When Are 1042-S Forms Due? Deadlines, Extensions, and Penalties

Form 1042-S is due to the IRS and to each foreign recipient by March 15 of the year following the calendar year in which the payments were made. For the 2025 tax year, that means March 15, 2026. If March 15 falls on a weekend or legal holiday, the deadline moves to the next business day.

That single date covers two separate obligations, sits alongside a companion summary return with the same due date, and follows a full year of deposit deadlines that most filers underestimate. Missing any piece carries its own penalty.

Two Obligations on the Same Date

Every withholding agent that paid U.S.-source income to a foreign person during the prior calendar year must both file Form 1042-S with the IRS and deliver a copy to each recipient by March 15.¹ These are distinct duties. Filing with the IRS but forgetting the recipient copies, or the reverse, can trigger penalties on the missed side alone.

The same March 15 deadline also applies to Form 1042, the annual summary return that ties all your individual 1042-S returns together, and to Form 1042-T, the transmittal cover sheet required for paper filings.¹ Form 1042 is required even if no tax was actually withheld, as long as reportable income was paid.²

Deposit Deadlines During the Year

March is only the reporting side. Withheld taxes must be sent to the Treasury throughout the year through the Electronic Federal Tax Payment System (EFTPS) or IRS Direct Pay. Using any other method can itself trigger a 10% penalty.³

How quickly you must deposit depends on how much undeposited tax has built up:

$2,000 or more at the end of a quarter-monthly period: deposit within 3 business days. Quarter-monthly periods end on the 7th, 15th, 22nd, and last day of each month.
$200 to $1,999 at the end of a month: deposit within 15 days after the month ends.
Less than $200 at year-end: deposit by March 15 of the following year, or pay the balance with Form 1042.

These thresholds come from the deposit rules for tax withheld on nonresident aliens and foreign corporations.⁴ A filing extension does not push these dates. The money is due on its own schedule regardless of any paperwork extension you obtain.

Late Deposit Penalties

Deposit penalties escalate with delay, and the rates do not stack. Only the highest applicable tier applies to a given late deposit:

1–5 calendar days late: 2% of the unpaid deposit
6–15 calendar days late: 5%
More than 15 days late: 10%
10 or more days after an IRS notice demanding payment: 15%

These rates apply to the deposit you missed, not to your total annual withholding.⁵

Extensions of Time to File and to Furnish

The filing extension and the furnishing extension are separate requests. Getting one does not get you the other.

Filing With the IRS

Form 8809 grants an automatic 30-day extension to file Forms 1042-S with the IRS. Submit it through FIRE or IRIS by the original March 15 deadline.⁶ Because it is automatic, you don’t provide a reason or wait for approval. For the summary return (Form 1042), the extension is requested on Form 7004, which is also automatic.⁷

Furnishing Copies to Recipients

Extra time to send recipient copies requires Form 15397, faxed to the IRS Technical Services Operation at 877-477-0572 (or 304-579-4105 for international faxes).² The request must arrive by the date statements are due to recipients and must include the filer’s name, TIN, address, the type of return, the reason for delay, and an authorized signature.⁸ If approved, you get up to 30 additional days.

This extension is not automatic. The IRS reviews the reason and decides. If you already know in February that recipient copies won’t go out on time, send the fax then rather than on March 15.

How to File

Any withholding agent required to file 10 or more information returns in a calendar year must e-file. That threshold counts all information return types combined, not just 1042-S forms, so many filers cross it without realizing.⁹

For 2025 tax year forms due March 15, 2026, you can e-file through either the legacy FIRE system or the newer IRIS portal. That choice ends after 2026. FIRE is scheduled to retire at year-end, and starting with 2026 tax year forms (due March 2027), IRIS will be the only electronic intake system.¹⁰ Filers still on FIRE should set up IRIS access ahead of the cutover.

Agents filing fewer than 10 returns can submit paper. Paper Forms 1042-S must be accompanied by Form 1042-T.²

Penalties for Late or Incorrect Filing

Penalties for filing Form 1042-S late or with errors climb the longer you wait. The 2026 inflation-adjusted amounts are:

Corrected within 30 days of the due date: $60 per form, up to $698,500 per year ($244,500 for small businesses)
Corrected after 30 days but by August 1: $130 per form, up to $2,095,500 per year ($698,500 for small businesses)
Filed after August 1 or not filed at all: $340 per form, up to $4,191,500 per year ($1,397,000 for small businesses)
Intentional disregard: $690 per form or 10% of the total amount required to be reported, whichever is greater, with no annual cap

These figures reflect inflation adjustments to the base statutory amounts.¹⁰ A parallel set of penalties under a separate statute applies to failing to furnish correct statements to recipients, mirroring the per-form amounts and tier structure above.¹¹ A withholding agent who both fails to file with the IRS and fails to furnish to recipients can be penalized under both provisions for the same form. An organization filing 500 forms after August 1 would face up to $170,000 in filing penalties before any furnishing penalties are added.

Correcting Errors After Filing

Discovering a mistake after filing means submitting an amended Form 1042-S. Check the “Amended” box on all copies, enter an amendment number starting at “1,” and keep the same unique form identifier as the original.¹⁰ If the original was e-filed, the correction must also be e-filed. If the change alters your total withholding figures, amend Form 1042 as well.

A safe harbor exists for small errors. A discrepancy of $100 or less on a reported income amount, or $25 or less on a tax withheld amount, is treated as de minimis and does not trigger filing penalties.¹² Recipients can elect out of the safe harbor and demand a corrected form, so accuracy on the original filing remains the safer path.

1
Internal Revenue Service. Discussion of Form 1042, Form 1042-S and Form 1042-T
2
Internal Revenue Service. 2026 Instructions for Form 1042-S
3
Internal Revenue Service. Instructions for Form 1042 (2025)
4
eCFR. 26 CFR 1.6302-2 – Deposit Rules for Tax Withheld on Nonresident Aliens and Foreign Corporations
5
Internal Revenue Service. Failure to Deposit Penalty
6
Internal Revenue Service. About Form 8809, Application for Extension of Time to File Information Returns
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Internal Revenue Service. Form 7004 – Application for Automatic Extension of Time to File Certain Business Income Tax, Information, and Other Returns
8
Internal Revenue Service. Faxing Request for Extension of Time to Furnish Statements to Recipients
9
Internal Revenue Service. Electronic Reporting of Form 1042-S
10
Internal Revenue Service. Instructions for Form 1042-S (2026)
11
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 26 USC 6722 – Failure to Furnish Correct Payee Statements
12
Federal Register. De Minimis Error Safe Harbor Exceptions to Penalties for Failure To File Correct Information Returns or Furnish Correct Payee Statements