Missed Form 5472? Your Options

If you missed Form 5472, most owners find each required year, prepare the missing Form 5472 and pro forma 1120 filings, and consider a reasonable-cause statement signed under penalties of perjury (Treas. Reg. 1.6038A-4). The penalty can be $25,000 per year, and relief may be available but isn't guaranteed.

Last reviewed September 23, 2026

If you've just learned your US LLC should have been filing Form 5472, you're not alone. Many foreign founders are never told about it. Here are your options, without judgment.

First, find out which years are affected. The free Form 5472 Checker goes year by year and shows your potential maximum exposure. That's a ceiling, not a prediction.

How do I know which years I missed?

A year needed Form 5472 if the LLC was foreign-owned and had at least one reportable transaction with you (or another related party) that year. Common examples are money you put in, expenses you paid for the LLC, distributions to you and loans in either direction. See the $1 contribution trap for why even small transfers count.

The rule for foreign-owned single-member LLCs covers tax years beginning after December 31, 2016, and ending on or after December 13, 2017. So for a calendar-year LLC, no year before 2017 is affected.

Check your bank statements for each year since formation and mark it "yes", "no" or "not sure."

Is my most recent year actually late yet?

Maybe not. It depends on whether you extended.

The checker labels a year like 2025 "Late unless extended" for exactly this reason.

What is the penalty for a missed Form 5472?

Under IRC §6038A(d):

• $25,000 for each tax year beginning after December 31, 2017 in which a required form wasn't filed when due and in the manner prescribed. The amount is $10,000 for tax years beginning before January 1, 2018.
• The IRS applies it once per tax year per related party. For a single-owner LLC that usually means one penalty per missed year.
• A substantially incomplete Form 5472 counts as a failure to file.
• If the failure continues more than 90 days after the IRS mails a notice, an additional $25,000 can apply for each 30-day period, or part of one. There is no statutory maximum.

These are maximums. They don't tell you what will actually be assessed, or whether relief will be granted.

What are my options?

Option 1: File the missing forms

For each required year, prepare Form 5472 and attach it to a pro forma Form 1120. Complete only the LLC's name and address and items B and E on page 1, and write "Foreign-owned U.S. DE" across the top. Fax it (300 DPI or higher) to 855-887-7737 or mail it to Internal Revenue Service, 1973 Rulon White Blvd, M/S 6112, Attn: PIN Unit, Ogden, UT 84201. E-filing isn't available for foreign-owned DEs. The LLC needs its own EIN. If it doesn't have one, getting it is step one.

Filing the forms stops the failure from continuing. That matters because the continuation penalty is tied to how long a failure lasts after an IRS notice.

Option 2: Include a reasonable-cause statement

Treas. Reg. §1.6038A-4(b) says failures to timely file Form 5472 "may be excused for reasonable cause." To ask for this:

• You must affirmatively show the facts that make up reasonable cause, in a written statement signed under penalties of perjury.
• The IRS weighs all pertinent facts and circumstances, case by case. Reasonable reliance on professional advice can count if that reliance was objectively reasonable.
• For a small corporation, meaning gross receipts of $20,000,000 or less, the regulation says the IRS "shall apply the reasonable cause exception liberally" if it had no knowledge of the section 6038A requirements, has limited presence in and contact with the United States, and promptly and fully complies with IRS requests to file Form 5472 and furnish relevant records.

Many foreign-owned single-member LLCs may qualify for that liberal standard, but it isn't automatic. A statement signed under penalties of perjury needs true, specific facts; accuracy matters more than persuasion.

Reasonable cause can also delay the start of the 90-day period that comes before continuation penalties (IRC §6038A(d)(3)).

Option 3: Respond to an IRS notice, if you've received one

If the IRS has already written to you, the notice changes your timeline. The continuation penalty depends on how long the failure lasts after the IRS mails that notice, so don't set it aside. Read the response date and the requested action. Our free IRS Notice Decoder explains common notice codes, and a professional can help you respond.

Does First Time Abate apply to Form 5472 penalties?

