With so many business structure options, it can be quite overwhelming. Most people are somewhat familiar with LLC, Partnership, and Corporations. However, even these structures can provide you with major tax advantages or result in your business owing more taxes than necessary.
Limited Liability Companies are among the most well known organizations; they are structured to provide your business with limited liability in an incident that could otherwise expose your personal assets to risk. LLC organizations establish a separation between your business and yourself. This is the most beneficial aspect of organizing as a LLC. Other advantages include:
- Easily managed
- Flexibility with finance and distributions
- Choice of tax classification
- Easily organized within your state
Once you decide you want to organize your business as a LLC, you can then choose how your want to classify for tax purposes. The default tax classification for a LLC is either a sole proprietorship (for single-member LLC) or partnership (for multi-member LLC). With both of these options, the income is passed through to the owners on their personal tax return. A single-member LLC will report their business income on schedule C of their personal tax return. A multi-member LLC (partnership) will file a separate 1065 return and distribute a K-1 to each member. For a small business start-up, both of these tax classifications will provide ample tax advantages and flexibility.
Other possible tax classifications for a LLC include S Corporation and C Corporation. These classifications are acceptable for businesses with employees and/or those who need additional tax savings.
Stay tuned for more information on S and C Corporations.