How to File LLC Taxes: Forms, Due Dates and Extensions

An LLC does not have a federal tax return of its own. The IRS taxes it according to its classification, and the classification decides everything else: which form is filed, who files it, and when it is due. A single-member LLC usually reports its profit on Schedule C of the owner's Form 1040, due April 15. A multi-member LLC files Form 1065, a partnership return, due March 15. An LLC that elected corporate tax treatment files Form 1120-S or Form 1120 instead.

This guide walks through each classification, the federal return and due date that go with it for the 2026 tax year, how extensions work, the estimated tax and information returns owners often miss, and the state filings that sit alongside the federal one.

Step one: know how your LLC is taxed

The IRS's LLC page sets out the default rules. An LLC with one member is "disregarded as separate from its owner" for income tax, so its income and expenses go on the owner's return. An LLC with two or more members is classified as a partnership. Neither needs to file anything to get its default treatment.

An LLC can change its classification by election. Form 8832 lets it be taxed as a corporation, and Form 2553 lets an eligible LLC be taxed as an S corporation (how Form 8832 works is explained at llc-ein.com). If nobody remembers filing either form, the LLC is almost certainly on its default classification. If the LLC did elect, the IRS acceptance letter it received is the record of it. Whether an election makes sense is a separate question, covered in LLC vs S corp; this guide is about filing under whatever the LLC already is.

LLC tax deadlines for 2027: which return, and when it is due

For an LLC on the calendar year, here are the federal returns for the 2026 tax year, filed in 2027:

The dates come from the rules in IRS Publication 509: partnership and S corporation returns are due on the 15th day of the third month after the tax year ends, and individual and C corporation returns on the 15th day of the fourth month. When a due date falls on a weekend or legal holiday it moves to the next business day; none of the 2027 dates above does. An LLC on a fiscal year applies the same month counts to its own year-end.

The March date catches many new multi-member LLCs off guard. Their return is due a month before the members' own returns, because the members need their K-1s to file.

Single-member LLC: Schedule C on your own return

A single-member LLC on its default classification files no separate federal income tax return. Say Juniper Lane Design LLC, owned by one person, earned $90,000 and spent $22,000 in 2026. The owner reports both on Schedule C, which the IRS describes as the form for income or loss from a business operated as a sole proprietor, and the $68,000 profit flows into the owner's Form 1040. Self-employment tax on that profit is figured on Schedule SE, also attached to the 1040. An LLC that holds rental property usually reports on Schedule E instead, and a farm on Schedule F.

The IRS says a disregarded LLC uses the owner's Social Security number or the LLC's EIN for income tax, and one with no employees and no excise tax does not need an EIN for its return. The full picture, including the bank account and payroll rules, is in single-member LLC.

Multi-member LLC: Form 1065 and Schedule K-1s

A multi-member LLC taxed as a partnership files Form 1065, an information return. The LLC generally pays no federal income tax itself: the return reports the year's income, deductions and credits, and splits them among the members according to the operating agreement. Each member gets a Schedule K-1 showing their share, due by the return's own due date, and reports it on their Form 1040. A member owes tax on their share of the profit whether or not the LLC paid it out.

Form 1065 and every K-1 attached to it carry the LLC's employer identification number. The IRS lists partnerships among the entities that need an EIN, so unlike a single-member LLC, a partnership LLC cannot fall back on an owner's Social Security number. The same applies to an LLC filing Form 1120-S or Form 1120. Ownership splits, adding a member and the K-1 mechanics are covered in multi-member LLC.

LLC taxed as an S corporation or C corporation

An LLC that elected S corporation status files Form 1120-S on the March schedule, with a K-1 for each owner, much like a partnership. The difference is that owners who work in the business are paid a salary through payroll, which brings W-2s and payroll tax returns, and the rest of the profit passes through on the K-1. How salary and distributions are split is in how to pay yourself from an LLC. An LLC taxed as a C corporation files Form 1120 by April 15, pays corporate income tax on its profit.

How extensions work

Extensions are automatic: nobody approves them, but the form has to be filed by the original due date. The owner of a single-member LLC files Form 4868 for the personal return. A partnership, S corporation or C corporation files Form 7004, which gives six more months. A partnership extended from March 15 has until September 15.

