S corporation tax preparation
The 1120-S and the owner return, prepared together.
An S corporation return does not stand alone. Wages, distributions, basis, estimated payments, and the owner’s individual return all have to agree, and they only agree if one person prepares them. Starting at $2,950.
What you get
One engagement, one fee, both returns.
Most firms quote the entity return and the owner return separately, prepared by different people on different timelines. That is where the mismatches come from: a K-1 that does not tie, a wage figure nobody reconciled, estimated payments calculated without knowing what the business did.
- Federal Form 1120-S for the corporation
- The state entity return for one state
- One shareholder Schedule K-1
- The owner’s federal Form 1040, including the K-1
- The owner’s state individual return
- Quarterly estimated payment calculations for the coming year
- A basic review of officer compensation in the context of the return
- Electronic filing and one results meeting where someone explains what was filed
What the fee assumes
The starting fee, and what moves it.
$2,950 assumes one shareholder, one state, books that are current, no unresolved basis problem, and no unusual elections or transactions during the year. Anything outside that gets quoted before work begins, never after.
| Item | Starting fee | What it covers |
|---|---|---|
| Additional state return | $400 | Each additional state the business or owner files in. |
| Additional shareholder K-1 | $250 | Each shareholder beyond the first. |
| Additional owner Form 1040 | $850 | A second owner return, with the state return included. |
| Rental property schedule | $300 | Each rental property on the owner return. |
| Formal reasonable compensation analysis | $600 | A documented study, separate from the basic review included above. |
| Bookkeeping cleanup | Quoted | A separate fixed quote. See financial cleanup. |
The three things that go wrong
Where S corporation returns actually break.
These are not exotic problems. They are the ordinary ones, and they are ordinary because nobody was watching for them during the year.
Officer compensation that was never decided
An owner who works in the business has to take a reasonable wage through payroll before distributions. Set it too low and you are exposed to reclassification with back payroll tax, interest, and penalties. Set it too high and you gave up the benefit that made the election worth making. The figure gets reviewed here in the context of the return. A formal documented study is a separate engagement.
Basis nobody tracked
Basis determines how much loss you can actually deduct and whether a distribution is tax-free. It is the shareholder’s responsibility, and Form 7203 goes with the personal return in the years it is required. Reconstructing several untracked years is slow, expensive, and frequently cannot be fully supported. If your prior preparer was not maintaining a basis schedule, say so on the call.
Health insurance missing from the W-2
If you own more than 2% of the corporation, premiums the business paid have to appear in your W-2 wages for you to claim the self-employed health insurance deduction. Catching this in March means a corrected W-2. Catching it in December means a phone call to your payroll provider.
The full version of all three is in the S corporation owner’s guide, written for owners rather than accountants.
Not included
What this package is not.
Said plainly so nobody discovers it in April:
- Payroll processing or amended payroll returns
- Bookkeeping or cleanup of records that are not current
- A formal reasonable compensation study, which is priced separately above
- IRS or state notice response after filing
- Entity restructuring, or the analysis behind an election change
- Multiple entities with intercompany activity
Common questions
How much does S corporation tax preparation cost?
The package starts at $2,950 and covers Form 1120-S, the state entity return, one shareholder K-1, the owner federal and state individual returns, quarterly estimated payment calculations, a basic review of officer compensation, electronic filing, and one results meeting. That fee assumes one shareholder, one state, current books, and no unresolved basis issues. Additional states, additional shareholders, and other scope are quoted before any work starts.
When is the S corporation return due?
Form 1120-S is due the fifteenth day of the third month after the tax year ends, which is March 15 for a calendar-year business. For the 2026 tax year that is Monday, March 15, 2027. Form 7004 extends the filing deadline six months to September 15. The extension covers filing only. Tax owed on the owner return is still due April 15.
Do you prepare the owner’s personal return too?
Yes, and that is the point of the package. The K-1 has to exist before the 1040 can be finished, so preparing them separately introduces a handoff where mistakes live. One owner federal return and one owner state return are included. A second owner return starts at $850.
What if my books are not current?
Cleanup comes first and is quoted as its own project. A return prepared from records that have not been reconciled is a guess with a signature on it. Once the books are in shape the tax engagement proceeds at its normal fee.
Can you tell me if my salary is reasonable?
The package includes a basic review of officer compensation in the context of the return, which catches the obvious problems. A formal documented reasonable compensation analysis, the kind you would want if the number has ever been aggressive, is a separate $600 engagement. There is no fixed percentage rule despite how often one gets repeated.
Can you take over from my current CPA?
Yes. With your authorization the prior returns, depreciation schedule, basis schedules, and carryforwards get identified and requested. Moving in the fall is far easier than moving in March. There is a guide on how to do it cleanly.
Next step
Start with a call.
Twenty minutes. A few questions when you book so the call starts with the useful part, and a direct answer about whether this is a fit.