It seems like the S Corp has turned into the latest influencer-fueled craze. Everyone’s buzzing about the tax savings, thanks to YouTube and TikTok stars hyping it up. But here’s a brief reality check for you: S Corps aren’t all rainbows and tax deductions. They can be a CPA’s dream but also a business owner’s headache. Let’s see why.
1. The Accounting Cycle of Doom.
Before shareholders can handle their own payroll—which is a quarterly responsibility, by the way—they need to complete their accounting. This is because shareholder wage calculations depend on the company's net profit. And it is impossible to know a company's profit without proper accounting. For new business owners, this particular requirement makes S Corp management feel like an endless cycle of bookkeeping, payroll, and deadlines. Very often, business owners procrastinate until tax time and by that time the CPA gets to it, many things can’t be fixed and a lot of tax opportunities have been missed. Of course, there are accounting tricks that can reduce your accounting headache ( such as a yearly write up and only one payroll at the end of the year), but this will cost you extra since a CPA would have to handle it for you.
2. Costs That Pile Up Faster Than You Think.
The costs to keep an S Corp going are no joke. Accounting software, payroll processing, and tax prep don’t come cheap. And here’s a fun twist: the S Corp basis, which tracks each owner’s equity, is reocorded on personal tax returns of the business owners. Translation? You may need to hire the same tax preparer for both your S Corp and personal returns to make sure nothing falls through the cracks and yes, this will cost you extra. If you cannot handle accounting, you will need to hire a bookkeeper and in most cases they will want a monthly payment. If you decide to go the DIY route, then expect your CPA to charge you extra for “fixing” your books. In my experience, just accounting costs alone generally range between $1,500 and $4,000 annually, at minimum, depending on the complexity of the business. You can read more about S Corp costs here.
3. State Business Taxes (California Example).
States add their own costs. S Corp in California? Then brace yourself for some state-specific love in the form of taxes. California imposes an $800 minimum franchise tax on S Corps. That’s just the start. The state also levies a 1.5% tax on net income, which means S Corps end up getting double-taxed on their earnings. If your business net profit is over $54,000, say hello to a bigger tax bill. Under $54K? You’re still not off the hook—there’s always that $800 minimum tax that you have to pay.
4. Payroll Twists for Side-Hustlers.
We see this one a lot with DIY people who never received a proper tax advice and based their decision on information they found on the internet. Think that an Scorp will give you a tax break on your side hustle? Not necessarily. If you already have a W-2 job, you might already be hitting Social Security caps, meaning any “savings” from the S Corp payroll could evaporate. If your W-2 job already covers your Social Security and Medicare taxes, setting up an S Corp could lead to extra filing and accounting costs, not savings. And while you might recoup your Social Security and Medicare taxes on your personal return, you’ll lose the “employer” half of taxes that your S Corp paid—there’s no refund there. So, unless you have a solid reason to get into an S corp (such as PTET deduction or QBO deduction or regulatory requirements of your state), you may end up paying more than you save.
5. Decreased Retirement Contributions.
S Corps can throw a wrench into retirement savings. Since S Corps owners avoid paying maximum into the Social Security fund, they often miss out on building up their Social Security benefits. Additionally, SEP IRAs (allowing up to 25% of shareholder W-2 wages for retirement contributions) are basically useless with S Corps because owners typically try to keep their W-2s low. A 401(k) could be an alternative but setting it up is complex and will require ongoing planning with your payroll provider and your CPA.
6. Limited Tax-Free Fringe Benefits.
Thinking about adding extra benefits? S Corp rules limit what you can deduct. Although S Corp owners can still deduct health insurance premiums, fringe benefits like HRAs ( available by hiring a spouse in a sole proprietorship), or other benefits available to C Corps, aren’t possible with S Corps. If an S Corp pays for these benefits, they’re treated as wages, meaning payroll taxes apply, reducing their tax-advantaged impact. You can read more about it here.
7. Inflexible Income Allocation for Multiple Owners.
Got multiple owners? S Corps don’t allow you to split profits any way you want. By law, all income, loss, and distributions must match ownership percentages. You can’t adjust how income is allocated unless owners start selling and/or gifting shares. This limitation is an actual issue for businesses with multiple partners who want more flexibility based on who’s putting in the most work or additional capital. We've talked about this problem here.
8. No Tax-Free Payroll for Children.
S Corp owners must pay Social Security and Medicare taxes if they hire their own children to work for their business. For sole proprietorships (Schedule C filers), children under 18 can work for the business without withholding these taxes. This is 15% of taxes that can be retained within the family. For example, if the family has three children and they work for their parent - sole proprietor, the business owner can easily pay each child $12,000, $36,000 total, for which there would be no requirement to either file taxes or withhold Social Security and Medicare taxes. This lucrative deduction is not possible with S Corps.
9. The “Trapped Assets” Problem.
Transferring assets from an S Corporation or converting them for personal use will trigger a taxable event. When assets are distributed to S Corp shareholders, they are valued at fair market value. Vehicles generally aren’t a major issue, but real estate can be problematic. If the S Corp owner withdraws a building from the S Corp and the basis of the building is $400,000 while its fair market value (welcome to California) is $2,000,000, the owner will have to pay tax on the $1,600,000 gain. The worst part is that the owner may not have any cash on hand from the sale, as it is a phantom sale that never happened, and cash never hit their bank account.
10. Strict Eligibility Requirements.
We've all heard about this one. S Corps can have only up to 100 shareholders, all of whom must be U.S. citizens or residents, and the company can issue only one class of stock. This limits growth and investment options, especially for businesses looking for diverse or international investors.
Final Takeaway.
Don’t get me wrong—S Corps is a fantastic tax-saving tool for many businesses, but they come with costs, commitments, and quirks that aren’t for everyone. And to be honest: S Corps are accountant's bread and butter. Preparation of business returns, tax planning projects, accounting, payroll - these services have to be performed and paid for in order to keep your S Corp alive. And that’s you see so many tax preparers heavily pushing this type of tax structure on social media.
Before you jump on the S Corp bandwagon, make sure you’re ready to deal with the complexities that come along with it. If you need help deciding whether S Corp makes financial sense to you, please contact us. We have helped hundreds of California business owners with their tax and accounting questions. Feel free to check our services here.