Business owners who are struggling to meet the tax filing deadline can get a business tax extension to get another six months to put together all their paperwork. This is a better option than scrambling to gather documents and fill out forms when you’re not sure if you have everything you need to file accurately.
Form 7004 (Application for Automatic Extension of Time To File Certain Business Income Tax, Information, and Other Returns) is the form you need for the extension request. Filing this form gets you an automatic six month extension to September 15th.
There are two things to remember about the corporate tax return extension deadline. One, you have to file for an extension by the original filing deadline. If you don’t do this, you will get a late filing penalty.
The second thing to keep in mind is that the S Corp tax return due date extension simply acts as a filing extension, not a paying one. It is still your responsibility to pay what you owe to the IRS by March 15th. Failure to do this will get you an
underpayment penalty.
In terms of state taxes, the rules may vary based on where you file. If you live in a state that doesn’t collect income tax, your extension can include your state returns, too. Make sure to check your state’s website for specific instructions.