Federal business returns

Late or unfiled 1120 and 1120-S returns, filed in the right order.

Cayde Accounting & Tax gets late or never-filed Form 1120 and 1120-S returns done for Florida corporations and LLCs taxed as one. The books are rebuilt for each open year; then independent U.S. tax professionals review, sign and file each return after you approve it. Catch-up projects start at US$2,500 per year.

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A fixed quote in writing before you pay anything. All prices in U.S. dollars.

Which returns does a corporation that’s behind owe?

One federal income tax return for every open year: Form 1120 for a C corporation, or Form 1120-S for an S corporation, with a Schedule K-1 for each shareholder.

A return is due even for a year with no income or no tax owed. An LLC that elected S corporation status files 1120-S; one taxed as a C corporation files 1120.

In the catch-up, for each year

The books rebuilt for the 12-month year, with the accounts in your proposal reconciled
A year-end profit and loss statement and balance sheet
That year’s Form 1120, or Form 1120-S with the K-1s your quote lists
Florida F-1120, where the company has to file one and it’s in the agreed scope

Often behind at the same time

Payroll: Forms 941 and 940, W-2s and Florida reemployment tax (RT-6)
Contractors: 1099s, where they were required
Florida: sales tax (DR-15) and the Sunbiz annual report

If payroll, sales tax or other filings are also behind, we’ll include the agreed work in your written quote. See Florida corporate income tax and sales tax filings.

S corporations · Form 1120-S

What does a late 1120-S cost?

$255 per shareholder for each month or part of a month late, up to 12 months, for a return required to be filed in 2026 ($260 for returns due in 2027), even when no tax is owed.

An S corporation usually pays no federal income tax itself, so a late return can look harmless. It isn’t: the penalty is based on shareholders and months late, not on tax, and each unfiled year carries its own.

Older years use lower amounts; your proposal shows the figures for your years.

Full guide: what a late 1120-S costs, year by year

Worked example

$255 × 2 shareholders × 12 months = $6,120

For one S corporation return due in 2026, with no tax owed. The penalty counts shareholders and months, so a loss year costs the same as a profitable one.

C corporations · Form 1120

What does a late Form 1120 cost?

It depends on the tax owed, because the penalties are a percentage of the unpaid tax, with a minimum once the return is more than 60 days late.

A C corporation also files Florida Form F-1120 every year, even when no tax is due: how the Florida return works.

Full guide: when a C corporation doesn’t file Form 1120

Filing late5% of the unpaid tax for each month or part of a month, up to 25%.
More than 60 days lateThe minimum is $525 or the tax due, whichever is less (returns due in 2026).
Paying late0.5% of the unpaid tax for each month, up to 25%, plus interest until it’s paid.
Both in the same monthIn a month when both penalties apply, the combined charge is 5%.

What does filing stop, and what doesn’t it?

Filing stops the late-filing penalty from growing. The late-payment penalty and interest keep running until the balance is paid in full, even on a payment plan.

That’s why the returns come first. Until each year is filed, there’s no reliable figure for what the company owes, and nothing solid to plan a payment around.

In what order are the years filed?

Anything with a deadline goes first. Then the books and returns are done oldest year first, because each year’s closing balances feed the next.

Anything with a deadline

A reply date on a letter, or a lender’s closing date. Tell us the date and it’s scheduled first.
The books, oldest year first

The accounts in your proposal reconciled, so each year opens on the right balances.
Federal returns, oldest year first

Form 1120, or Form 1120-S with its K-1s, and any payroll forms in your quote. You sign each return, or its e-file authorization, before it’s filed.
Florida filings

F-1120 where it applies, then any sales tax, reemployment tax or annual report work in your quote. The annual report is filed online with the Florida Division of Corporations on Sunbiz, and you can file it yourself.
Penalty relief, where eligible

Penalty relief can be requested by you or an authorized representative; first-time abatement usually covers one year and needs a clean prior three years. For 2025 and later returns, the IRS applies similar relief automatically when the prior three years were filed and paid on time.

What if the IRS or Florida has sent a letter?

Most letters about missing returns are asking for the return itself. Put any deadline on the form and it goes first.

Have the letter handy for your call, so you can tell us which year or period it’s about and the date it gives. The same applies to a Florida Department of Revenue letter about missed sales tax returns.

If your company needs a professional to represent it before the IRS, that’s the job of an attorney, a CPA or an enrolled agent. We’ll tell you on the call if your situation needs one and arrange it; it may be a separate engagement.

Full guide: an IRS letter about a return that was never filed

Collections and IRS audits

What we don’t handle: IRS audits, levies, liens and Offers in Compromise. If that’s where things are, we’ll say so on the call.

What if a lender needs returns you haven’t filed?

Get the missing years done properly first. The books are rebuilt and the missing years filed, so your file is ready to send.

Tell us the closing date on your call. Timing depends mostly on how many years are behind and how quickly the records come in. Anything with a deadline, such as the reply date on a letter or a lender’s closing date, is scheduled first, and your proposal sets out the timeline for your file before you approve anything.

Full guide: a lender wants returns you haven’t filed

What your file gets

A filed federal return for each missing year
Reconciled books for each year, with the profit and loss and balance sheet reports that come from them
The Florida filings in your quote, brought current

Do you need every receipt?

