Form 5472 — direct answers.
Common Form 5472 questions, answered in plain English. Statutory facts attributed to the IRS.
Last reviewed: November 2026.
Form 5472 requirements
Do I need to file Form 5472 if my LLC made no money?
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Yes. Form 5472 is required for any foreign-owned US single-member LLC that had a reportable transaction with a related party — and the IRS treats the initial capital you contributed to open the LLC as a reportable transaction. Zero revenue does not waive the filing requirement (IRS, Form 5472 instructions).
Who is required to file Form 5472?
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A US LLC that is at least 25% foreign-owned and treated as a disregarded entity for US tax must file Form 5472 each year it has any reportable transaction with a related party. The form goes attached to a pro forma Form 1120 (IRS, IRC §6038A).
What is the penalty for not filing Form 5472?
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The penalty is $25,000 per Form 5472 not filed, per year (IRS, IRC §6038A). An additional $25,000 applies if the IRS sends a notice and the form is not filed within 90 days. Late filings made voluntarily under DIIRSP are typically accepted with no penalty if reasonable cause is shown.
What is the deadline for Form 5472?
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Form 5472 is due April 15 each year for calendar-year LLCs, the same deadline as Form 1120 (IRS). Filing Form 7004 by April 15 extends the deadline to October 15. The form is filed with the pro forma Form 1120 it attaches to.
What is a pro forma Form 1120 and why is it required?
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A pro forma Form 1120 is a mostly-blank US corporate tax return used solely as a cover sheet for Form 5472. Foreign-owned disregarded LLCs cannot file Form 5472 by itself — the IRS requires it to be attached to Form 1120 even when the LLC has no income (IRS, Form 5472 instructions).
Filing process
Where do I fax Form 5472?
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Form 5472 and its pro forma Form 1120 attachment are faxed to the IRS Ogden PIN Unit at +1-855-887-7737 (IRS). Paper mail to Internal Revenue Service, 1973 Rulon White Blvd., M/S 6112, Ogden, UT 84201 is also accepted. Foreign-owned disregarded LLCs cannot e-file.
Can I file Form 5472 without an SSN or ITIN?
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Yes. Form 5472 accepts a foreign tax identification number (FTIN) for the foreign owner, or the literal text 'AppliedFor' if no FTIN exists (IRS, Form 5472 instructions). The LLC itself still needs an EIN, which a non-resident can obtain via Form SS-4 without an SSN or ITIN.
Can I file Form 5472 without a CPA?
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Yes. Form 5472 is a disclosure form, not a tax computation — anyone with the LLC's basic information and a list of related-party transactions can complete it. Snapfile prepares the form, the pro forma Form 1120, and the DIIRSP letter from 12 questions for $89, and faxes it to the IRS.
What counts as a reportable transaction?
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Reportable transactions include capital contributions you made to the LLC, distributions you took out, loans between you and the LLC, expense reimbursements, and any other money or property exchanged between the LLC and you or your related parties. The initial capital you put in to open the LLC counts (IRS, Form 5472 instructions).
Late filings & DIIRSP
I missed Form 5472 for past years — what do I do?
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File every missed year now under the IRS's Delinquent International Information Return Submission Procedure (DIIRSP). Attach a reasonable-cause statement explaining why the filings were late. The IRS typically accepts the catch-up with no penalty if you come forward before they contact you about the missing returns (IRS).
What is DIIRSP?
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DIIRSP — the Delinquent International Information Return Submission Procedure — is the IRS's published path for foreign-owned LLCs and others to catch up on missed Form 5472 and related international information returns without incurring penalties, provided a reasonable cause statement is attached and the IRS has not yet contacted the filer (IRS).
How much does Snapfile charge for catch-up filings?
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$89 for the current filing year plus +$69 per additional past year, all bundled into one DIIRSP submission with one reasonable-cause letter. A 3-year catch-up costs $227 total (current year + 2 past years × $69). Each missed year produces its own complete Form 5472 + pro forma 1120 package.
Pricing & how Snapfile works
Why is Snapfile only $89?
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Foreign-owned single-member LLCs file the same shape of return almost every time: one Form 5472, one pro forma 1120, a handful of reportable transactions. The prep is automated and a qualified tax accountant reviews each package before fax. No CPA-hour billing for a 20-minute job.
Does Snapfile charge a subscription?
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No. Snapfile charges $89 per filing year as a one-time payment. There is no auto-renewing card, no monthly fee, and no contract. Returning customers pay $89 again the next year if they want Snapfile to file again.
What does Snapfile do if a filing fails?
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If the fax fails to deliver after the automatic retry, Snapfile refunds the $89 in full. If the IRS rejects the filing because of a preparation error on Snapfile's side, Snapfile re-prepares and re-faxes at no additional charge.
Data & privacy
Does Snapfile store my bank statements?
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No. If statements are uploaded so Snapfile can extract transaction totals, they are processed in memory and discarded — they are never written to permanent storage. The only document Snapfile retains is the IRS fax transmission receipt, which is the proof of filing.
Where is Snapfile customer data hosted?
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On US-based infrastructure. Payments are processed by Stripe, fax delivery is routed through Telnyx to the IRS Ogden PIN Unit number, and emails are sent through Resend. Snapfile does not sell customer data, does not share it with advertisers, and does not use it to train AI models.