New LLC owned by S corporation

[promisem]

Greetings. I own a small S corporation and need to start a new, single-member LLC to protect a separate line of business and also to avoid separate tax filings for both businesses.

The S corporation is the registered agent for the LLC. Does the LLC need its own EIN? What other steps do you recommend for proving that the S corp owns the LLC?

[Owen]

It won't need its own EIN unless that business is paying taxes.

[Business Attorney]

A single member LLC is a disregarded entity for Federal income tax purposes and does not need its own FEIN.

You ask about "proving that the S corp owns the LLC" - what are you trying to prove and to whom? And in what state? In Illinois, for example, a member-managed LLC must name the members in the articles of organization and that becomes a public record that is available online. In many other states, the names of the members are not in the public records so you would need to rely on a document such as an operating agreement which names the member.

[bzelf]

Agree that a single member LLC is a disregarded entity for Federal income tax purposes (unless that you made special election to treat it as a corporation for income tax, etc.) and does not need its own FEIN.