How to Get an EIN in Colorado: Free Federal Tax ID

A Colorado EIN, also called a Federal Employer Identification Number or FEIN, is the federal tax ID the IRS assigns your business. As of 2026 it’s still free to get in about 15 minutes. New owners who form a Colorado LLC often assume that one number also covers state payroll and sales tax. It doesn’t: those accounts come from separate Colorado agencies, which is why the order matters.

Does Your Colorado LLC Need an EIN, or Just a State Account Number?

Not every Colorado LLC is legally required to hold an EIN, but almost every one benefits. The rule turns on how the LLC is taxed and whether it has employees, so it’s worth checking where your structure lands first.

A single-member Colorado LLC with no employees is a disregarded entity, so the IRS reports its income on the owner’s personal return. You’re not federally required to hold an EIN, yet most owners get one anyway for a business bank account and to keep their SSN private; the Boost Suite breakdown of what a Colorado LLC costs to file puts it in context.

A multi-member LLC defaults to partnership taxation, so the EIN is mandatory. The members’ split should already sit in a Colorado operating agreement before the application names a responsible party.

How to Get Your Colorado EIN From the IRS, Step by Step

Most Colorado owners finish online in about 15 minutes, and the EIN appears the moment it’s approved. These steps assume you’re applying online, which works when the responsible party has an SSN or ITIN and the principal business address is in the U.S. A business based outside the U.S. applies by phone, fax, or mail instead.

Step 1: Confirm your Colorado LLC is approved

Apply only after the Colorado Secretary of State approves your Articles of Organization. The IRS issues the EIN against the legal name you type, so it has to match the approved entity exactly. If you haven’t filed yet, start the Colorado LLC first and check how long that approval takes before booking time for this step.

Step 2: Open the IRS EIN Assistant during its hours

The free EIN Assistant on IRS.gov runs Monday to Friday 6:00 a.m. to 1:00 a.m. Eastern the next day, Saturday 6:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m. Eastern, and Sunday 6:00 p.m. to midnight Eastern. It times out after 15 minutes of inactivity, so have everything ready first.

Step 3: Select the entity type carefully

This is the screen that forces the most refiles. Match the option to how the LLC is taxed: single-member picks the disregarded-entity path, multi-member picks partnership, and an LLC electing corporate tax picks the corporate option. Choose wrong and you can end up with a misclassified EIN that’s a hassle to unwind.

Step 4: Enter the legal name and any trade name

Type the LLC’s legal name exactly as the Colorado Secretary of State shows it. A trade name or DBA goes in the separate trade-name field, never the legal-name field.

Step 5: Name the responsible party

The responsible party must be a natural person who controls the LLC, listed with an SSN or ITIN. The IRS won’t accept a nominee or another company here unless the applicant is a government entity.

Step 6: Submit and save the CP 575 immediately

Once approved, the IRS shows your EIN and the CP 575 confirmation letter on the final screen. Download and save it right then, because the IRS won’t mail a replacement; the most it provides later is a Letter 147C.

Two other channels exist if the online tool won’t work for you. Faxing Form SS-4 takes about 4 business days with a return fax number; mailing it takes roughly 4 weeks. International applicants whose business sits outside the U.S. can apply by phone at 267-941-1099, weekdays 6:00 a.m. to 11:00 p.m. Eastern.

Every route is free. Third-party sites charging $150 to $300 to “file” your EIN are selling a form you can submit yourself at no cost. One limit trips up founders launching several ventures: the IRS issues only one EIN per responsible party per day.

Colorado EIN Approval (EIN Confirmation Letter): Save Your CP 575 Before MyBizColorado Registration

Once the IRS approves your application, the document that matters is the CP 575, your official EIN confirmation letter. For a Colorado LLC, this is the record you will want saved before moving into state setup, because the EIN on that letter is the number you will use when registering for tax accounts with the Colorado Department of Revenue and, if you hire, with the Colorado Department of Labor and Employment.

What it looks like

The CP 575 is an IRS-issued confirmation letter that shows your business name and newly assigned federal EIN. It is not a Colorado tax letter, and it is not the same as a Colorado Account Number (CAN) you may later receive from CDOR.

In Colorado, that distinction matters because owners often mix up the federal EIN with the state account number once Revenue Online and MyBizColorado paperwork start arriving.

Example of the IRS CP 575 EIN confirmation letter

• Use it for Colorado registration: your EIN is required when opening Colorado sales tax, withholding, or employer-related accounts.
• Keep the number straight: the EIN on your CP 575 is federal, while the CAN is a separate Colorado tax identifier that comes later from the state.
• Save both PDF and backup copy: keep the CP 575 in your LLC records, banking folder, and tax setup documents so it is easy to find during MyBizColorado or payroll setup.

Important: the IRS does not reissue the original CP 575. If you lose it, you usually need to request a 147C letter instead. That is why Colorado owners should download the CP 575 immediately before moving on to Revenue Online, MyBizColorado, or employer registration.

