Taxes Information

How To Get An Extension To File Your Business Tax Returns


Yes, the tax season is upon with the first filing date for some businesses being March 15, 2005. If you can't imagine getting your tax returns together by that date, you need not worry. The IRS automatically gives you an extension if your file the appropriate form. As you might expect, there are different forms for different businesses.

An Important Note

It is vitally important that you understand that an extension to file taxes is not an extension to PAY taxes. The IRS will give you a break on the filing date, but it wants the money now! If you anticipate that you will owe taxes, you need to send in the appropriate payment. Failure to do so could result in interest charges when you eventually get around to filing your returns.

Corporations

If you conduct business as a corporation with a fiscal year-end of December 31st, you are required to file your 2004 tax returns on or before March 15, 2005. You can get an automatic extension, however, by filing form 7004 before the March 15 deadline. Form 7004 applies both to "C" and "S" corporations and grants you an automatic 6-month extension to September 15, 2005.

While this automatic extension applies to "S" corporations, you should be aware of a quirk in the tax code. Since "S" corporations "pass through" taxes to your personal returns, the six-month extension is really only a five-month extension. To file your personal tax returns, you must report information from the K-1 issued from the "S" corporation. Unfortunately, the IRS only grants automatic extensions for filing personal tax returns to August 15, 2005.

Limited Liability Company

The IRS has never really figured out to how to handle limited liability companies. It has settled on a policy of avoiding the issue and simply treating the entity as a corporation or partnership.

Limited liability companies with more than one owner typically elect to be treated as partnerships for tax purposes. If this describes your situation, the LLC is required to file tax returns by April 15, 2005. You can obtain a 3-month extension by filing form 8736. Although form 8736 contains language regarding partnerships, you will still use this form since the IRS classifies you as a partnership for tax purposes.

If you are the sole owner of an LLC, you may be in for a surprise. The IRS doesn't recognize LLCs owned by one person. Instead, it simply considers you a sole proprietor and the rules for sole proprietorships apply. These are discussed below.

Partnership

If your business is a partnership, you are required to file tax returns by April 15, 2005. You can use form 8736 to obtain a 3-month extension.

Self-Employed/Sole-Proprietor

If you are not using a business entity, your business tax information should be reported on your personal tax return. The due date for filing your personal tax returns is April 15, 2005. You can obtain a four-month extension by filing form 4868.

Summary

Regardless of how your business is organized, the IRS will automatically grant you an extension to file your tax returns. By sending in the appropriate form, you can avoid a mad rush that will inevitably result in missing deductions and overpaying your taxes. Just make sure you pay any taxes you anticipate owing by the appropriate date.

Richard Chapo is CEO of http://www.businesstaxrecovery.com

Obtaining tax refunds for small businesses by finding overlooked tax deductions and credits through a free tax return review.


MORE RESOURCES:

Nomura mulls investing in Lehman: report
Reuters UK, UK - 35 minutes ago
T: Quote, Profile, Research) is considering acquiring a stake in US investment bank Lehman Brothers (LEH.N: Quote, Profile, Research), the Japanese daily ...


Yahoo

Pimco Names El-Erian CEO Of the Bond-Investing Giant
Wall Street Journal - Sep 4, 2008
... returning from running Harvard University's endowment, Mohamed El-Erian was named on Thursday as chief executive of Pacific Investment Management Co. ...
PIMCO Co-CEO Stepping Down IndexUniverse.com
all 63 news articles


Investing your cash without a stamp of approval
Scotsman, United Kingdom - 8 hours ago
By Jeff Salway MORE people are investing in stamps in a bid to beat the economic downturn and hedge against inflation, but philately experts have warned ...


China Daily

Lieberman Still Investing In Democratic Party
NPR - Sep 4, 2008
Morning Edition, September 4, 2008 ยท He may be campaigning for Republican John McCain. He may have been close to becoming McCain's running mate. But Sen. ...
Convention Limelight Shines on a Big Donor New York Times
McCain The Maverick Is Touted By Dem Apostate Sen. Lieberman Investor's Business Daily (subscription)
all 1,056 news articles


ArkansasSports360.com

Not For The Faint
Oneindia, India - 22 hours ago
Investing in art is the hottest trend prevailing worldwide and is turning into a fine art by itself. The galleries in the Indian Metros are not far behind ...
Crystal Bridges Museum reveals acquisition Seattle Post Intelligencer
Unveiling another Benton County Daily Record
Crystal Bridges Sends Painting To Washington The Morning News
all 14 news articles


Investing in the future
Tidewater News, VA - 7 hours ago
By Randy Forbes As children across the Commonwealth headed back to school this week, I thought of my own four children and how it seems as if it were only ...


Dow Corning investing $4 million to update its laboratories
MLive.com, MI - 14 hours ago
By Eric English Dow Corning Corp. is spending $4 million to update some of its older laboratories at its Bay County corporate headquarters campus. ...


One Essential Stock Screen
Motley Fool - 13 hours ago
Like an eccentric playboy tossing money in the air, Tom threw out some of the best and most actionable investing advice that I had ever heard. ...
Do You Still Own This Garbage? Motley Fool
all 2 news articles


Red tape stops domestic companies investing abroad
Thanh Nien Daily, Vietnam - 58 minutes ago
Vietnamese businesses are complaining that cumbersome paperwork and banking procedures discourage them from investing abroad. Business leaders were speaking ...


5 More Munger Quotes to Improve Your Investing
Motley Fool - Sep 4, 2008
"If you took [Berkshire's] top fifteen [investing] decisions out, we'd have a pretty average record. It wasn't hyperactivity, but a hell of a lot of ...
Make This Your Best Investing Year Yet Motley Fool
No One Likes Your Portfolio Motley Fool
all 3 news articles

Investing - Google News

home | site map
© 2006