New Online Services Benefit Georgia Business Owners

Atlanta - Governor Sonny Perdue announced today that Georgia business owners now have a faster, more convenient way to register their business with the State of Georgia. By visiting www.georgia.gov and clicking the Online Business Registration Section, business owners will be able to register for a state sales tax identification number and a provisional Federal Employee Identification Number (FEIN). Obtaining a state sales tax identification number and a provisional Federal Employee Identification Number (FEIN) used to take several days.

"We are pleased to offer this new service to Georgia business owners," said Governor Sonny Perdue. "In addition to speeding up the application process, the new online systems reduce the need to visit a state or federal office, thereby producing increased efficiency for both the state and Georgia's business owners."

A national pilot project is making both services available online and Georgia is one of two states selected to participate in the project to integrate online business registration and the FEIN application. The Georgia Department of Revenue and the Georgia Technology Authority collaborated on the project with the federal Small Business Administration (SBA), which provided the funding. EzGov, a firm which specializes in electronic government services, developed the application using Georgia's business requirements. SBA plans to offer the service to other states.

Using the online tool will allow business owners to enter the appropriate information through the convenience of the Internet. The information is then immediately processed and an ID number is mailed by the Georgia Department of Revenue. At the same time, business owners also can apply for a provisional Federal Employee Identification Number (FEIN), a process that formerly required more than 90 minutes to fill out the forms and additional time for processing. The online application takes only minutes to complete, and the provisional FEIN is assigned immediately.

Georgia's state government portal, www.georgia.gov, is a single point of access to online government information and services. Other services available on the state portal include online driver's license renewal and "Where's my child's check?," which enables parents to go online to check the status of their child support payments.