Tax adviser Donna Genie warns business owners with pass-through entities about the September 15 deadline for extended returns. An extension delays filing but not payment, so interest at 7% annually and monthly penalties accrue from the spring due date. Make an estimated payment now via IRS Direct Pay or EFTPS to avoid further penalties, and confirm your accountant will deliver K-1s by October 15 or your personal return deadline suffers too.
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If you own a business and your return still isn't done, September 15th is closing in fast, and this is one deadline you don't want to treat casually. In the next few minutes, I'll walk you through exactly what this deadline is, why it carries more weight than most owners realize, and the simple steps to make sure you're covered before it hits. First, let's make sure this is even your deadline. If you own an S-Corp or partnership, Or an LLC that's taxed like one, you filed an extension back in the spring. So September 15th is your filing deadline. Personal returns and C corporations get until October 15th. So if you're a pass-through business on extension, this is your date and the clock is real. Now here's what a lot of owners get wrong about it, and it's the thing that quietly costs them money. Filing an extension gave you a little more time to file. It did not give you time to pay. If your business owes anything, that was due back in the spring, and interest has been running ever since. Right now, it's about 7% a year, plus a small monthly penalty on top. The good news is that you don't have to wait for the finished return to fix this. If you think you owe, you can estimate it and make a payment now, which stops that penalty and interest from growing. That's the single most valuable thing you can do today. But almost nobody does it. Not sure how to estimate? Start with last year's return. Whatever you owed then is usually a reasonable ballpark for a business running about the same, and you can round up to be safe. Then pay it directly through the IRS Direct Pay or EFTPS system in about 10 minutes, no matter if the return's finished or not. You'd rather overpay by a little bit and get that back later than have penalties and interest keep stacking up. While you sit and wait on the paperwork. Now, here's the second cost most people have never heard of, and it really has nothing to do with how much tax you owe. A late S corp or partnership return carries its own penalties. It's charged per owner for every month that the return is late. So even if your tax bill is zero, that adds up quickly once you've got a couple of owners and a few months slip by. The only thing that stops it is a filed return, which is exactly why getting this in on time matters more than it might feel like right now. And there's one more piece that catches people completely off guard. Your business return produces a K-1. That's the form that feeds to your personal return. Until a business return is filed, that K-1 doesn't exist, and your personal return is due October 15th. So a business return that slips into September can quietly put your personal deadline at risk too. One holds up the other. So here's how to make sure you're actually covered. So, 3 quick things. Confirm exactly where your return stands. Is it drafted? Is it ready to file? Is there anything still outstanding on your end? If you owe, get a payment in now before the 15th so nothing keeps growing while you wait. And find out when your K-1 is coming so your personal return doesn't get caught flat-footed next month. Handle those 3 and you're in control of this deadline instead of chasing it. Now, what if you go through all of that and it's just not going to happen in time? Maybe the numbers aren't ready or your accountant genuinely can't get you filed by the 15th. First, don't panic, and whatever you do, don't go silent and ignore it. Filing a few days late is far, far better than not filing at all, because that penalty grows by the month, not by the exact day you missed. So get it filed as fast as you possibly can after the deadline. Keep that estimated payment in to cover anything you might owe. And know this, if you've got a clean filing history with the IRS, the IRS will often waive first-time penalty for you if you just ask. The worst outcome here isn't being a little late, it's doing nothing and letting a small fixable problem quietly turn into a really expensive one. Here's the honest truth underneath all of this. A deadline like September 15th shouldn't be a surprise, and it shouldn't be stressful. The business owners who sail through it are the ones who are working with somebody who's already reached out earlier in the year, already handed them the number to pay, already told them when the K-1 was coming before anybody had to even ask. That's simply what it looks like when your taxes are handled by a firm that stays ahead of the calendar. For you. If that's not the experience you're having this year, that's exactly where we come in. At Calculated Moves, staying ahead of deadlines like this one is the whole job. We watch the calendar so you don't have to. Get the number to pay before penalties start and make sure your K-1 lands in time to keep your personal returns on track. So if you'd like a second set of eyes before the 15th, or you just want to stop wondering whether something's about to Book a quick call with us. The link is right below this video. No pressure, no obligation, just a straight conversation about where you stand and how to make this deadline thing a non-event. September 15th is coming either way, but now you know what it means and what's at stake and the handful of moves that can keep you in the clear. If you'd like help putting them in place, the link's just below. Let's make this one an easy one.
