New freelancer: EIN use on Schedule C after using ssn

[Cr81pp]

Greetings, 

My spouse and I filet tases jointly. Spouse is salaried and has a higher income. 

This year was my first year as a freelancer and sole proprietor. Not an LLC

I used my social security number on the first couple of W9s, which came from trustworthy clients. I recently got an EIN and plan to use it on W-9s with any new clients in 2025. 

Moving forward:

Should I complete new W9s with the EIN and send these forms to the old/trustworthy clients to let them know that I use the EIN from now on? Does it matter having a mix of W9s with ssn and eins out there? 

On Schedule C: should I list both my SSN and EIN? [I found so many mixed answers here.]. As I said, for the 2024 tax year, I did not use the EIN. For 2025 I'd likely have a mix of w9 forms and therefore, 1099s coming in with both ssn and eins]

I see that Schedule SE only requires SSN. 

Lastly I suspect I'd continue paying estimated social security taxes through my ssn. 

Thank you! 

[dmertz · Accepted solution]

You clients can report using either your SSN or your EIN.  Each should use the TIN shown on the latest Form W-9 that you gave each.  Having a mix is not an issue since you must report all of the income on Schedule C either way.

When in doubt, refer to the IRS instructions for a particular form.  Schedule C is part of your individual tax return, so it must always have your SSN.  Since you now have an EIN for this business, the EIN is to be included on Schedule C line D.

A sole proprietor pays self-employment tax by it being included on Schedule 2 line 4, calculated on Schedule SE.  It becomes part of your overall tax liability, so you need to factor that in quarterly when making quarterly estimated tax payments.

[Cr81pp]

Thank you for the response. So, pretty much next time I file taxes in TurboTax, I should add the EIN to Schedule C. If I understand correctly, as a sole proprietor, estimated tax payments would still be made under SSN. Happy Holidays!