Drake Tax – Updating the EIN Database from the Prior Year

How to Update W-2/1099 Payer Information from Prior-Year

Each time an employer is entered on a screen for a Form W-2, W-2G, 1099-MISC, 1099-R, 1099-G, 8283, or 2441, that employer’s name, EIN (or SSN), address, and state ID number are automatically added to the EIN database.

To pull EIN information over from the prior-year software:

1. From the Home window of the software, select Last Year Data > Build EIN/Name from 2023.

2. Select the Prior year Drake Tax program location from the drop list.

3. From the Build EIN Database and Name Index dialog box, select the indices you need to update:

   • Both EIN and Name

   • EIN only

   • Name only

4. Click Continue.

5. Wait for the program to finish scanning the files (this update takes about one minute for every 2,000 client files). It will display Scanning complete on the window with a summary of the number of Names/EINs updated.

6. Click Exit.

After updating, when you type an EIN into the Payer section of one of the listed forms and press Tab or Enter, the rest of the information will auto-fill.