Question about the EIN number

jeromestanley21 — Sat, 01 Jun 2019 05:58:54 GMT

on my print tax which I;m mailing in under childcare it say TIN, is that a typo or should I fix it to EIN

No, you don't need to fix anything, and this isn't really...

GeoffreyG — Sat, 01 Jun 2019 05:58:56 GMT

No, you don't need to fix anything, and this isn't really a typographical error. Please allow us to explain.

An EIN (Employer Identification Number) is assigned by the IRS, and is used to uniquely identify a business entity, a trust, or an estate, in much the same way that a Social Security Number is used precisely identify an individual.

A Social Security Number is assigned by the Social Security Administration, although the IRS uses their name and number database to process tax returns and administer tax laws.

A TIN (Taxpayer Identification Number) is a "catchall" umbrella term that encompasses both EINs, SSNs, and a few other things. Often, when filling out tax returns and working in tax software like TurboTax, the collective acronyms TIN, EIN, and SSN are used interchangeably.

There is a short IRS.gov webpage that neatly explains this. Here is the link:

https://www.irs.gov/individuals/international-taxpayers/taxpayer-identification-numbers-tin

Thus, in your case, with respect to the child and dependent care tax form in TurboTax, you can safely view TIN and EIN as meaning essentially the same thing. You have nothing to correct, and this not an error.

Thank you for noticing this, and for asking this thoughtful question.

topic Question about the EIN number in Get your taxes done using TurboTax

Question about the EIN number

No, you don't need to fix anything, and this isn't really...