We don't think you should count on it. The IRS's administrative penalty relief page describes First Time Abate as covering failure-to-file penalties under IRC 6651(a)(1), 6698(a)(1) and 6699(a)(1), failure-to-pay penalties and failure-to-deposit penalties. The Form 5472 penalty is imposed under IRC 6038A, which isn't on that list. The page also says the program doesn't apply to "information reporting dependent on another filing."

The IRS is moving from First Time Abate to a new Automatic Exemption from Penalty (AEP) starting in summer 2026, for listed returns such as 2025 tax-year Forms 1040, 1065 and 1120. We haven't seen IRS guidance applying AEP to section 6038A penalties. For Form 5472, the relief route the regulations provide is reasonable cause.

What should I gather before I start?

• Formation documents and the LLC's EIN letter
• Bank statements for every year since formation
• Receipts for LLC costs you paid personally (formation, registered agent, software, ads)
• Records of distributions or owner draws
• Loan agreements or transfers between you and the LLC
• Invoices between the LLC and any of your other companies
• Any IRS letters you've received
• A short timeline of when and how you learned about Form 5472 (useful for a reasonable-cause statement)

Should I get professional help?

Some owners handle one simple missed year themselves. With several years, an IRS notice or a reasonable-cause statement, a professional review is usually worth it. RAHA offers a Missed-Years Form 5472 Catch-up + Relief Review. We review every year your LLC may have needed to file, prepare the missing forms, assess whether a reasonable-cause statement may apply, and give you a written plan before anything goes to the IRS. It's a fixed price, quoted upfront. See our global services and tax filing pages.

For the full rules, read the Form 5472 pillar guide. If you're also unsure about your personal return, see Form 5472 vs 1040-NR.

Frequently asked questions

Will the IRS definitely charge $25,000 for each missed year?

Not necessarily. $25,000 per year, per related party, is the maximum initial penalty for tax years beginning after December 31, 2017. Whether it's assessed, and whether reasonable-cause relief is granted, depends on your facts.

Can I just start filing this year and ignore past years?

Past years stay unfiled if you do that, and the failure continues. We generally recommend dealing with every required year, and considering reasonable cause for each, rather than leaving gaps. Your adviser can confirm the right approach for your facts.

What makes a good reasonable-cause statement?

True, specific facts, signed under penalties of perjury. For example: when you formed the LLC, what you were or weren't told, your US presence, when you learned of the requirement and how quickly you acted. The regulation looks at all the facts and circumstances.

Can I e-file the late forms?

No. The Instructions for Form 5472 say a foreign-owned U.S. DE "cannot file Form 5472 electronically." Late forms go the same way as on-time forms: by fax to 855-887-7737 or by mail to the IRS PIN Unit in Ogden, Utah (M/S 6112). Keep your fax confirmation or proof of mailing.

Do I need an EIN before I can file late forms?

Yes. The LLC needs its own EIN for the pro forma 1120 and Form 5472. International applicants can apply by phone at 267-941-1099, by fax (304-707-9471 from outside the U.S.) or by mail.

I also never filed a BOI report. Is that a problem?

For a US-formed LLC, probably not anymore. Under FinCEN's final rule, effective August 14, 2026, entities created in the United States are exempt from BOI reporting. Check your situation with our BOI Reporting Checker.

Sources

• IRC §6038A: https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/26/6038A
• Treas. Reg. §1.6038A-4 (reasonable cause): https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-26/section-1.6038A-4 (also at https://www.law.cornell.edu/cfr/text/26/1.6038A-4)
• Instructions for Form 5472 (Rev. December 2024): https://www.irs.gov/instructions/i5472
• Treas. Reg. §301.7701-2: https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-26/section-301.7701-2
• IRS, Administrative penalty relief: https://www.irs.gov/payments/administrative-penalty-relief
• Instructions for Form SS-4 (Rev. December 2025): https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/iss4.pdf
• FinCEN, Beneficial ownership information: https://www.fincen.gov/boi

This guide provides general information for educational purposes and is not tax, legal or accounting advice. Consult a qualified professional before acting.