“Beware the Ides of March.” – The Soothsayer, from Julius Caesar

I wanted to remind you of the significance of March 15 — the Ides of March.

It’s not about stabbing.  It’s about coming together in groups and stabbing.

Too “cutting” a comment?  It’s also the corporate entity deadline for filing tax returns for calendar year entities.

Limited liability companies, partnerships and corporations need to be aware that March 15 is now the filing due date for Partnerships and LLCs with more than one member (Form 1065), and S-Corporations (Form 1120-S).

This is a new due date for partnerships. Partnerships’ filings deadlines have essentially swapped with C-Corporations (Form 1120), which are now due April 15.

Mark these dates on your paper and digital calendars, commit them memory, and if you must – etch them onto your mirror. With the change in administrations, state and federal government agencies may have their hands full for the next few months. Most IRS agents already hate their jobs, and I can assure you they will catch up with you if you file late and unleash their aggression.

So file your forms correctly and on time.  

Why The Date Change?

Would you like the short answer or the long answer?

Short answer:  They’re just screwing with us in some sick game of red light-green light.

Long answer:  This was one of those odd scenarios where democracy prevailed. Business owners, accountants and tax lawyers like myself spoke, and the government listened. Actually, we didn’t speak, so much as we expressed our aggravation.

Form 1065 generates a K-1, which represents your distribution. This is what you report on schedule E of your individual tax return (Form 1040), which is annually submitted on April 15.  

This was creating a hardship for a lot of business owners and shareholders who wanted to file a timely tax return – they were first getting the K-1s too close to the filing deadline

This change increases the odds that you will be able to get accurate information on the 1040. But who are we kidding? Many business owners will extend into September.  

A Note For All You ‘Singles’

You may remember that our last two Tuesday blog posts focused on single-member LLCs and corporations. Those sorts changes of do not affect you because you are considered by the government to be a disregarded entity. Your April 15 due date remains unchanged.

The word “disregarded” is nothing to feel bad about. In fact, you can disregard the preceding paragraphs.

If you operate a partnership and are caught off guard by the date change, contact Brinen & Associates, and we’ll help you meet the deadline.