Income Tax FAQ’s

What is the fiscal year in the US?

The fiscal year in the US runs from January 1st to December 31st

When must my taxes be filed by?

As a nonresident alien, when to file depends principally whether you have an office of place of business. If you are a member of an LLC or other entity you must have a place of business by law.

If you ARE a member of an LLC or other entity must file your tax returns to the IRS by April 15th. It may be possible to ask for an extension, but you should always try to get them in on time to avoid penalties.

If you are a member of a partnership (an LLC with more than one member), than your tax returns for all members and the company must be filed by March 15th. It may be possible to ask for an extension, but you should always try to get them in on time to avoid penalties.

If you are NOT a member of a LLC or other entity must file your tax returns to the IRS by June 15th. It may be possible to ask for an extension, but you should always try to get them in on time to avoid penalties.

please see the excerpt from the IRS website below

If you are an employee or self-employed person and you receive wages or non-employee compensation subject to U.S. income tax withholding, or you have an office or place of business in the United States, you must generally file by the 15th day of the 4th month after your tax year ends. For a person filing using a calendar year this is generally April 15.

If you are not an employee or self-employed person who receives wages or non-employee compensation subject to U.S. income tax withholding, or if you do not have an office or place of business in the United States, you must file by the 15th day of the 6th month after your tax year ends. For a person filing using a calendar year this is generally June 15.

Do I still need to file a tax return if I didn’t make a profit?

Yes. You must still file a tax return to the IRS regardless of whether you made a profit, even if you had no income. You may well be filing a zero return with $0 in most boxes.

How do I get a copy of my EIN letter of assignment

If you’ve lost the letter of assignment that the IRS sent you when they allocated your EIN, only you can obtain a copy. You must call the IRS at +1-800-829-4933 between the hours of 7:00 a.m. and 10:00 p.m. EST. Give the tax assistant your business name and verifying information such as your business address and phone number.

Request a tax ID verification letter (form 147c). The IRS can fax or mail the letter to you if your contact information is the same as when you applied for the number. If you changed your business mailing address or fax number, you must file Form 8822 to change your address with the IRS before you can receive a verification letter.

What is an ITIN?

An ITIN or individual tax identification number is your personal identification number with the IRS. You will need to complete an application form and go through a lengthy process to obtain one. It typically takes between 8 to 12 weeks to obtain your number.

Why do I need an ITIN?

There are several reasons that you need an ITIN.

  1. When you receive rent, without an ITIN you will be subject to 30% withholding tax on the rent you receive. This will be deducted by your property manager and sent to the IRS as advance payment of income tax. If you have an ITIN you can avoid this.
  2. When completing you IRS tax returns you will need an ITIN to identify yourself to the IRS and claim any allowances or reclaim any withholding tax that may have been paid.
  3. You cannot submit a 1040NR without an ITIN.
  4. An ITIN is required to enable certain forms to be completed, for example a W8ECI which is needed to avoid withholding tax cannot be filed without an ITIN.

This is from the IRS website;

Do I need an ITIN?

Does the following apply to you?

      • You do not have an SSN and are not eligible to obtain one, and
      • You have a requirement to furnish a federal tax identification number or file a federal tax return, and
  • You are in one of the following categories.
              • Nonresident alien who is required to file a U.S. tax return
              • U.S. resident alien who is (based on days present in the United States) filing a U.S. tax return
              • Dependent or spouse of a U.S. citizen/resident alien
              • Dependent or spouse of a nonresident alien visa holder
              • Nonresident alien claiming a tax treaty benefit
              • Nonresident alien student, professor or researcher filing a U.S. tax return or claiming an exception

My LLC is registered in a State that has no income tax, I don’t have to pay tax on my profits, correct?

No. You must pay income tax to the IRS on any profit you make, and you must pay income tax where you made the profit, not where your LLC is formed. So, if you made profit in a state that had a 10% tax rate, you’d pay 10% income tax, regardless of where you were registered.

Does where I live have a tax treaty with the US

Click this link to see a list of countries that the US has tax treaties with. If you’re really adventurous you can even read the treaty rules.

United States Income Tax Treaties – A to Z

What do I do if I can’t file on time?

Taxpayers needing more time to file their taxes can get an automatic six-month extension from the IRS. (Please see “When must my taxes be filed” to determine your filing deadline.)

IMPORTANT: The standard six-month tax extension allows you to file your tax return after the usual deadline. However, it doesn’t buy you more time to pay any taxes you may owe. That means that if you don’t pay your tax balance by the filing deadline (April 15 in 2019), you’ll get hit with penalty and interest.

What happens if I miss my tax extension deadline?

If you missed the tax deadline but are due a refund there is no penalty. … But if you owe taxes and missed the deadline, there’s good news and bad news.

Bad news: You can’t file an extension at this point.

More bad news: you will be charged failure-to-file and failure-to-pay penalties for missing the deadline.

Good news: You can still file.

I got charged a penalty, what can I do?

If you get charged a tax penalty, you have several options to deal with it.

Option 1: You can pay the penalty

Option 2: If you can’t pay your balance in full, pay what you can now. You can enter into an Installment Agreement to pay the remaining balance. Entering into an Installment Agreement may reduce future failure to pay penalties.

Option 3: You can contact the IRS and request penalty relief or abatement if you qualify. For more information on qualifications click here: https://www.irs.gov/businesses/small-businesses-self-employed/penalty-relief


If you are a member of a partnership (an LLC with more than one member), than your tax returns for all members and the company must be filed by March 15th. It may be possible to ask for an extension, but you should always try to get them in on time to avoid penalties.

Still got questions? ask our CPA