Get an EIN for Your Maine LLC — Free at IRS.gov (2026)
After weeks of Maine paper, here's the refreshing part: your EIN is instant, online, and free. Fifteen minutes at IRS.gov and your LLC has its federal tax ID — no envelope required. Here's the Maine sequence, including the no-SSN path.
Apply for your EIN free at IRS.gov — never pay a third party. With an SSN or ITIN, the online application takes about 15 minutes and issues your EIN immediately. Without one, file Form SS-4 by fax (≈4+ business days) or mail (≈4+ weeks). Apply after your stamped Certificate of Formation arrives back from Augusta, so IRS records match your exact legal name and formation date. Then register with Maine Revenue Services for income withholding and sales tax accounts.
- Cost
- $0 — always free
- Where
- IRS.gov only
- Online time
- ~15 minutes
- Online issuance
- Immediate
- No SSN? (SS-4 fax)
- ~4+ business days
- After EIN
- Register with MRS
What an EIN Is (and Why Every Maine LLC Needs One)
An EIN (Employer Identification Number) is the nine-digit federal tax ID the IRS assigns your business. You need one even with zero employees:
- Open a business bank account — every bank wants the EIN letter, your stamped certificate, and your operating agreement.
- Register with Maine Revenue Services — your MRS accounts (withholding, sales tax, service provider tax) key off the EIN.
- File federal and Maine taxes — including the graduated 5.8–7.15% state income tax on pass-through profits.
- Protect your SSN — put your EIN on W-9s instead of your personal number.
Never pay for an EIN. The IRS charges nothing. Sites charging $50–$300 for "EIN filing" resell a free government form, often styled to look official. The only site you need is IRS.gov — and unlike your Certificate of Formation, this one really is online.
Which Application Method Should You Use?
EIN Path Picker — Maine Edition
2 questions · your exact path, timeline, and Maine next step
The IRS online assistant runs Mon–Fri during posted hours and issues one EIN per responsible party per day. All methods are free.
The Online Application, Step by Step
Wait for the stamped certificate
Apply only after your Certificate of Formation is filed and back in your hands — your legal name and formation date must be final. (In mail-only Maine, "approved" means the returned paper, not a portal status.)
Go to the IRS EIN Assistant
IRS.gov → "Apply for an Employer ID Number." Choose "Limited Liability Company," then Maine.
Enter members and responsible party
Member count sets your default classification — disregarded entity for one member, partnership for two-plus — and the responsible party provides their SSN/ITIN.
Complete in one session
The application times out after 15 idle minutes with no save. Keep your stamped certificate in front of you.
Download the CP 575 immediately
Your confirmation letter displays once. Banks and MRS will ask for it; a replacement means calling the IRS for Letter 147C.
No SSN? You Can Still Get an EIN
Non-US founders complete Form SS-4, write "Foreign" on line 7b, and submit by fax (~4+ business days) or mail (~4+ weeks). Line-by-line help in our guides to EINs without an SSN and foreign-owned LLCs. Foreign-owned single-member LLCs: remember Form 5472 — a $25,000 penalty applies even at zero income.
After You Get Your EIN — the Maine Sequence
- Open your business bank account — CP 575, stamped certificate, operating agreement.
- Register with Maine Revenue Services — withholding and, if you sell taxable goods or services, your 5.5% sales tax account (plus service provider tax where applicable).
- Check town-level licensing — covered in Step 7.
- Calendar June 1 for the $85 annual report — Maine mails no forms.
Ahmad Adil's Take: after mailing paper to Augusta and waiting weeks, founders sometimes assume the EIN works the same way and budget another month for it. It doesn't — it's the fastest step in the whole Maine sequence. The day your stamped certificate lands in the mailbox, do the chain in one sitting: EIN (15 minutes), bank appointment, MRS registration. By dinner your LLC is fully operational, and the only paper left in your life is the June annual report.
- ✓Forms your Maine LLC for $39 + the $175 state fee
- ✓Prepares and mails the paper-only MLLC-6 for you
- ✓Free Maine registered agent (commercial CRA) the first year
- ✓No upsells · No data selling · Privacy by Default
Disclosure: LLC School may earn a commission via this link, at no cost to you. See our advertising disclosure.
Maine LLC — FAQ
Ahmad Adil is the founder and CEO of LLC School. The figures here — the $175 mail-only Certificate of Formation (MLLC-6), the $85 June 1 annual report with its $50 late penalty, and Maine’s 5.8%–7.15% graduated income tax — reflect current Maine Secretary of State and Maine Revenue Services guidance. This is educational content, not legal or tax advice.
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