How to close an EIN number (with a letter template)

To close an EIN number’s business account, send the IRS a letter identifying the entity and explaining why the EIN is no longer needed. The IRS calls this deactivation: it cannot cancel the permanently assigned number. Address required outstanding returns and taxes before requesting closure.

The letter belongs near the end of your closing business checklist. Prepare it while your accountant and business records are still accessible, then check the filing and payment status before mailing it.

1Close an EIN number after the tax work is resolved

The IRS deactivation instructions say to provide the EIN, legal name, address, reason and assignment notice if available. As of November 2026, they describe a mailed-letter process for ordinary businesses and require outstanding returns and taxes to be resolved in the circumstances stated there.

Before using the template, ask your preparer to review this short list:

1. Identify the exact entity and EIN from your records.
2. Confirm which required returns remain outstanding.
3. Reconcile tax payments and any filing notices.
4. Choose an address where follow-up correspondence can reach you.
5. Save a copy of the completed request and mailing evidence.

Use the IRS closing guide for the returns that precede this step. If a balance or missing-return notice is unresolved, put it in the accountant’s work list rather than assuming a deactivation request settles it.

2Copyable EIN cancellation letter

Replace every bracketed field and remove the enclosure line if you do not have the assignment notice. Use the entity’s exact legal name and EIN, then have the person handling the business’s tax closure review the completed version.

[Date]

Internal Revenue Service

MS 6055

Kansas City, MO 64108

Re: Request to deactivate EIN [XX-XXXXXXX]

Entity legal name: [Full legal name]

Entity address: [Street address, city, state and ZIP code]

Dear Internal Revenue Service:

Please deactivate the EIN associated with the entity identified above because [accurate reason the EIN is no longer needed, such as the business has permanently closed].

Please send any correspondence about this request to [contact name and reliable mailing address].

Thank you,

[Signature]

[Printed name and capacity]

[Contact details]

Enclosure: Copy of EIN assignment notice, if available

This is a drafting aid based on the published letter requirements. The signature, contact details and request for correspondence help organize the request; the IRS page does not promise a particular response format or turnaround time.

Do not add a statement that every return has been filed or every tax paid unless you have checked it. Keep the underlying filing and payment evidence in your own closing packet rather than substituting a broad assurance for the reconciliation work.

3Where to send the letter

As of November 2026, the dedicated IRS deactivation page lists two mailing options for an ordinary business. The template uses the first; you can instead replace its address with the second.

Recheck the official page immediately before mailing. Preserve the full mail stop and ZIP code when copying the address, and save the final letter version so you can establish exactly what was sent.

Exempt organizations have separate instructions on that IRS page, including restrictions and different addressing. This business template does not replace that process; an exempt organization should use the guidance for its own status.

4Online deactivation and permanent assignment

The IRS offers online EIN applications, but that is a different transaction from deactivation. As of November 2026, its dedicated deactivation page lists the letter procedure and does not publish an online deactivation route for an ordinary business.

The Treasury Inspector General’s EIN report confirms that an EIN is permanently assigned and never reassigned. Deactivation therefore does not make the identifier available to another company or erase the historical association with your entity.

If you later start or acquire a business, review the IRS’s new-EIN rules before using an old number. Ownership and structure changes can matter; do not treat the old identifier as a spare number that can be moved between unrelated entities.

5Track the request after mailing

Add the mailing date, destination, tracking reference if used and saved letter location to the closing register. Identify who will monitor the correspondence address and who will give the accountant any reply, rather than leaving that responsibility with an inbox scheduled for deletion.

Keep a request you have sent distinguishable from a response you have received. If correspondence arrives about an unpaid balance or missing return, retain the notice and route it to the preparer with the filing and payment records for the relevant period.

If you need to follow up with the IRS, have the entity details and a copy of the original request available. Ask the person handling the inquiry to record the date, issue discussed and next action in the closing file so a second adviser can understand what remains unresolved.

6Keep state closure and account access organized

The letter is a federal tax-account task. Use the LLC dissolution steps or corporation dissolution steps for the state entity process, and track each accepted filing separately from this mailing.

Before ending accounting or payroll access, download the reports needed to understand the final returns. Keep an index of the entity name, EIN, tax periods, filing confirmations and the person responsible for later correspondence, then test that the archive opens without the cancelled subscription.

Review company-owned operational records for possible value before destroying them. Do that while someone can still identify the systems and explain the exports, and keep any potential licensing proceeds outside the closing budget until the commercial review is complete.

7Next steps

Have your preparer confirm the filing and payment status, then complete and mail the letter. Save it with your business records after closing and keep the correspondence address monitored for follow-up.