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Topic: EIN v. SSN
| Author | Message |
| getmeoutofhere | Posted – 1/19/2008 11:53:47 PM | show profile | email poster I just started freelancing, and my editor asked me to submit my Employer ID Number on a W-9 form. She insisted I have an EIN so that the IRS is certain that I am not a company employee. I guess that since I'm a freelancer, I'm self-employed, and so I need an EIN? Yes? No? I still work another job full-time. Does anyone know if an EIN is mandatory or needed in this situation, and how it affects my taxes (for either my entire income or just the money I make as a freelancer)? |
| rhino writer | Posted – 1/21/2008 11:31:18 AM | show profile As far as I know, EINs are optional. If you're freelancing under a business name and your checks are made out to that name, your bank will make you open a business account -- and for that, you need an EIN. What an EIN will do in this situation is clearly distinguish your freelancing income from your in-house income. That would probably make it easier for the IRS to tell what you need to pay self-employment tax on, which I guess is what your editor is trying to make sure is clear. The money you make as an employee will be under your SS number, so you won't have to pay anything extra on that. Actually, it sounds like getting one might be a good idea, in case you're ever audited. I have one; it's simple to get, and if you do it online you get assigned one right away. I'm pretty sure you don't need to use a separate business name for it. And then you're not handing over your SS number to everyone as a freelancer. |
| Little Fingers | Posted – 1/21/2008 11:53:26 PM | show profile I've read a lot of info for and against using an EIN, so I would say it really comes down to a choice based on your needs and circumstances--seems to me a lot has to do with how much you make. But it IS optional, so your employer should not insist that you do it. I have been freelancing for years now and get 1099 forms from various employers big and small, and I use my ss#. Never been a problem. And I use an accountant, fyi. :) Whatever it is that companies do to distinguish which employees get W2s and which get 1099s, that is their responsibility, not yours. |
| MamatotwoWriter | Posted – 1/24/2008 5:50:49 PM | show profile | email poster Time Out NY When I was freelancing with TONY, my editor demanded an EIN. I spoke with my accountant who assured me it was fine to file for one. |
