Form 1120 – U.S. Corporation Income Tax Return

Last reviewed: 2025‑10‑26

Use the Form 1120 Tax Form Calculator Form 1120 as a stand alone tax form calculator to quickly calculate specific amounts for your 2026 1120 state tax return. Alternatively, you can use one of our Combined Federal and State Tax Estimators to quickly calculate your salary, tax, and take-home pay.

Form 1120 is the official IRS return for domestic corporations to report their financial results and calculate corporate income tax. All C corporations operating in the United States must file Form 1120 annually, regardless of taxable income. This form is the foundation of corporate compliance and includes detailed reporting on gross receipts, deductions, credits, and taxes owed.

Key highlights of Form 1120 include:

Income Reporting: Corporations must report total income from all sources, including sales, rents, interest, and dividends.
Deductions: Allowable deductions include salaries, repairs, bad debts, depreciation, advertising, employee benefits, and more.
Tax Calculation: After computing taxable income, the applicable corporate tax rate is applied. Most corporations pay a flat 21% rate under current law.
Schedule M-1 and M-2: These schedules reconcile book income with taxable income and track retained earnings.
Additional Forms: Depending on operations, corporations may also need to attach Schedule C, D, G, J, K, L, and others.

U.S. Corporation Income Tax Return
A Check if: 1a Consolidated return (attach Form 851) b Life/nonlife consoli- dated return 2 Personal holding co. (attach Sch. PH) 3 Personal service corp. (see instructions) 4 Schedule M-3 attached			TYPE OR PRINT	Name		B Employer identification number
				Number, street, and room or suite no. If a P.O. box, see instructions.		C Date incorporated
				City or town, state, or province, country, and ZIP or foreign postal code		D Total assets (see instructions) $
			E Check if: (1) Initial return (2) Final return (3) Name change (4) Address change
Income	1a	Gross receipts or sales		1a
	b	Returns and allowances		1b
	c	Balance. Subtract line 1b from line 1a				1c
	2	Cost of goods sold (attach Form 1125-A)				2
	3	Gross profit. Subtract line 2 from line 1c				3
	4	Dividends (Schedule C, line 19)				4
	5	Interest				5
	6	Gross rents				6
	7	Gross royalties				7
	8	Capital gain net income (attach Schedule D (Form 1120))				8
	9	Net gain or (loss) from Form 4797, Part II, line 17 (attach Form 4797)				9
	10	Other income (see instructions—attach statement)				10
	11	Total income. Add lines 3 through 10 ▸				11
Deductions (See instructions for limitations on deductions.)	12	Compensation of officers (see instructions—attach Form 1125-E)				12
	13	Salaries and wages (less employment credits)				13
	14	Repairs and maintenance				14
	15	Bad debts				15
	16	Rents				16
	17	Taxes and licenses				17
	18	Interest				18
	19	Charitable contributions				19
	20	Depreciation from Form 4562 not claimed on Form 1125-A or elsewhere on return (attach Form 4562)				20
	21	Depletion				21
	22	Advertising				22
	23	Pension, profit-sharing, etc., plans				23
	24	Employee benefit programs				24
	25	Domestic production activities deduction (attach Form 8903)				25
	26	Other deductions (attach statement)				26
	27	Total deductions. Add lines 12 through 26 ▸				27
	28	Taxable income before net operating loss deduction and special deductions. Subtract line 27 from line 11				28
	29a	Net operating loss deduction (see instructions)		29a
	29b	Special deductions (Schedule C, line 20)		29b
	c	Add lines 29a and 29b				29c
Tax, Refundable Credits, and Payments	30	Taxable income. Subtract line 29c from line 28. See instructions				30
	31	Total tax (Schedule J, Part I, line 11)				31
	32	Total payments and refundable credits (Schedule J, Part II, line 21)				32
	33	Estimated tax penalty. See instructions. Check if Form 2220 is attached ▸				33
	34	Amount owed. If line 32 is smaller than the total of lines 31 and 33, enter amount owed				34
	35	Overpayment. If line 32 is larger than the total of lines 31 and 33, enter amount overpaid				35
	36	Enter amount from line 35 you want: Credited to 2017 estimated tax ▸			Refunded ▸	36
Sign Here	Under penalties of perjury, I declare that I have examined this return, including accompanying schedules and statements, and to the best of my knowledge and belief, it is true, correct, and complete. Declaration of preparer (other than taxpayer) is based on all information of which preparer has any knowledge.					May the IRS discuss this return with the preparer shown below? See instructions. Yes No
	Signature of officer		Date	Title
Paid Preparer Use Only		Print/Type preparer’s name	Preparer’s signature	Date	Check if self-employed		PTIN
		Firm’s name ▸				Firm’s EIN ▸
		Firm’s address ▸				Phone no.
Schedule C Dividends and Special Deductions (see instructions)					(a) Dividends received	(b) %	(c) Special deductions (a) × (b)