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Match Your EIN Application to Your Colorado Secretary of State Record

The online tool moves fast, so the real work is gathering details first; you’ll want these ready so the EIN matches your Colorado records on the first try:

• The approved legal name, exactly as the state’s business entity record shows it
• Your Colorado Secretary of State entity ID and formation date
• The responsible party’s name and SSN or ITIN
• Your federal tax classification: disregarded, partnership, or corporate
• A reason for applying, such as a new business, hiring, or banking
• A business address and your Colorado registered agent details

Form the Colorado LLC first, then apply. When the EIN is issued before the entity exists, the name on the CP 575 can drift from the state record. You’ll then meet that mismatch at the bank and on payroll setup.

EIN vs Your Colorado Account Number (CAN) and CDOR Tax Accounts

Here’s where owners get tangled: Colorado doesn’t issue a “state EIN.” The EIN is federal, and the number on Colorado tax paperwork is the Colorado Account Number, or CAN, an eight-digit identifier from the Department of Revenue.

Registering With CDOR and CDLE After You Get Your EIN

The EIN unlocks the Colorado side. With it in hand, you register directly with state agencies for whichever accounts your business triggers, and not every LLC triggers all of them. The Boost Suite guide to Colorado business taxes goes deeper; the accounts below are the ones the EIN feeds into.

Wage withholding account (CDOR)

Any employer withholding Colorado income tax from wages must keep an active wage withholding account with the Department of Revenue. You apply through MyBizColorado or by filing form CR 0100, with no fee to open one.

Sales tax license (CDOR)

Selling, renting, or leasing tangible personal property in Colorado means you need a state sales tax license. As of 2026 the standard retail license costs $16 from January through June, or $12 from July through December. New accounts also pay a one-time $50 deposit for the first location, refunded once you remit $50 in state sales tax. Out-of-state sellers stay exempt until Colorado retail sales top $100,000 in both the current and prior calendar years.

Home-rule cities and SUTS

This is the part competitors gloss over. The state license covers state and state-administered jurisdictions only; self-collecting home-rule cities like Denver and Boulder run their own sales tax registration. The Sales & Use Tax System (SUTS) lets you file for state-collected jurisdictions and participating home-rule cities in one place. A city that doesn’t participate has to be filed with directly.

Unemployment insurance account (CDLE)

Hiring in Colorado eventually triggers unemployment insurance. You register through MyUI Employer+ at the Department of Labor and Employment once you owe premiums. Liability kicks in at $1,500 or more in wages in a calendar quarter, or one employee for part of a day in 20 weeks of the year.

Retail Delivery Fee (CDOR)

E-commerce sellers hit a Colorado-only charge. The Retail Delivery Fee applies to deliveries by motor vehicle that include at least one taxable item, and runs $0.28 through June 2026. Colorado resets the rate each July, so confirm the current figure with CDOR for deliveries after that. Retailers with $500,000 or less in prior-year retail sales are exempt the following year.

How to get your Colorado state tax ID

To open the accounts, use MyBizColorado, which routes your EIN to CDOR and to CDLE when you flag employees. Submit CR 0100 for sales tax and withholding, then watch for the Letter ID that unlocks Revenue Online and shows your CAN. The EIN is required at registration, which is the whole reason it’s first in line.

EIN Mistakes That Cost Colorado LLC Owners Time

Most EIN problems in Colorado fall into two buckets: a federal misstep on the application, or a state account the EIN never created for you.

On the federal side, the usual errors are picking the wrong entity type on the SS-4 or naming a nominee instead of a natural person as responsible party. A third is applying for a second EIN when the first was just misplaced, which means a call to the IRS to sort out.

On the Colorado side, the classics are treating the CAN as the EIN and assuming the state sales tax license covers home-rule cities. Owners also miss the Retail Delivery Fee on delivered orders and skip CDLE registration after the first hire. None surface until a bank, a city, or an auditor flags them.

Lost Your EIN or Changing Your Colorado LLC?

Misplacing an EIN is common and fixable. Before calling the IRS, check where your EIN shows up: the CP 575, past tax returns, and the bank paperwork from when you first used it. If none of those turn up, request Letter 147C, which the IRS issues when the original CP 575 can’t be reproduced.

The Colorado side stays separate: your CAN sits in Revenue Online and on CDOR correspondence, not on anything the IRS holds.

Some changes force a brand-new EIN and others don’t. Converting a sole proprietorship into an LLC, or moving from single-member to multi-member, needs a new one. A name or address change doesn’t, and those go to the IRS on Form 8822-B or 8832. Whatever changes, the EIN doesn’t end your state upkeep, since the LLC still files its Colorado periodic report with the Secretary of State to stay in good standing.

Colorado EIN Questions Local Owners Ask Most

A handful of questions come up on almost every Colorado EIN call, and the answers all separate the federal number from the state accounts confused with it.