An SSN is not a business registration number
The requirementstatement
A Social Security Number must not be submitted in the business registration number field.
- Severityseverity
- BlockingBLOCKINGBreaking this rule gets the submission rejected. There is no partial credit.
- When it bitesphase
- Gates approvalapprovalGet this wrong and the brand or campaign is refused at registration.
- What is checkedobject
- brand.ein
- Where it liveslayer
- BrandBRAND
- How Ekas settles itdetectability
- DeterministicDETERMINISTIC
- Settled in code from the values you submitted. No model involved, no judgement call, same answer every time.
- What the fix involvesfailureClass
- Fix the fieldRETRY_FIELD
- A better value in the form fixes it. Ekas can rewrite it and re-check.
- Who requires itauthorities
- TCRAWS
- When it appliesapplicabilityText
- Applies to every 10DLC registration.
Why this rule existsrationale
A sole proprietor with no EIN reaches for the number they do have, and the field accepts nine digits without complaint. It fails verification — an SSN is not in any business register — and in the meantime a government identifier has been sent to a registry that had no business receiving it. The correct route for that user is the sole-proprietor tier, which asks for no tax ID at all.
How to fix itremediation
Remove the SSN. If the business has an EIN, use it; if it does not, register on the sole-proprietor tier, which verifies by mobile OTP instead. Done when the field holds an EIN or is empty on a sole-proprietor brand.
A compliant exampleexample
ein: 12-3456789 (an EIN) — never 123-45-6789 (an SSN)
Common mistakespitfalls
- Applying for an EIN is free and takes minutes on the IRS site, so the sole-proprietor tier is a choice rather than the only option — but it is the right one below the volume threshold.
Rules you will hit next
6 other rules read brand.ein. Fixing one field to satisfy a single rule is how a resubmission trades one rejection for another, so read these before you change anything.
BRD-017A tax ID is required for every entity but a sole proprietorBlockingBLOCKINGBRD-019EIN must be nine digitsBlockingBLOCKINGBRD-020Submit the US EIN hyphenatedBlockingBLOCKINGBRD-022A DUNS number is not a US business registration numberBlockingBLOCKINGBRD-032Submit the identifier in the form the issuing country requiresBlockingBLOCKINGBRD-065Sole proprietor must have no EINBlockingBLOCKING
BRD-021 is one of 196 brand rules in the 915-rule 10DLC registry. Free to cite under CC BY 4.0.