1	Dividends from less-than-%-owned domestic corporations (other than debt-financed stock)
2	Dividends from %-or-more-owned domestic corporations (other than debt-financed stock)
3	Dividends on debt-financed stock of domestic and foreign corporations
4	Dividends on certain preferred stock of less-than-%-owned public utilities
5	Dividends on certain preferred stock of %-or-more-owned public utilities
6	Dividends from less-than-%-owned foreign corporations and certain FSCs
7	Dividends from %-or-more-owned foreign corporations and certain FSCs
8	Dividends from wholly owned foreign subsidiaries
9	Total. Add lines 1 through 8. See instructions for limitation
10	Dividends from domestic corporations received by a small business investment company operating under the Small Business Investment Act of 1958
11	Dividends from affiliated group members
12	Dividends from certain FSCs
13	Dividends from foreign corporations not included on line 3, 6, 7, 8, 11, or 12
14	Income from controlled foreign corporations under subpart F (attach Form(s) 5471)
15	Foreign dividend gross-up
16	IC-DISC and former DISC dividends not included on line 1, 2, or 3
17	Other dividends
18	Deduction for dividends paid on certain preferred stock of public utilities
19	Total dividends. Add lines 1 through 17. Enter here and on page 1, line 4 ▸
20	Total special deductions. Add lines 9, 10, 11, 12, and 18. Enter here and on page 1, line 29b ▸
Schedule J Tax Computation and Payment (see instructions)
Part I–Tax Computation
1	Check if the corporation is a member of a controlled group (attach Schedule O (Form 1120)). See instructions ▸
2	Income tax. Check if a qualified personal service corporation. See instructions ▸					2
3	Alternative minimum tax (attach Form 4626)					3
4	Add lines 2 and 3					4
5a	Foreign tax credit (attach Form 1118)			5a
b	Credit from Form 8834 (see instructions)			5b
c	General business credit (attach Form 3800)			5c
d	Credit for prior year minimum tax (attach Form 8827)			5d
e	Bond credits from Form 8912			5e
6	Total credits. Add lines 5a through 5e					6
7	Subtract line 6 from line 4					7
8	Personal holding company tax (attach Schedule PH (Form 1120))					8
9a	Recapture of investment credit (attach Form 4255)			9a
b	Recapture of low-income housing credit (attach Form 8611)			9b
c	Interest due under the look-back method—completed long-term contracts (attach Form 8697)			9c
d	Interest due under the look-back method—income forecast method (attach Form 8866)			9d
e	Alternative tax on qualifying shipping activities (attach Form 8902)			9e
f	Other (see instructions—attach statement)			9f
10	Total. Add lines 9a through 9f					10
11	Total tax. Add lines 7, 8, and 10. Enter here and on page 1, line 31					11
Part II–Payments and Refundable Credits
12	2015 overpayment credited to 2016					12
13	2016 estimated tax payments					13
14	2016 refund applied for on Form 4466					14
15	Combine lines 12, 13, and 14					15
16	Tax deposited with Form 7004					16
17	Withholding (see instructions)					17
18	Total payments. Add lines 15, 16, and 17					18
19	Refundable credits from:
a	Form 2439			19a
b	Form 4136			19b
c	Form 8827, line 8c			19c
d	Other (attach statement—see instructions)			19d
20	Total credits. Add lines 19a through 19d					20
21	Total payments and credits. Add lines 18 and 20. Enter here and on page 1, line 32					21
Schedule K Other Information (see instructions)
1	Check accounting method: a Cash b Accrual c Other (specify) ▸						Yes	No
2	See the instructions and enter the:
a	Business activity code no. ▸
b	Business activity ▸
c	Product or service ▸
3	Is the corporation a subsidiary in an affiliated group or a parent-subsidiary controlled group?
	If “Yes,” enter name and EIN of the parent corporation ▸
4	At the end of the tax year:
a	Did any foreign or domestic corporation, partnership (including any entity treated as a partnership), trust, or tax-exempt organization own directly % or more, or own, directly or indirectly, % or more of the total voting power of all classes of the corporation’s stock entitled to vote? If "Yes," complete Part I of Schedule G (Form 1120) (attach Schedule G)
b	Did any individual or estate own directly % or more, or own, directly or indirectly, % or more of the total voting power of all classes of the corporation’s stock entitled to vote? If "Yes," complete Part II of Schedule G (Form 1120) (attach Schedule G)
Schedule K Other Information (continued from page 3)
							Yes	No
5	At the end of the tax year, did the corporation:
a	Own directly % or more, or own, directly or indirectly, % or more of the total voting power of all classes of stock entitled to vote of any foreign or domestic corporation not included on Form 851, Affiliations Schedule? For rules of constructive ownership, see instructions.
	If “Yes,” complete (i) through (iv) below.
(i) Name of Corporation			(ii) Employer Identification Number (if any)		(iii) Country of Incorporation		(iv) Percentage Owned in Voting Stock



