US S-CORPORATION TAX SERVICES
Expert Form 1120-S tax preparation for S corporations — accurate S-corp tax return filing with correctly allocated shareholder K-1s and reasonable compensation compliance. Complete S-corp election tax filing services from an experienced S corporation tax preparer.
Form 1120-S is the annual tax return filed by S corporations — corporations that have elected S-corp status under Subchapter S of the Internal Revenue Code. Like partnerships, S corporations are pass-through entities: the corporation itself does not pay federal income tax, and profit/loss flows through to shareholders via Schedule K-1, reported on their individual Form 1040.
The primary appeal of S-corp status is avoiding the "double taxation" C-corps face — and, for active owner-employees, the potential to reduce self-employment tax by splitting income between reasonable salary (subject to payroll tax) and distributions (not subject to payroll tax). Our S-corp election tax filing services ensure this structure is implemented correctly and defensibly.
Key deadlines: March 15 — standard filing deadline for calendar-year S-corps (same as partnerships, so K-1s reach shareholders in time). September 15 — extended deadline with Form 7004. S-corp election (Form 2553) must generally be filed within 2 months and 15 days of the start of the tax year.
| Feature | S Corporation | C Corporation |
|---|---|---|
| Taxation | Pass-through — no entity-level tax | Double taxation — corp + shareholder |
| Shareholders | Max 100, US persons only | Unlimited, any type/nationality |
| Stock classes | One class of stock only | Multiple classes allowed |
| Self-employment tax | Only on reasonable salary | N/A (wages taxed normally) |
| VC investment | Generally not eligible | Preferred by VCs (QSBS, preferred stock) |
Our S corporation tax preparer services suit businesses that have elected or are considering S-corp status:
Owner-operated businesses generating consistent profit — where splitting income between salary and distributions creates meaningful self-employment tax savings.
Single-member or multi-member LLCs that have filed Form 2553 to be taxed as an S-corp instead of the default partnership or disregarded-entity treatment.
Consultants, real estate agents, medical and legal practitioners with S-corp structures — requiring careful reasonable compensation analysis given IRS scrutiny of this group.
Businesses with multiple family-member shareholders — requiring correct K-1 allocation per ownership percentage and compliance with the 100-shareholder, one-class-of-stock rules.
The IRS requires S-corp owner-employees who provide substantial services to the business to pay themselves a "reasonable salary" before taking any distributions. Paying too little salary and too much in distributions to minimise payroll tax is the single most common trigger for IRS scrutiny of S-corp returns.
Our S-corp tax return filing service includes reasonable compensation analysis — benchmarking your salary against comparable roles, industry data and IRS guidance factors (training, experience, time devoted, comparable business compensation). Getting this wrong does not just risk an audit — if the IRS reclassifies distributions as wages, you owe back payroll taxes, penalties and interest on amounts that should have been salary all along. We help you set a defensible salary level from the start, not discover the problem during an audit.
We confirm S-corp election status (Form 2553 on file), review shareholder-employee compensation levels and assess reasonableness against IRS guidance factors.
We reconcile book income to taxable income, verify payroll expense treatment, and prepare Schedule M-1/M-2 reconciling retained earnings and AAA (Accumulated Adjustments Account).
We allocate income, deductions and distributions per shareholder ownership percentage, and prepare individual Schedule K-1s (Form 1120-S) for each shareholder.
We prepare and review the complete Form 1120-S with the owner, then e-file with the IRS well ahead of the March 15 deadline where possible.
We distribute K-1s to shareholders and provide guidance for setting the following year's reasonable compensation level based on updated business performance.
AAPT & Associates provides S-corp election tax filing services with specific attention to the compliance areas that trigger IRS scrutiny — reasonable compensation, shareholder eligibility, one-class-of-stock compliance and correct AAA tracking. Our S corporation tax preparer team helps clients through the full lifecycle: evaluating whether S-corp election makes sense, filing Form 2553, setting defensible compensation, and preparing accurate Form 1120-S returns year after year.
Every corporation or LLC that has elected S-corp status (by filing Form 2553 and receiving IRS acceptance) must file Form 1120-S annually, regardless of taxable income. Our Form 1120-S tax preparation service confirms your election is properly on file before preparing the return.
The standard deadline for S-corp tax return filing is March 15 for calendar-year S corporations — the same as partnerships, since both are pass-through entities requiring K-1 distribution before shareholders' individual filing deadlines. Extension to September 15 is available via Form 7004.
The IRS requires S-corp owner-employees to pay themselves a reasonable salary for services performed, before taking distributions. Paying too little salary to minimise payroll tax is the top audit trigger for S-corps. Our S corporation tax preparer team benchmarks compensation against industry data to set a defensible level.
To elect S-corp status, an entity must have no more than 100 shareholders, all of whom must be US citizens or residents (individuals, certain trusts and estates — not corporations, partnerships or non-resident aliens), and issue only one class of stock. Our S-corp election tax filing services assess eligibility before filing Form 2553.
Yes. An LLC can file Form 8832 to be classified as a corporation, then Form 2553 to elect S-corp tax treatment — a common strategy for profitable single-member or multi-member LLCs seeking self-employment tax savings. We handle the complete election process as part of our S-corp election tax filing services.
A violation (exceeding 100 shareholders, issuing a second class of stock, or a shareholder becoming ineligible) can terminate S-corp status, retroactively converting the entity to C-corp taxation for that year — with significant tax consequences. Our Form 1120-S tax preparation service monitors ongoing eligibility to prevent inadvertent terminations.
Reasonable compensation is the #1 S-corp audit trigger. Talk to our tax team before it becomes a problem.
