Before sending payments through Corpay One, every company is required to complete a verification process in compliance with federal banking regulations. This process is simple to complete directly from the Verifications tab.
Corpay One requires all companies to complete this verification process. To do this, you will need your company's full legal name and one of the following:
Employer Identification Number (EIN): Also known as a Federal Tax Identification Number, and is used to identify a business entity. Generally, businesses need an EIN.
Tax Identification Number (TIN): An identification number used by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) in the administration of tax laws. The EIN is a Tax Identification Number, but a common alternative is the Social Security Number (SSN) for sole proprietors.
How to Locate Your Tax ID
A business tax ID number, also called an employer identification number (EIN) or federal tax ID, is a unique nine-digit number that identifies your business with the IRS. Owners of most types of business entities need a business tax ID number to file taxes, open a business bank account, obtain a business license, or apply for a business loan.
There are three simple ways to look up your tax ID number:
Check your EIN confirmation letter
Check other places your EIN could be recorded
Call the IRS
Check your EIN confirmation letter
The easiest way to find your EIN is to dig up your EIN confirmation letter. This is the original document the IRS issued when you first applied for your EIN. The letter will show your business tax ID and other identifying information for your business.
If you applied online for your EIN, the IRS would have issued your confirmation letter right away, accessible online. You would have also had the opportunity to choose receipt by traditional mail.
Your EIN confirmation letter is an important tax and business document, so ideally you stored it away with other key paperwork, such as your business bank account information and incorporation documents.
Check other places your EIN could be recorded
If you've misplaced your EIN confirmation letter, then you'll need to get a little more creative to find your business tax ID number. Fortunately, once you get an EIN, your tax ID typically won't change for the entire lifespan of your business. That makes locating the EIN easier. These are some additional places where you can locate your EIN:
Old federal tax returns
Official tax notices from the IRS
Business licenses and permits and relevant applications
Business bank account statements or online account profile
Old business loan applications
Your business credit report
Payroll paperwork (such as 1099 forms that you've received as an independent contractor or issued to independent contractors)
Call the IRS
You should be able to track down your EIN by accessing one or more of the documents listed above; but if you're still not having any luck, the IRS can help you with federal tax ID lookup. You can call the IRS’s Business and Specialty Tax Line, and a representative will provide your EIN to you right over the phone. The Business and Specialty Tax Line is open Monday through Friday from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. ET. This should be your last resort, however, because call wait times can sometimes be very long.
Before you call, keep in mind that the IRS needs to prove you’re actually authorized to retrieve your business tax ID number. For example, you’ll need to prove you are a corporate officer, a sole proprietor, or a partner in a partnership. The IRS representative will ask you questions to confirm your identity.
How to Apply for an Employer Identification Number (EIN)
Applying for an EIN with the IRS is quick, easy, and can be done online from the IRS website. After all validations are done you will get your EIN immediately upon completion. You can then download, save, and print your confirmation notice and use it immediately.
All EIN applications must disclose the name and Taxpayer Identification Number (SSN, ITIN, or EIN) of the true principal officer, general partner, grantor, owner or trustor. This individual or entity, which the IRS will call the “responsible party,” controls, manages, or directs the applicant entity and the disposition of its funds and assets. The responsible party must be an individual (i.e., a natural person), not an entity.