b	Own directly an interest of % or more, or own, directly or indirectly, an interest of $% or more in any foreign or domestic partnership (including an entity treated as a partnership) or in the beneficial interest of a trust? For rules of constructive ownership, see instructions.
	If “Yes,” complete (i) through (iv) below.
(i) Name of Entity			(ii) Employer Identification Number (if any)		(iii) Country of Organization		(iv) Maximum Percentage Owned in Profit, Loss, or Capital



6	During this tax year, did the corporation pay dividends (other than stock dividends and distributions in exchange for stock) in excess of the corporation’s current and accumulated earnings and profits? See sections 301 and 316
	If "Yes," file Form 5452, Corporate Report of Nondividend Distributions. If this is a consolidated return, answer here for the parent corporation and on Form 851 for each subsidiary.
7	At any time during the tax year, did one foreign person own, directly or indirectly, at least % of (a) the total voting power of all classes of the corporation’s stock entitled to vote or (b) the total value of all classes of the corporation’s stock?
	For rules of attribution, see section 318. If “Yes,” enter: (i) Percentage owned ▸ (ii) Owner’s country ▸ (c) The corporation may have to file Form 5472, Information Return of a % Foreign-Owned U.S. Corporation or a Foreign Corporation Engaged in a U.S. Trade or Business. Enter the number of Forms 5472 attached ▸
8	Check this box if the corporation issued publicly offered debt instruments with original issue discount ▸ If checked, the corporation may have to file Form 8281, Information Return for Publicly Offered Original Issue Discount Instruments.
9	Enter the amount of tax-exempt interest received or accrued during the tax year ▸ $
10	Enter the number of shareholders at the end of the tax year (if 100 or fewer) ▸
11	If the corporation has an NOL for the tax year and is electing to forego the carryback period, check here ▸ If the corporation is filing a consolidated return, the statement required by Regulations section 1.1502-21(b)(3) must be attached or the election won't be valid.
12	Enter the available NOL carryover from prior tax years (don't reduce it by any deduction on line 29a.) ▸ $
13	Are the corporation’s total receipts (page 1, line 1a, plus lines 4 through 10) for the tax year and its total assets at the end of the tax year less than $?
	If “Yes,” the corporation isn't required to complete Schedules L, M-1, and M-2. Instead, enter the total amount of cash distributions and the book value of property distributions (other than cash) made during the tax year ▸ $
14	Is the corporation required to file Schedule UTP (Form 1120), Uncertain Tax Position Statement? See instructions
	If “Yes,” complete and attach Schedule UTP.
15a	Did the corporation make any payments in 2016 that would require it to file Form(s) 1099?
b	If “Yes,” did or will the corporation file required Forms 1099?
16	During this tax year, did the corporation have an % or more change in ownership, including a change due to redemption of its own stock?
17	During or subsequent to this tax year, but before the filing of this return, did the corporation dispose of more than % (by value) of its assets in a taxable, non-taxable, or tax deferred transaction?
18	Did the corporation receive assets in a section 351 transfer in which any of the transferred assets had a fair market basis or fair market value of more than $ million?
19	During the corporation's tax year, did the corporation make any payments that would require it to file Forms 1042 and 1042-S under chapter 3 (sections 1441 through 1464) or chapter 4 (sections 1471 through 1474) of the Code?
Schedule L Balance Sheets per Books			Beginning of tax year		End of tax year
	Assets		(a)	(b)	(c)		(d)
1	Cash
2a	Trade notes and accounts receivable
b	Less allowance for bad debts
3	Inventories
4	U.S. government obligations
5	Tax-exempt securities (see instructions)
