The Taxing Situation Of Due Dates
Monday, January 2nd, 2012Now you have a business, but when are the federal tax returns due? That depends on the types of companies you operate.
C Corporation
If you incorporated, you have a c corporation. As a separate entity from the owners, a c corp pays taxes. An Internal Revenue Service (IRS) form 1120 is the annual tax return filed. C corps are allowed to have fiscal year ends and tax year ends than do not end on December 31. So the due date of their returns is defined as the fifteenth day of the third month after the tax year ends. So this is March 15 for a December 31 tax year end. But if your tax year end is September 30, the due date will be December 15. A six month extension is also available. Owner tax filings for federal purposes are not affected by the corporate filings.
S Corporation Returns
Like a c corp, the s corporation return is due March 15. But it is always due on that date due to the business entity type. A requirement for s corporations is a December 31 tax year end. When an extension is requested, the extended due date is September 15.
The biggest difference from a c corp is that and s corp does not pay federal income taxes. The Form 1120S tax return is informational. A K-1 form is prepared and sent to each owner. Each owner adds the income to their personal tax return and pays any tax due. If an s corp has an extended return due date, all the affected owners should also have to file for an extension. However, they may choose to file without the K-1. But an amended personal return will be required later. So the personal 1040 due date of April 15 will be extended for six months to October 15.
General and Limited Partnerships
Form 1065 is the required filing for all partnerships. Form 1065 is informational and is due April 15. A K-1 is prepared for each owner to pay the taxes as part of their 1040 filing. Since the due date and extension dates of personal 1040s and partnership 1065s coincide, there is a rush to get an extended return filed. The original due dates of both returns is April 15, and the six month extension due date is October 15.