Form 2553: Electing S Corporation Status
Published November 7, 2026
Form 2553 is the election that asks the IRS to treat a small business corporation as an S corporation for federal income tax. An S corporation files its own return, Form 1120-S, and passes its income to its shareholders.
This post is general information from the form and its instructions. It does not tell you whether an election is right for your business.
Who may elect
The instructions list the tests. The corporation, or an entity that may elect to be treated as a corporation, must be domestic. It may have no more than 100 shareholders. It may have only one class of stock. It may not have nonresident alien shareholders. It must not be one of the ineligible corporations named in the instructions, such as certain insurance companies and DISCs.
Every shareholder must sign a consent statement. The form has a column for each shareholder's consent. The form's note says the election can be accepted only if all the tests are met, all shareholders have signed, and an officer has signed.
When to file
Form 2553 generally must be filed no later than 2 months and 15 days after the beginning of the tax year the election is to take effect. The form's item E shows that effective date. Check the date before you sign, because the deadline counts from that date.
The instructions also say a Form 2553 that is not signed is not considered timely filed. Read the signature lines before you send it.
What the form asks
- Part I, items A to D: the employer identification number, the date of incorporation, the state of incorporation, and any name or address change.
- Item F: the tax year. Choose calendar year, fiscal year, or a 52-53-week year.
- Item G: a check box used when more than 100 shareholders are listed, if counting family members as one shareholder keeps the total at 100 or fewer.
- Item H: the officer or representative the IRS may call.
- Column K: each shareholder's consent, under penalties of perjury.
The officer who signs the form declares, under penalties of perjury, that the election contains all the relevant facts and that they are true, correct, and complete.
Late elections
The form's header refers to late elections filed under Rev. Proc. 2013-30. The instructions describe relief for a late election when the corporation had reasonable cause for missing the deadline. The relief rules have their own requirements, including the steps taken to correct the mistake once it was found. Read the instructions before you rely on relief.
LLCs and Form 8832
Many owners of an LLC ask about this election. The instructions explain how an entity that is eligible to elect corporate treatment deals with Form 8832, the entity classification election, when it files Form 2553. The rules depend on the facts. Read the Form 8832 post and the instructions before you file.
If you own a single-member LLC, see I Started a Single-Member LLC: How Is It Taxed on My Personal Return? for the general rules. For the form that tracks an S corporation shareholder's stock and debt basis, see Form 7203: S Corporation Stock and Debt Basis.
After the election
The election is only the first step. An S corporation must still file Form 1120-S each year. For how that return works, see Form 1120-S: The S Corporation Return, Who Files It, and When.
Checklist
- Confirm each test in the instructions is met on the effective date.
- Get a signed consent from every shareholder.
- Check the effective date and count 2 months and 15 days.
- Confirm the officer signature, the EIN, and the exact corporate name.
- Keep a copy of the filed form and proof of how you sent it.
This is general information only. It is not tax advice for your situation.
Sources: Sources: IRS, Form 2553, Election by a Small Business Corporation (Rev. December 2017) and Instructions for Form 2553 (Rev. December 2020) (https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/f2553.pdf; https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/i2553.pdf) This is general information, not advice about your specific return.