6	Other current assets (attach statement)
7	Loans to shareholders
8	Mortgage and real estate loans
9	Other investments (attach statement)
10a	Buildings and other depreciable assets
b	Less accumulated depreciation
11a	Depletable assets
b	Less accumulated depletion
12	Land (net of any amortization)
13a	Intangible assets (amortizable only)
b	Less accumulated amortization
14	Other assets (attach statement)
15	Total assets
	Liabilities and Shareholders’ Equity
16	Accounts payable
17	Mortgages, notes, bonds payable in less than 1 year
18	Other current liabilities (attach statement)
19	Loans from shareholders
20	Mortgages, notes, bonds payable in 1 year or more
21	Other liabilities (attach statement)
22	Capital stock: a Preferred stock
	b Common stock
23	Additional paid-in capital
24	Retained earnings—Appropriated (attach statement)
25	Retained earnings—Unappropriated
26	Adjustments to shareholders’ equity (attach statement)
27	Less cost of treasury stock
28	Total liabilities and shareholders’ equity
Schedule M-1 Reconciliation of Income (Loss) per Books With Income per Return Note: The corporation may be required to file Schedule M-3. See instructions.
1	Net income (loss) per books			7	Income recorded on books this year not included on this return (itemize): Tax-exempt interest $
2	Federal income tax per books
3	Excess of capital losses over capital gains
4	Income subject to tax not recorded on books this year (itemize):
5	Expenses recorded on books this year not deducted on this return (itemize):			8	Deductions on this return not charged against book income this year (itemize):
a	Depreciation $			a	Depreciation $
b	Charitable contributions $			b	Charitable contributions $
c	Travel and entertainment $			9	Add lines 7 and 8
6	Add lines 1 through 5			10	Income (page 1, line 28)—line 6 less line 9
Schedule M-2 Analysis of Unappropriated Retained Earnings per Books (Line 25, Schedule L)
1	Balance at beginning of year			5	Distributions: a Cash
2	Net income (loss) per books			b	Stock
3	Other increases (itemize):			c	Property
				6	Other decreases (itemize):
				7	Add lines 5 and 6
4	Add lines 1, 2, and 3			8	Balance at end of year (line 4 less line 7)

Form 1120 is more than a tax return—it is a financial disclosure to the IRS. Failure to file, or inaccurate reporting, can result in penalties and audits. The form also determines estimated tax payments and may influence shareholder distributions and retained earnings decisions.

Last reviewed: 2025‑10‑26: If you believe this form requires an update, please contact us.

C corporations must file Form 1120 by the 15th day of the 4th month after the end of their tax year (typically April 15 for calendar year filers). Electronic filing is required for most corporations. Thorough documentation, accurate bookkeeping, and an understanding of allowable deductions are essential for proper completion.

Corporations involved in international transactions, ownership of foreign entities, or consolidated groups must also comply with additional schedules and disclosures. To avoid errors, many companies use tax professionals or enterprise-grade tax software to complete and file Form 1120 accurately.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I estimate the General Business Credit?

Start with Form 3800 and then reflect the credit here.

How much would a 401(k) contribution change my net?

Model it with the 401(k) Calculator then rerun this page with your pre-tax amount.

Considering an IRS Offer in Compromise?

Read through Form 656-B to understand eligibility and steps.

What does FICA include?

FICA includes Social Security and Medicare payroll taxes withheld from employee wages.

Is there a quick pay-frequency comparison?

Yes—switch frequency on this page; for employer filings see 941 vs 944.

Important Notes

All calculations are estimates for guidance only. Always review your return and consider professional advice when submitting official filings.