PAYROLL GLOSSARY
FEIN
Definition: FEIN stands for Federal Employer Identification Number and is another name for an EIN issued by the IRS.
The IRS uses EIN to identify a business entity for federal tax purposes. Many payroll, HR, and banking systems still use FEIN as shorthand because the number is often associated with employers, but FEIN and EIN refer to the same federal tax ID number in most practical business contexts.
A FEIN appears in payroll workflows because employers use it for tax filing, information returns, and payroll account setup. If you are comparing pay stubs, onboarding paperwork, or employer forms, FEIN is part of the employer's identification layer rather than part of your wage calculation. It does not change your withholding by itself, but it is one of the core identifiers behind compliant payroll reporting.
If you need one for a business, the IRS issues EINs directly for free. If you only see FEIN in payroll software, read it as EIN unless the form explicitly says otherwise.