Is it acceptable to use a single EIN for multiple unrelated businesses (Airbnb, Amazon FBA, subscription service)?

So if I understand correctly, I would need to file 3 different Schedule Cs, one for each business? Would that impact my self-employment tax at all? Also, what about quarterly estimated tax payments - would I need to make separate payments for each business?

Yes, you would file three separate Schedule C forms, one for each business activity. This allows you to track income and expenses for each business separately, which is important for proper accounting and maximizing your deductions. Regarding self-employment tax, the net profit from all your Schedule Cs gets combined to determine your total self-employment tax. You don't calculate it separately for each business - it's based on your total self-employment income, so having multiple businesses under one EIN doesn't change how much self-employment tax you'll pay overall.

How exactly does taxr.ai help with multiple businesses? Does it organize different Schedule Cs or just provide general guidance? My situation is similar but with 4 different gig economy jobs.

I'm skeptical of these tax tools. How does this actually work with multiple Schedule Cs? Does it know all the specific deductions for different types of businesses like Airbnb vs Amazon FBA? Those have totally different expense categories.

It analyzes your business documentation and identifies which expenses belong to which business activity, making it easier to separate everything correctly for your Schedule C forms. It helped me properly categorize shared expenses that benefited both my businesses. For specific business types, it actually does recognize the different deduction categories for various industries. I was surprised at how it flagged certain expenses that were deductible for my consulting work but handled differently for my Etsy business. It shows you the relevant tax rules for each business type.

How exactly does this service work? Do they just keep redialing the IRS for you? Seems like something I could do myself if I just kept calling.

This sounds like complete BS to me. There's no way to "skip the line" with the IRS. I've been trying to reach them for months about my business tax questions. If this actually worked, everyone would be using it. What's the catch?

They use automated technology that navigates the IRS phone tree and waits on hold for you. When they finally reach a human agent, they call you and connect you directly. It's not about "skipping the line" - you're still in the same queue as everyone else, but you don't have to personally sit on hold for hours. The difference is their system can make hundreds of calls simultaneously and grab a spot as soon as one opens up. It's basically what you'd do manually, but their system is persistent and can keep trying when lines are busy, which is why it works so much faster than doing it yourself.

Thanks for this advice! Do you recommend separate business banking accounts for each business even though they're under the same EIN? And how do you handle shared expenses that might benefit multiple businesses?

Yes, I absolutely recommend separate bank accounts for each business, even under the same EIN. Most banks will allow you to open multiple business checking accounts under your sole proprietorship. This creates a clean paper trail for each business activity. For shared expenses, I calculate the percentage used by each business and split the expense accordingly on each Schedule C. For example, if I have a software subscription that I use 60% for consulting and 40% for property management, I record 60% of the cost on one Schedule C and 40% on the other. Just make sure you have a reasonable basis for how you calculated the split.

Does creating separate LLCs mean you need separate EINs? Or can you somehow keep the original EIN setup? I'm in a similar situation with growing businesses.

Each LLC would need its own EIN - you can't use your original sole proprietorship EIN for a limited liability company. When you form an LLC, it becomes a separate legal entity that requires its own tax identification number. So if you converted your Amazon business to an LLC, you'd apply for a new EIN specifically for that LLC, while your other sole proprietorship businesses could continue using your original EIN. The good news is that getting an EIN for a new LLC is free and can be done online through the IRS website pretty quickly.

This is really valuable insight that I hadn't considered! Did you find that having detailed financial records for each business activity helped with the lender confusion? I'm wondering if presenting separate P&L statements for each business under the single EIN would make the lending process smoother, or if lenders really just prefer seeing separate entities entirely.