For information on how to complete your survey, go to Information for Respondents and review the section for "Ready to Report or Need Assistance?" or go directly to the How Do I Get Started? FAQs.
For help with the reporting instrument go to How-To Videos.

Yes, your response is required by law. Title 13 United States Code, Sections 131 and 182, authorizes this collection. Sections 224 and 225 require your response. The U.S. Census Bureau is required by Section 9 of the same law to keep your information confidential and can use your responses only to produce statistics. The Census Bureau is not permitted to publicly release your responses in a way that could identify your business, organization, or institution. Per the Federal Cybersecurity Enhancement Act of 2015, your data are protected from cybersecurity risks through screening of the systems that transmit your data.

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Title 13 (Section 224) and the Sentencing Reform Act of 1984 (18, U.S.C. 3559 and 3571) allow for possible prosecution of responsible officials and penalties up to $5,000 (and a response is still required).

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Complete the survey with data for any period of time during the current reporting year that the establishment was in operation.

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The Census Bureau uses Internal Revenue Service administrative data whenever possible. However, the Internal Revenue Service data does not provide the level of detail needed in most Census Bureau surveys, or does not have certain items available (e.g., e-commerce).

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Electronic reporting is the only way to provide data for this survey. If you are unable to report data electronically, please Contact Us.

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We estimate that it will take an average of 15 minutes to complete the Economic Census 2021 Industry Classification Report.  This includes reviewing instructions, searching existing data sources, gathering and maintaining the data needed, and completing and reviewing the collection of information.

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Your firm or EIN was chosen from a scientifically selected sample of businesses. Taking a sample is less costly than contacting every business in the country. Firms or EINs selected for the sample represent other similar businesses.

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Taken together, small businesses have a real impact on the economy. Your company or EIN was chosen from a scientifically selected sample of businesses and represents many other small businesses like yours.

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