter it. Your mileage may vary with super complicated entities like trusts or nonprofits though, I've heard those still take a bit. But for a basic LLC or sole prop? Yeah, seems like they finally joined the 21st century.