Getting an EIN

Any corporation, non-profit or otherwise, that plans to have a bank account or become officially incorporated needs an Employer Identification Number, or EIN. This is sort of the equivalent of a social security number except for businesses, a way for the government to identify your organization. It's easy to get an EIN. You can apply for one through the IRS website. For some reason this website only operates during certain hours of the day (how utterly befuddling!).

Before applying for an EIN, you will have to decide what address to use for your organization. A PO box will not work; it must be a physical address. Your local UPS store can provide a mailbox with a physical address, for a fee, if you don't have another option.