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Guide · After your EIN

Form 5472 basics.

If you own a US single-member LLC from outside the US, the IRS expects one return from it every year, even with no US income. Here's what it is and why the deadline matters.

Based on the IRS Instructions for Form 5472 (Rev. December 2024)

EINZAP doesn't prepare or file Form 5472This page explains the basics so you can plan. Ask a US tax professional to prepare your return.

Who files

A US LLC that is a disregarded entity and is wholly owned by a foreign person is treated as a corporation for this reporting rule. It must file a pro forma Form 1120 with Form 5472 attached. The pro forma 1120 is mostly blank: it carries the LLC's name, address and EIN, and points to the attached 5472.

That's why you need an EIN: the return can't be filed without one.

What it reports

Form 5472 reports "reportable transactions" between the LLC and its foreign owner or other related parties. For a foreign-owned disregarded entity, the instructions include amounts paid or received in connection with forming, dissolving, acquiring or disposing of the entity, and contributions to and distributions from the entity.

In practice, most new LLCs have at least one reportable transaction in their first year, for example when the owner pays the state filing fee or puts money into the LLC's bank account.

When it's due

Form 5472 is due with the pro forma Form 1120, by that return's due date. For an LLC on a calendar year, that's April 15 of the following year. You can request a six-month extension by filing Form 7004 by the original due date.

How to send it

A foreign-owned US disregarded entity can't file Form 5472 electronically. The instructions give two routes:

  • Fax (300 DPI or higher) to 855-887-7737, or
  • Mail to: Internal Revenue Service, 1973 Rulon White Blvd., M/S 6112, Attn: PIN Unit, Ogden, UT 84201.

Don't use the general Form 1120 mailing addresses for this return.

The penalty

The IRS can assess a $25,000 penalty on a reporting corporation that fails to file Form 5472, with more penalties if the failure continues after the IRS notifies it. Missing the deadline is expensive, so put it in your calendar the day you get your EIN.

A simple yearly checklist

  1. Keep a record of every payment between you and the LLC: formation fees, money you put in, money you take out.
  2. In January, send that record to your tax professional.
  3. File the pro forma 1120 with Form 5472 by April 15, or file Form 7004 for an extension.
  4. Keep a copy of the fax confirmation or mailing receipt.

Sources: IRS Instructions for Form 5472. This guide is general information, not tax advice.

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