Important Tax Forms Every Small Business Owner Should Know About

Tax season can be stressful for small business owners. There’s a lot of paperwork to complete, documents to review, and deadlines to meet—not to mention the fact that if your taxes are filed wrong, you could incur potentially massive penalties.

Staying on top of taxes is essential. Whether you plan to file your small business taxes yourself or work with a certified public accountant (CPA), you must keep track of important tax forms.

Tax Forms for Small Businesses

Small businesses must file several different tax forms to stay in compliance with state and federal tax requirements. Review these small business tax forms to get a better idea of your tax obligations, but keep in mind that this list isn’t exhaustive. We recommend working with an experienced small business tax professional to ensure you fill out your tax forms correctly and file them by the deadline.

Small Business Tax Returns

Most small businesses are established as a partnership, sole proprietorship, limited liability company (LLC), C corporation, or S corporation.
Each type of business entity has its own tax requirements and files different tax returns with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS):

Depending on how your small business is organized, you may have to meet different tax requirements. Deadlines vary from March 15 to April 15.

Employees & Contractors

If you have employees who receive a salary, wage, or other form of compensation, you must file Form W-2: Wage and Tax Statement for each employee as well as Form W-3: Transmittal of Wage and Tax Statements. Each employee will also have to fill out and submit Form W-4: Employee’s Withholding Certificate. If your small business hires any independent contractors or vendors, you should file Form 1099-NEC: Nonemployee Compensation. Additionally, each contractor or vendor must file Form W-9: Request for Taxpayer Identification Number and Certification.

Health Insurance, Unemployment, Social Security, & Medicare

If your small business offers health insurance as a benefit to employees, you must file Form 1095-B: Health Coverage or Form 1095-C: Employer-Provided Health Insurance Offer and Coverage, as required by the Affordable Care Act (ACA).

Some small businesses will have to file Form 940: Employer’s Annual Federal Unemployment (FUTA) Tax Return in order to report their annual unemployment tax.Businesses must also file either Form 941: Employer’s Quarterly Federal Tax Return or Form 944: Employer’s Annual Federal Tax Return, which reports income, Medicare, and Social Security taxes.