An extension of time to file is not an extension of time to pay. Tax owed is still due by the original date, with interest and penalties on anything paid late. When a partnership extends, its members often extend their own returns too, since they cannot finish them without their K-1s.

Estimated tax during the year

Nobody withholds tax from an LLC owner's share of the profit, so owners of single-member and partnership LLCs generally pay estimated tax with Form 1040-ES. The 2026 instructions say you must pay if you expect to owe at least $1,000 for the year after withholding and refundable credits, and your withholding falls short of the safe harbor. The 2026 payments were due April 15, June 15 and September 15, 2026, and the last one is due January 15, 2027. That last one can be skipped if the 2026 return is filed by February 1, 2027 and the full balance is paid with it. An LLC taxed as a C corporation makes its own estimated payments in the 4th, 6th, 9th and 12th months of its tax year.

Returns the LLC files for other people

The income tax return is not the only federal filing in early 2027. An LLC that paid an independent contractor $2,000 or more for services in 2026 sends that person a Form 1099-NEC and files it with the IRS. Both are due January 31, which in 2027 is a Sunday, so the deadline is February 1, 2027.

An LLC with employees, including an S corporation LLC paying its owners a salary, gives each employee a Form W-2 and files the W-2s with Form W-3 at the Social Security Administration, also by February 1, 2027 for 2026 wages, and files payroll tax returns during the year. The IRS treats even a single-member LLC as a separate entity for employment tax, so payroll runs under the LLC's name and EIN.

What happens if the return is late

A late Form 1065 is penalized even though the partnership owes no income tax. For returns required to be filed in 2027, the penalty is $260 for each month or part of a month the return is late, up to 12 months, multiplied by the number of members during the year (Rev. Proc. 2025-32). Form 1120-S carries the same $260 per shareholder per month. A three-member LLC that files two months late faces 3 x 2 x $260, or $1,560, before any other penalty. Returns that show tax owed, such as Form 1040 or Form 1120, are penalized based on the unpaid tax. The IRS has relief procedures for some late filers; a CPA or tax preparer can say whether one fits.

State taxes and filings

Most states with an income tax follow the federal classification: a single-member LLC's income goes on the owner's state return, and a partnership LLC files a state partnership return. Some states also tax the LLC itself. California charges every LLC organized or doing business there an $800 annual LLC tax, with Form 568, plus a fee based on gross receipts for larger LLCs. Texas applies its franchise tax to LLCs: no tax is due below $2,650,000 of annual revenue for 2026 and 2027 reports, but the report is still due May 15.

The state annual or biennial report is a separate filing with the Secretary of State, not a tax return, and it keeps the LLC in good standing whatever its tax situation. Each state's report fee and due date are in LLC cost by state, and the rest of the first-year checklist is in what to do after forming an LLC.

How to file your LLC's federal tax return

Whichever form applies, the work follows the same order:

1. Confirm how the LLC is taxed. Default for one member means Schedule C; default for two or more means Form 1065. If the LLC filed Form 2553 or Form 8832, it files Form 1120-S or Form 1120.
2. Close the books for the year. Reconcile the LLC's bank and card statements, total income and expenses by category, and list equipment bought, payments to contractors and, for a multi-member LLC, each member's contributions and distributions. Keeping business money in its own account makes this step much shorter.
3. Have the right taxpayer number. A single-member LLC's Schedule C can use the owner's Social Security number or the LLC's EIN. A partnership, S corporation or C corporation return is filed under the LLC's EIN.
4. Prepare the return for that classification. Schedule C and Schedule SE go with the owner's Form 1040. Form 1065 and Form 1120-S include a Schedule K-1 for each owner, splitting income as the operating agreement or ownership says. Many owners use tax software or a preparer for the business returns.
5. File by the due date or extend. File by March 15, 2027 for Form 1065 or Form 1120-S, or April 15, 2027 for Form 1040 or Form 1120. If the return will not be ready, file Form 4868 or Form 7004 by that same date.
6. Send K-1s and information returns. K-1s go to owners by the return's due date. 1099-NEC, W-2 and W-3 forms for 2026 are due February 1, 2027.
7. Pay what is owed and plan next year. Pay any balance by the original due date even if you extended, file the state returns and the annual report, and work out 2027 estimated payments so next April holds no surprise.