The critical distinction A U.S. LLC owned by a person abroad is still a domestic LLC if it was organized under a U.S. state’s law. The owner’s foreign status affects the responsible-party and application route; it does not by itself make the LLC a “foreign LLC” for federal entity-classification purposes.

Line 1: legal name

Enter the LLC’s legal name exactly as it appears in the state formation document, including “LLC” or the registered suffix. Do not substitute a brand or storefront name.

Lines 4a–5b: mailing and street addresses

The mailing address is where the entity receives IRS correspondence. A foreign address must include city, province or state, postal code and country name without abbreviating the country. The street address is required only if it differs from the mailing address, and it cannot be a P.O. box.

Lines 7a–7b: responsible party

Line 7a must name the individual who ultimately owns or controls the entity. Except for a government entity, the responsible party must be a natural person rather than another company.

If that individual has no SSN or ITIN and is ineligible to obtain one, the IRS instruction says to enter “foreign” or “N/A” on line 7b. The field cannot be blank.

Lines 8a–8c: LLC information

  • Check “Yes” on line 8a for an entity organized as a limited liability company.
  • Enter the number of LLC members on line 8b.
  • Line 8c asks whether the LLC was organized in the United States.

Line 9a: do not guess the tax classification

The default classification depends on member count and elections. A domestic single-member LLC is generally disregarded unless it elects corporate treatment; a domestic multi-member LLC is generally a partnership unless it elects otherwise.

Foreign owner does not automatically mean foreign entity If your LLC was formed in Wyoming, Delaware, Florida or another U.S. state, use the rules for a domestic LLC even if every owner lives abroad. Tax elections and special reporting obligations may warrant professional advice.

Lines 10–18: the operating facts

The application also asks why you need the EIN, when the business started, the accounting-year closing month, expected employees, principal business activity, and whether the entity previously applied for an EIN. These answers must describe the actual business rather than a generic online example.

Signature and third-party designee

The applicant signs and dates the form. Complete the third-party designee section only if you want another named person to receive the EIN and answer questions about Form SS-4. For a phone application, the caller must be authorized to receive the EIN and answer the form questions.

Where an international applicant submits it

Phone+1-267-941-1099

International applicants only.

Fax outside U.S.+1-304-707-9471

International routing from abroad.

Fax inside U.S.+1-855-215-1627

International case sent domestically.

MailCincinnati, OH 45999

Attn: EIN International Operation.

Primary sources Check the current IRS Instructions for Form SS-4 and download the latest official form from IRS.gov/FormSS4 before submission.