How to Elect S Corporation Tax Status for Your LLC

Yes, an LLC can elect to be taxed similar to an S corporation. You may question, why you would even want this type of tax treament? Read on and I'll explain.

Owners or members, as they are usually called, of an LLC have the choice to elect how the LLC will be treated for tax purposes. However, this was not always the case. In the past, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) classified business entities as either partnerships or corporations based on four different factors.

The four factors included: (1) Limited liability; (2) Centralized management; (3) Continuity of life; and (4) Free transferability of interest. A business entity would be taxed as a partnership if it possessed two of the four characteristics. It would likely be taxed as a corporaiton if it possessed three of the four characteristics. This led to a lot of confusion and uncertainty for business owners.

Then in 1997, new IRS regulations became effective which allowed the owners of business entities like LLCs to choose the tax treatment they desired. These regulations were known as the "check-the-box" regulations and are found in Income Tax Regulations 301.7701-1 through 301.7701-3. The form for making the election is IRS Form 8832 and details about the election process are set forth in the instructions to Form 8832.

The change in the law offers different choices to entities such as an LLC. It will allow a business operated as an LLC to enjoy all of the beneficial characteristics of a corporation but still be taxed as partnership or, in the alternative, it provides for an LLC to elect corporation tax status and then make the S corporation election.

In summary, partnership taxation provides for the income and deductions to flow through or "pass through" to the partners who then report and pay income tax on their individual tax returns. Partnership taxation is the basic method of taxation for most LLCs and S corporations. On the other hand, if an entity is classified as a corporation, then income taxes will generally have to be paid by the corporation on income that it earns and then later when that income is paid to the shareholders in the form of dividends, they will have to pay tax at their personal level. This results in double taxation and needs to be avoided where possible.

The partnership form of taxation avoids this double tax and is one of the main reasons why it is beneficial to most small businesses. LLCs by default receive partnership taxation. This means if the owners do not make an election by filing Form 8832 to be taxed as something different than a partnership the LLC and its members will automatically be subject to partnership taxation principles. A corporation which makes the S election is also subject to the basic partnership taxation principles with a few exceptions. In other words, standard LLCs and S corporations are both treated similarly, with a few exceptions, based upon partnership taxation principles.

According to the accountants and tax advisors I work, a business owner can reduce (not eliminate) the FICA or 15.3% self employment tax by forming a corporation and making the S election. However, this reduction in FICA taxes is not available in most cases to the members of an LLC. So a business person can form an LLC and then make the election to be taxed as a corporation by filing IRS Form 8832 and then make the S election by filing IRS Form 2553. By doing this, the LLC can operate with the less formal structure and rules associated with corporations but also obtain reduced FICA tax treatment for the members.

Since both the S corporation and the LLC provide limited liability protection to the shareholders or members, an LLC which elects tax treatment similar to the S corporation, may be an attractive option to discuss with your accountant or tax advisor. Not only can you operate the LLC under less stringent requirements than the corporate form, you still get limited liability protection, basic partnership taxation, with a few exceptions, the chance to reduce FICA taxes for the members of the LLC and operation of the LLC under less formal rules than with corporations.

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