Form 5472 is an annual IRS information return that every foreign-owned single-member US LLC must file, attached to a pro-forma Form 1120, whenever it has reportable transactions with its foreign owner — and the penalty for missing it is $25,000 per form, per year. If you live outside the United States and own a US LLC by yourself, this filing almost certainly applies to you, even if the LLC made no money.
This guide covers who must file, what gets reported, the 2026 deadlines, and what to do if you have already missed a year.
Key facts
- Required since tax year 2017 for foreign-owned single-member LLCs classified as disregarded entities (IRS: About Form 5472).
- Penalty: $25,000 per required form, per year, plus another $25,000 for each 30-day period of continued failure after IRS notification (IRC §6038A(d)).
- Due April 15, 2026 for calendar-year LLCs; extendable to October 15, 2026 with Form 7004.
- Cannot be e-filed by disregarded-entity LLCs — paper or fax only, to the IRS in Ogden, Utah.
- Zero income does not mean zero obligation: capital contributions and formation costs are reportable transactions.
Who must file Form 5472?
Two groups file Form 5472:
- US corporations that are 25%-or-more foreign-owned, by vote or value, directly or indirectly.
- Foreign-owned US disregarded entities — in practice, single-member LLCs owned by a non-US person. This second category was added by Treasury regulations effective for tax years beginning in 2017 (IRS Form 5472 instructions).
For a single-member LLC, the analysis is short: if the sole member is not a US citizen or US tax resident, the LLC is 100% foreign-owned and files whenever it has a reportable transaction. The owner's country, the LLC's state of formation, and whether the LLC has US customers do not change the answer.
If your LLC has two or more members, it is a partnership by default, files Form 1065 instead, and this form generally does not apply — a different set of rules does. And if you are a US person who owns a foreign company, you are looking for Form 5471, not 5472.
What is a reportable transaction?
A reportable transaction is any exchange of money or property between the LLC and its foreign owner (or other foreign related parties). The IRS list includes sales, rents, royalties, loans and loan repayments, service payments — and, for disregarded entities specifically, capital contributions and distributions.
This is the part that surprises people. All of the following are reportable:
- The money you deposited to open the LLC's bank account.
- The formation fee and registered-agent fee you paid personally on the LLC's behalf.
- Any transfer from the LLC's account to your personal account.
Because forming and funding an LLC is itself a set of reportable transactions, a first-year LLC with no revenue almost always has a Form 5472 obligation. "Dormant" is an operational description, not a tax classification.
How is Form 5472 filed?
A foreign-owned disregarded-entity LLC cannot simply mail Form 5472 alone. The IRS requires it to be attached to a pro-forma Form 1120 — a corporate return used as a cover page, with only the name, address, and items B and E completed, and "Foreign-owned U.S. DE" written across the top.
The package goes to the IRS's Ogden, Utah campus by mail or fax — e-filing is not available for this filing type. Our step-by-step walkthrough, including the current mailing address and fax number, is here: How to file the pro-forma 1120 + Form 5472.
You will also need an EIN for the LLC. You do not need an ITIN or US Social Security number — the form accepts your foreign tax identification number (more on ITINs vs EINs).
When is Form 5472 due in 2026?
| Situation | Deadline |
|---|---|
| Calendar-year LLC, no extension | April 15, 2026 |
| Extension requested via Form 7004 by April 15 | October 15, 2026 |
The Form 7004 extension is automatic when properly filed, but it must be sent — to the same Ogden address — by the original deadline. An extension of time to file is not an extension of time to pay tax, though most disregarded-entity filings involve no tax due with the 1120 itself.
What happens if you don't file?
The penalty under IRC §6038A(d) is $25,000 per required Form 5472, per tax year — assessed automatically in many cases, without an audit, and regardless of whether the LLC owed any tax. If the failure continues more than 90 days after the IRS notifies you, an additional $25,000 accrues for every 30-day period after that.
Filing an incomplete or substantially inaccurate form can be penalized the same as not filing at all. Failing to keep the underlying records is a separate violation.
If you have already missed one or more years: it is usually fixable, and it goes far better when you come forward before an IRS notice arrives. Penalties can be contested through reasonable-cause abatement — the full playbook is in that guide.
Does Form 5472 mean my LLC owes US tax?
Not by itself. Form 5472 is an information return — it reports money movement, not profit, and no tax is computed on it. Whether you personally owe US income tax depends on whether the LLC's activity generates effectively connected income, which is a separate analysis. Many foreign-owned LLCs selling services performed entirely outside the US owe no US income tax and still must file Form 5472 every year.
Related obligations to check while you are here: if the LLC (or you, as a US-resident owner) holds non-US bank accounts totaling over $10,000, FinCEN Form 114 (FBAR) may also apply.
Frequently asked questions
Does a foreign-owned LLC with no bank account and no activity file Form 5472? If there were truly no reportable transactions all year — no contributions, no payments made on the LLC's behalf, nothing — no Form 5472 is due for that year. In practice this is rare, because state fees and registered-agent fees paid by the owner count.
Can I file Form 5472 myself? Legally, yes. The risk is not the paperwork but the judgment calls: what counts as a reportable transaction, part V disclosures, and the pro-forma 1120 conventions. A rejected or incomplete filing can draw the same $25,000 penalty as no filing.
Does Form 5472 apply if my LLC is owned by my foreign company rather than me personally? Yes. A US LLC wholly owned by a foreign corporation is still a foreign-owned disregarded entity (or a 25%-foreign-owned corporation if it elected corporate treatment). The reporting extends to transactions with related parties of that foreign parent.
Is there a minimum transaction amount before Form 5472 is required? No. There is no de minimis threshold — a $50 registered-agent fee paid by the owner is a reportable transaction.
Written by Ifetoluwase Samuel Pirisola, Managing Director of Caldwell Tax Services, LLC — July 2026. General information, not tax advice for your specific situation — our five-minute intake is where that starts.
Sources: IRS: About Form 5472 · IRS: Instructions for Form 5472 · IRS: About Form 7004 · Glossary of every term used here