Are an EIN and tax ID the same thing?

Question

Are EIN and tax ID essentially the same, or is there a difference between these terms? I’d like to understand how U.S. businesses should use each term when dealing with tax documents.

Richer · Answer

An EIN (Employer Identification Number) is a type of Tax Identification Number (TIN) issued by the U.S. Internal Revenue Service (IRS) to identify businesses for federal tax purposes. However, “tax ID” is a broader term that can refer to different identification numbers, including an EIN, SSN, or ITIN.

Richer · Answer

EIN or Employer Identification Number is one of the TINs issued by the U.S. IRS in order to identify companies for federal tax purposes. Nonetheless, “tax ID” is a more general term that can mean other identification numbers besides an EIN; these include SSN and ITIN.

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