Corporate tax planning and compliance can be complicated. Keep in mind, the overall goal is to keep more of what you earn. As a small business owner, you need to stay informed of tax basics and the tax filings you're required to make.

Tax professionals can work with you throughout the year to provide tax planning, tax preparation and filing. Regardless of your tax planning, a tax mistake can prove to be costly with penalties for late payment. Avoiding taxes can result in serious consequences as well, including criminal charges.

While it may be best to leave corporate property tax and other tax obligations to accounting professionals, you should be familiar with the basics. To tackle your tax issues, consider the following corporate tax information:

1. Business tax includes income, estimated, employment and excise taxes.

2. The federal government requires large, or "C" corporations to file a federal corporate income tax return annually. Your basic corporate income tax rate can vary depending on the size of the corporation and the amount of annual business.

3. Qualifying corporations may elect to be treated as an "S" corporation. These companies are exempt from paying corporate taxes. Instead, the income is taxed to shareholders.

Action Steps
The best contacts and resources to help you get it done

Obtain the answers to your questions about corporate tax accounting

Some of your basic corporate tax questions may be easily answerable through corporate tax resources available online.

I recommend: Check out the corporate tax law center from FreeAdvice. The IRS also provides comprehensive corporate tax information.

Search for business tax compliance software

Make your corporate tax accounting more efficient with tools provided by a streamlined software package. There are many different accounting software packages to choose from if you're not already using a professional service.

I recommend: Check out the ProSystem fx system at CCHGroup. From that same web page, you can request trial software and view live demos, a product brochure and system requirements. PTMS Property Tax Software from Tax Compliance, Inc. deals just with corporate property tax.

Find business tax services

Professional tax and accounting help may be necessary to keep your corporate tax compliance in line. The consequences of an error may be too great to consider going it alone.

I recommend: Take the short quiz at BuyerZone and receive multiple quotes from accounting and bookkeeping services. Or hire a consulting agency that specializes in corporate tax, such as RSM McGladrey, Inc.

Tips & Tactics

Helpful advice for making the most of this Guide

• •  To better understand your corporate tax obligations, try starting at the local level and working up to the state and then federal level.