At: Estimated payments
Estimated payments, planned ahead
You owe more in April than you expected and did not make estimated payments.
What we do
Estimated tax calculations for the following year.
Tax Returns & Planning
We prepare federal and state income tax returns for businesses and the people who own them. Planning happens before December 31, when choices about timing, entity type and owner pay can still change the return. The return then reflects decisions you made on purpose, not ones you found out about in April.
Where tax returns and planning come into play across the tax year
The points where this service comes into play are numbered.
- Stage 1Books closedThe year’s books are ready, or the business return waits for them.
- Stage 2Estimated paymentsYou run a sole proprietorship and your income has grown enough that estimated payments matter.1
- Stage 3Owner payYou pay yourself from an S corporation and are unsure what salary is reasonable.
- Stage 4Before year-endYou want someone to look at the year before it ends, not only after.2
- Stage 5Filing seasonBusiness and personal returns, prepared so they agree.3
- Stage 6ExtensionsAn extension gives more time to file, not more time to pay.4
Numbered points are explained below.
The four points, explained
At: Before year-end
A look before the year closes
Your returns are prepared, but nobody explains what drove the result.
What we do
A planning review before year-end, with a written summary of the options discussed.
At: Filing season
Returns that agree
Your business return is late every year because the books are not ready.
What we do
Business returns: Form 1120, Form 1120-S and Form 1065. Individual returns: Form 1040, with the schedules your business and investments need.
At: Extensions
Time to file is not time to pay
You filed an extension and thought it also gave you more time to pay.
What we do
Extensions (Form 4868 for individuals, Form 7004 for businesses) when needed.
What the engagement includes
Request a proposal- Business returns
Returns for corporations, S corporations and partnerships, such as Form 1120-S and Form 1065.
- Personal returns
Your individual return, with the schedules your business and investments need.
- State returns
Income tax returns in the states where you or the business must file.
- Year-end planning
A planning conversation before the year ends, with a written summary of the options discussed.
- Estimated payments
Estimated tax calculations for the year ahead.
- Extensions
More time to file when a return needs it, such as Form 4868 or Form 7004, and what an extension does not cover.
- Something not listed?
Ask us. If it is US tax or accounting work, we will tell you plainly whether we can take it on.
How it runs
Planning review
Before year-end we look at the year to date and the choices still open. You get a short written summary of what was discussed.
Records in
After year-end you send the records we ask for. If we keep your books, most of them are already with us.
Business return first
We prepare the business return, because its results feed the owners’ personal returns.
Personal returns
We prepare the owners’ federal and state returns using the business figures.
Review, sign, file
We walk you through the result, you sign, we file electronically, and we set next year’s estimated payments.
Does an extension give me more time to pay?
No. An extension gives you more time to file, not to pay. Tax owed is still due by the original due date.
When are business returns due?
S corporation (Form 1120-S) and partnership returns are generally due by the 15th day of the third month after the tax year ends. That is March 15 for a calendar-year business, a month before most individual returns.
Do I need to make estimated tax payments?
Individuals generally do if they expect to owe $1,000 or more when they file. Corporations generally do if they expect to owe $500 or more. We work out the amounts with you.
How much salary should I pay myself from my S corporation?
The IRS expects an S corporation to pay reasonable compensation to shareholder-employees for their services before it makes other distributions. What is reasonable depends on what you do for the business. We look at your role and document how the figure was reached.