How to File Your LLC Tax Return (2024)

FAQs

Do I file LLC and personal taxes together? ›

The IRS disregards the LLC entity as being separate and distinct from the owner. Essentially, this means that the LLC typically files the business tax information with your personal tax returns on Schedule C. The profit or loss from your businesses is included with the other income your report on Form 1040.

LLC Corporations

It is mandatory for all corporations to file annual tax returns, even if the business was inactive or did not receive income. An LLC that chooses to be treated as a C corporation for tax purposes is required to file Form 1120 (U.S. Corporation Income Tax Return).

TurboTax Live Assisted Business is perfect for partnerships, S-corps, and multi-member LLCs.

Is my LLC an S or C Corp? You can elect for an LLC to be taxed as an S Corp or a C Corp by filing the proper paperwork with the IRS. If you run an LLC, it's automatically taxed as a sole proprietorship or partnership, but you can elect to be taxed as a corporation instead.

While the IRS can't levy your business account for your personal back taxes, the IRS can freeze and seize your company's assets to satisfy your tax debt if your business has a sizable tax liability. In most cases, for the IRS to implement a levy, your business must have: A substantial amount in back taxes.

All of the profits and losses of the LLC "pass through" the business to the LLC owners (called members), who report this information on their personal tax returns. The LLC itself doesn't pay federal income taxes, although some states impose an annual tax on LLCs.

All corporations are required to file a corporate tax return, even if they do not have any income. If an LLC has elected to be treated as a corporation for tax purposes, it must file a federal income tax return even if the LLC did not engage in any business during the year.

File as an S corporation

LLCs have the option of filing as an S corp., the main benefit of which is it provides a mechanism for reducing self-employment taxes. Under an S corp structure, the owner of an LLC can be considered an employee and receive a salary.

If you open a company in the US, you'll have to pay business taxes. Getting a refund is possible if your business loses money. However, if your business has what is classified as an extraordinary loss, you could even get a refund for all or part of your tax liabilities from the previous year.

Simply put, yes, you can have an LLC with no income, but that still has expenses. An LLC with no income but deductible expenses can offset future income through a net operating loss deduction. However, the IRS will still regard this as business activity, so it must be reported yearly.

How much does a small business have to make to file taxes? ›

Income of $400 or less after deductions

Generally, self-employed individuals must pay a self-employment tax to make sure they pay their portion of FICA taxes based on their annual income. But, if your net earnings from self-employment were less than $400, you don't have to file a business tax return.

Disregarded entities are the simplest tax classification with straightforward tax reporting. Your LLC is not taxed or required to file a tax return. Instead, the business profits and losses pass to you as the sole owner to be reported on your personal income tax return.

To qualify for S corp taxation, the LLC must meet certain requirements, including having no more than 100 shareholders (all of whom are US citizens or residents), having only one class of stock, and meeting certain restrictions on the types of shareholders and types of stock that can be issued.

S corporations may have preferable self-employment taxes compared to the LLC because the owner can be treated as an employee and paid a reasonable salary. FICA taxes are withheld and paid on that amount.

Electing corporate tax status

As an LLC, you can choose to be taxed as either a C Corporation or an S Corporation. Electing a corporate tax status might provide an opportunity for the business and owner to have distinctly separate taxes. C Corporation: C-corps are taxed separately from their owner.

The true advantage of an LLC over other business entity types comes in the form of tax benefits. LLCs give business owners significantly greater federal income tax flexibility than a sole proprietorship, partnership and other popular forms of business organization.

Corporate tax is an expense of a business (cash outflow) levied by the government that represents a country's main source of income, whereas personal income tax is a type of tax governmentally imposed on an individual's income, such as wages and salaries.