No. Most books are rebuilt from bank and card statements.

Matched to whatever invoices, payroll reports and loan statements exist, the statements rebuild most of a year. Anything that can’t be supported is pointed out plainly before a return is signed.

What the rebuild starts from

Bank and card statements for the open years
The last business return filed, if there was one
Payroll reports and any 1099s already sent
Statements for any business loans

Bank statements are enough to start. You don’t need to sort receipts.

Who does the work, and who signs your returns?

The Cayde team

Rebuilds and reconciles the books, prepares the workpapers and runs the process from first call to final filing.

Independent U.S. tax professionals

Your federal and Florida business returns are reviewed, signed and filed by independent U.S. tax professionals after you approve them: e-filed wherever the IRS accepts it, and on paper for older years. Their name and IRS preparer tax ID (PTIN) appear on every return they sign. You sign each return, or its e-file authorization, before it’s filed.

Who signs your U.S. returns, and who we are

Why a virtual catch-up works anywhere in Florida

A catch-up runs on records, not office visits. Monday to Friday, 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. Eastern. Billed in U.S. dollars. Your U.S. returns are signed by independent U.S. tax professionals.

Your records

Your books stay in your software: you add us as a user in QuickBooks Online or Xero and can remove that access at any time.
Scope and fixed quote agreed in writing first.
Files are shared securely; where they’re stored is in the privacy notice.
Nothing is filed without your signature.

Cayde holds Elite tier status in the QuickBooks ProAdvisor program and is a Xero Silver partner.

Two steps · the second is optional · all prices in U.S. dollars

What does it cost to get the late years filed?

Step 1 · Catch-up bookkeeping + business tax filing

From US$2,500 per outstanding year

A starting guide for one company and one year. Your fixed quote depends on transaction volume, accounts, record condition and the filings needed.

Each outstanding year includes:

Books rebuilt for one 12-month business year
The accounts in your proposal reconciled
Year-end profit and loss statement and balance sheet
One federal return: Form 1120 or 1120-S (up to two shareholder K-1s in the simple entry package)
The Florida F-1120, where it’s required and in the agreed scope

If payroll, sales tax or other filings are also behind, we’ll include the agreed work in your written quote.

See the starting guide by annual revenue

Step 2 · Optional: stay caught up

From US$349 a month

Monthly bookkeeping in three plans: Essential from US$349, Growth from US$499 and Established from US$749 a month, sized by your monthly transactions and accounts. No contract; cancel any time.

Annual business tax preparation is quoted separately. We confirm the fee and included returns in writing. Compare the monthly plans

Written scope and fixed quote before work begins
No obligation after the free call
Nothing is filed without your signature

Taxes, penalties, interest and government fees (such as Sunbiz fees) are separate: your company pays them directly. All prices in U.S. dollars. Prices as of September 30, 2026.

Payment and timing

Payment terms are in your proposal. Nothing is charged before you approve it. Timing depends mostly on how many years are behind and how quickly the records come in. Anything with a deadline, such as the reply date on a letter or a lender’s closing date, is scheduled first, and your proposal sets out the timeline for your file before you approve anything.

Book my free 15-minute call

What else do owners ask about late business returns?

Anything else? Ask on your free call, or email info@caydetax.com.

How far behind is too far behind?

Five years behind is a bigger project than one, but it’s the same project. Filing stops the late-filing penalty from growing; the late-payment penalty and interest keep running until the balance is paid in full, even on a payment plan. Each outstanding year is priced on its own revenue and activity, and your free call and written quote confirm each year individually.

Can the IRS penalties be removed?

Sometimes. For 2025 and later returns, the IRS now applies an Automatic Exemption from Penalty, with no request needed, if the same return was filed on time for the prior three years with no penalties. For earlier years, first-time abatement has to be requested, usually covers one year and needs a clean prior three years; otherwise relief needs reasonable cause. A request can be made by you or an authorized representative (an attorney, a CPA or an enrolled agent). Relief depends on your history, and Cayde doesn’t promise it.

What if we don’t have receipts for most of it?

That’s common, and usually workable. Statements, plus whatever invoices and supplier records exist, rebuild most of a year, and you’ll get a straight answer about what can and can’t be supported.

What about my personal returns?

Raise it on your call. Owners’ personal returns depend on the company’s figures, such as the K-1 from an S corporation, so they’re often behind too. Cayde handles personal returns only alongside a corporate catch-up, and they’re added to the same written quote.

Does an LLC taxed as an S corporation file Form 1120-S?

Yes. An LLC that elected S corporation status files Form 1120-S, with a K-1 for each owner, and the same per-shareholder penalty applies when it’s late. One taxed as a C corporation files Form 1120. Not sure how yours is taxed? Choose “Not sure how it’s taxed” on the form.

Part of Florida catch-up bookkeeping and back taxes. See also catch-up bookkeeping pricing.

Updated October 31, 2026. Sources: IRS, Form 1120-S instructions; IRS, Form 1120 instructions; IRS, failure-to-file penalty; IRS, administrative penalty relief (first-time abatement and automatic exemption); Florida Department of Revenue, corporate income tax; Sunbiz, annual report. Penalty amounts apply to the years shown. General information, not advice for your situation.