Home/Tax filing
What we file · Tax
The IRS filing your company owes, even in a year with no income.
Most foreign-owned LLCs don't owe any US income tax, but nearly all of them still owe the IRS a filing every year. The penalty for missing it starts at $25,000. Every plan puts the date on your calendar. On Premium, we prepare the filing, a CPA reviews it, and we send it in.
01What is filed
What does your company file with the IRS?
It depends on how your company is set up. Here's each case, with the deadline for a tax year ending in December.
| Company | What it files | Due |
|---|---|---|
| Single-member LLC with a foreign owner | Form 5472 with a pro forma Form 1120, sent by post or fax | 15 Aprilor 15 October with Form 7004 |
| LLC with two or more members | Form 1065, with a Schedule K-1 for each member. Forms 8804 and 8805 as well, but only if there's effectively connected income to withhold tax on | 15 Marchor 15 September with Form 7004 |
| Foreign-owned C-Corporation | Form 1120, plus a Form 5472 for each foreign shareholder who owns 25% or more | 15 Aprilor 15 October with Form 7004 |
| Any company that pays US contractors | Form 1099-NEC for each US contractor you paid $2,000 or more by bank transfer during the year. We build it from your books on every plan, and file it for you on Standard and Premium | 31 Januaryto the contractor and to the IRS |
On Premium, we prepare your company's forms from its bank statements and the record of money you put in or took out. A licensed CPA reviews them, and we file them the way the IRS requires. On Starter and Standard, the date goes on your calendar with a reminder a month ahead, and you or your accountant file it.
02What we need
What do we need from you?
- The company's bank statements for the year. It's one of the reasons a separate business account matters from day one.
- What went in and what came out. That's the money you put into the company and the money it paid you. Form 5472 reports both, line by line.
- Who you paid as contractors, with their W-9s, so we can prepare the 1099s.
- Anything out of the ordinary, like a loan, a large purchase or a second owner joining. Tell us about it before the year ends.
Where our part ends
We prepare and file what the forms ask for. Whether your business has effectively connected income is a tax adviser's call, not ours, and so is your own country's tax return. On Premium, the CPA who reviews your filing can point you to an adviser.
03Questions
Questions about tax filing.
If yours is not here, email us at [email protected] before you order.
It's an IRS information return. A US LLC with a single foreign owner files it every year, attached to a pro forma Form 1120, to report the money and property that moved between the owner and the company. It isn't a tax bill, but the penalty for not filing it starts at $25,000.
Usually, yes. A single-member LLC with a foreign owner files Form 5472 with a pro forma Form 1120 every year, reporting what moved between you and the company, even if the company earned nothing. An LLC with two or more members files Form 1065 with a K-1 for each member once it has any income or expenses. A corporation files Form 1120.
On Standard and Premium, yes. The Contractors page in your dashboard builds the list from your books, we prepare each Form 1099-NEC, file it with the IRS by 31 January, and put each contractor's copy in your documents for you to send. On Starter, we prepare the forms and you file them, or you can order the filing as a service. The threshold is $2,000 paid during the year by bank transfer. Card and PayPal payments are reported by the payment company instead.
No. Premium covers the US federal forms your company owes. Your own country's return, and any tax due there on what the company paid you, stays with you and your local accountant, and we'll give them the figures they need.
We'll tell you what the forms ask for, and we prepare them from the company's records. Whether you owe US tax mostly comes down to whether your business has effectively connected income, and that's a question for a tax adviser. On Premium, the CPA who reviews your filing can refer you to one.
File as soon as you can, even late. The penalty is $25,000 per form, and the IRS applies it automatically when a late form arrives. It's removed only if you can show reasonable cause, which the IRS reads narrowly, so include a statement of that cause if you have one. Email us and we'll tell you what the late filing needs.
Ready when you are
Answer the questions. We do the filing.
It takes a few minutes. You see the whole order, state fee included, and nothing is charged until you confirm it.