To check S corp status online, run two separate verifications: look up your business in your state’s Secretary of State entity database to confirm it is active, then sign in to the IRS Business Tax Account (or pull a business tax transcript) to confirm the IRS has your Form 2553 election on file and is receiving Form 1120-S returns. Neither check alone tells the whole story. Your state record shows the underlying corporation or LLC exists; the IRS record shows the federal S election was accepted.
What You Need Before You Start
Have these on hand before opening any search tool:
- The exact legal name from your Articles of Incorporation or Articles of Organization, including the suffix (“Inc.,” “LLC”). A missing suffix is a common reason a state search returns nothing.
- Your state-issued entity number, if you have it. This beats a name search when your business name is common.
- Your Employer Identification Number (EIN). It’s on the IRS confirmation letter that assigned the number and on every federal return you’ve filed.
- Your most recently filed federal return. Whether it was a Form 1120-S or Form 1120 is itself a strong clue about how the IRS currently classifies you.
If your business ever changed names, use the current legal name for state searches and check that against your latest annual report.
Step 1: Confirm Your Entity Is Active With the State
Every state runs an online business database, usually labeled “Business Search” or “Entity Search,” on the Secretary of State site or the equivalent state agency. Enter your legal name or entity number and read the status line.
“Active,” “Good Standing,” or “In Existence” means the state considers your business current on annual or biennial reports and any franchise tax. “Dissolved,” “Revoked,” or “Inactive” means the state no longer recognizes it as a functioning entity, usually after missed filings or unpaid fees. Reinstatement generally requires an application, payment of overdue fees, and any missing reports; most states then treat the business as if the dissolution never happened.
Fix a lapsed state status before you worry about the IRS side. A federal S election isn’t automatically canceled by a state administrative dissolution, but a permanently dissolved entity can lose its eligibility to hold an S election going forward.
Step 2: Verify the Federal S Election With the IRS
The federal S election is what makes you an S corp for tax purposes. You request it on Form 2553, and the IRS either accepts or denies it.1Internal Revenue Service. Instructions for Form 2553 There are three practical ways to check what’s on file.
IRS Business Tax Account
The Business Tax Account is a free IRS portal that lets an authorized user view tax transcripts, account balances, and filing history. For an S corporation, a designated official — an officer or managing member who received a W-2 for the most recent tax year — gets full access. A shareholder with a Schedule K-1 on file gets a more limited view.2Internal Revenue Service. Business Tax Account
To sign in, you’ll verify your identity through ID.me using a driver’s license, state ID, or passport, plus a selfie or a live video call with an ID.me agent.3Internal Revenue Service. How to Register for IRS Online Self-Help Tools You’ll also need the EIN and your most recent federal return (Form 1120 or 1120-S).4Internal Revenue Service. Business Tax Account Now Available for Corporate Designated Officials
Once you’re in, open the Tax Records section. If the account shows Form 1120-S returns, the IRS is treating the entity as an S corporation. If it shows Form 1120 returns, the IRS classifies it as a C corporation, meaning the S election was never filed, was denied, or was terminated.5Internal Revenue Service. Instructions for Form 1120-S
A Business Tax Transcript
If you can’t get into the Business Tax Account, request an entity transcript. It lists information the IRS has for your EIN, including which returns the IRS expects you to file — a direct signal of whether you’re on record as an S corp or a C corp.6Internal Revenue Service. Get a Business Tax Transcript
To request one by mail or fax, use Form 4506-T. Enter the EIN, the form number (1120-S), and the tax year. Most requests are processed within 10 business days.7Internal Revenue Service. Form 4506-T, Request for Transcript of Tax Return
Your CP261 Acceptance Letter
When the IRS approves a Form 2553, it mails a CP261 notice stating “We’ve accepted your S Corporation election” and listing the effective date. The IRS advises keeping this notice permanently because it is the official written proof of S corp status.8Internal Revenue Service. Understanding Your CP261 Notice If you never received one or can’t find it, an entity transcript is the fastest substitute.
If Online Methods Don’t Give You an Answer
Call the IRS Business and Specialty Tax Line at 800-829-4933, open Monday through Friday, 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. local time. Agents on that line handle Form 1120-S questions and can confirm whether an S election is on file for your EIN.9Internal Revenue Service. Telephone Assistance Contacts for Business Customers Have the EIN and legal name ready. The Form 2553 instructions point taxpayers to this same number if they haven’t received acceptance or denial within two months of filing (five months with a letter ruling request).5Internal Revenue Service. Instructions for Form 1120-S
If Your Check Shows No S Election on File
If none of the methods above turn up an S election, the next question is timing. For a calendar-year business, Form 2553 must be filed no later than March 15 of the year the election is to take effect, or at any point during the preceding tax year.10Internal Revenue Service. Instructions for Form 2553 The rule behind that date: the form is due no more than two months and 15 days after the beginning of the tax year.11Internal Revenue Service. Publication 509, Tax Calendars
If you missed it, the IRS may grant late election relief under Revenue Procedure 2013-30 when all of the following are true:12Internal Revenue Service. Late Election Relief
- The entity intended to be an S corporation and is otherwise eligible.
- The only reason it didn’t qualify was the late filing, not an eligibility problem.
- The entity and all shareholders reported their income consistent with S corp treatment for the intended effective year and every year after.
- Fewer than three years and 75 days have passed since the intended effective date.
- The entity has a reasonable explanation for the late filing.
Situations that fall outside those conditions — most often when the three-year-and-75-day window has closed — may require a private letter ruling from the IRS National Office under Internal Revenue Code Section 1362(f), which covers inadvertent terminations and invalid elections.13Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 26 USC 1362 – Election; Revocation; Termination
If Your Check Shows the Election Was Terminated
An S election can end because the business revoked it, exceeded the shareholder limit, issued a second class of stock, or admitted an ineligible shareholder. If your transcripts show Form 1120-S filings in earlier years and Form 1120 filings later, the election was revoked or terminated at some point in between.
When a termination was unintentional, you can ask the IRS for relief by showing that the triggering event was inadvertent and has been corrected. The IRS has discretion to treat the corporation as if the termination never occurred, so long as the entity and its shareholders agree to any adjustments the IRS requires.14eCFR. 26 CFR 1.1362-4 – Inadvertent Terminations and Inadvertently Invalid Elections Catching a termination through the checks above, rather than at tax time, gives you the best chance at relief.
State Tax Treatment Is a Separate Question
Federal verification does not settle how your state taxes you. Most states follow the federal S election, but some tax S corporations on profits above a set threshold, and a few don’t recognize the S election at all and tax the business as a C corporation.15U.S. Small Business Administration. Choose a Business Structure If your state requires its own S election, a CP261 or IRS transcript won’t cover it. Check with your state’s department of revenue to see whether a separate state filing exists and, if so, whether yours is current.