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US filing requirement checker
Most penalties come from forms nobody knew existed. Six questions, and this lists the federal filings your entity and ownership trigger, with the reason for each. It is a checklist, not advice; we confirm it on the free call.
- Built by a team of Certified Accountants, CPAs and Enrolled Agents
- 2026 figures
- Estimate only, not advice
A checklist of the common federal filings, not advice. State returns, sales tax, franchise tax and annual reports are separate; treaty positions and 1040-NR questions depend on facts we confirm on the call.
The filings people do not know exist
Nobody misses Form 1040. The forms that create penalties are the quiet ones: Form 5472 for a foreign-owned LLC that had no income; Form 1065 for a two-member LLC that thought it was disregarded; 1099-NEC for the freelancer paid through PayPal; FBAR for the owner with a personal account back home; the 941 for the first employee hired in a hurry. Each has its own deadline and its own penalty, and none of them arrives with a reminder.
How ownership changes the list
A US-owned single-member LLC is the simplest case: Schedule C on the owner's 1040, estimates through the year, state filings. Add a non-US owner and the same LLC now files Form 5472 with a pro forma 1120 every year, the owner may need a 1040-NR if there is US-connected income, and S-corp status is off the table. Add a second owner and the LLC becomes a partnership with a Form 1065 and K-1s, due a month earlier. Elect S-corp status and payroll arrives with it.
"US-connected income" in plain English
A non-resident owner is taxed by the US on income effectively connected with a US trade or business. Selling to US customers from abroad through a US LLC, with no US staff, office or inventory, often does not create it, which is why many foreign-owned LLCs owe no US income tax at all. The moment there is a US warehouse, a US contractor doing the core work, or a US office, the picture changes. The checker flags the question; the answer depends on facts and, sometimes, a tax treaty.
What to do with the list
- Put every date on a calendar with a reminder a month ahead.
- Get the books to a monthly close so each return is prepared from reconciled numbers.
- File extensions early when the numbers will not be ready; they are free and they stop the filing penalty.
- Keep proof of every filing: e-file acknowledgements, fax transmission reports, certified mail receipts.
- Review the list when anything changes: a new owner, a first employee, a new state.
Questions people ask
Is this checker a substitute for advice?
No. It lists the common federal filings for a given structure. Treaty positions, 1040-NR questions, state nexus and unusual ownership structures are confirmed on the free call.
I am a non-US owner and my LLC only sells online to US customers. Do I owe US income tax?
Often not, if there is no US office, staff or inventory, but Form 5472 is still required every year. Whether income is US-connected depends on the facts and on any treaty; we review it before filing.
Can a non-US person own an S-corp?
Generally no. S-corp shareholders must be US citizens or residents. A foreign-owned LLC stays a default LLC or considers a C-corp.
Do I need to file if the LLC did nothing all year?
A foreign-owned single-member LLC files Form 5472 if it had any transaction with its owner, including the formation fee. Partnerships and S-corps file even with no activity. A dormant US-owned single-member LLC with no income and no expenses may have nothing federal to file.
What about the BOI report?
Domestic US companies have been exempt since March 2025. Companies formed under foreign law and registered to do business in a US state still report beneficial owners to FinCEN.
Will you prepare all of these?
Yes: business returns from $99, payroll and 1099 filings on the bookkeeping plans, Form 5472 fax-filed with confirmation, and the state calendar tracked alongside.
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