S Corporations: Key Issues, Compliance, and Tax Strategies - Tax Staff Essentials

Overview

Explaining the misunderstood

The S corporation form is unique and often misunderstood. You’ll learn how to assist your clients with the most misconstrued areas of S corporation taxation and how they can use S status to their advantage.

Updated for recent legislation, including H.R. 1

The world of taxation is never static. H.R. 1, commonly referred to as OBBBA and passed in 2025, affected virtually every type of taxpayer, including S corporations. Refreshed materials discuss the H.R. 1 provisions that affect S corporations and their shareholders, including the qualified business income deduction and Section 179 expensing.

The course has also been updated for legislative and regulatory developments related to:

Inflation Reduction Act

SECURE 2.0

SECURE 1.0

Weighing the pros and cons

S corporation status doesn't suit every business. Throughout the course, you'll learn when it is advantageous or disadvantageous to be taxed as an S corporation.

Making the model work

You'll be exposed to methods of effectively communicating with potential business clients and existing shareholders about how you can make the S corporation business model work for them.

Part of Tax Staff Essentials Level 1
This self-study online course is part of Tax Staff Essentials Level 1, a comprehensive learning program that provides tax staff with the technical training required to support their teams.

Highlights

Advantages and disadvantages of S corporations

Electing S corporation status

Termination of S corporation status

S corporation tax on built-in gains

S corporation pass-through to shareholders, basis, and losses

S corporation distributions

Taxable year of S corporations

S corporation passive activity rules, fringe benefits, and other considerations

Prerequisites

None

Designed For

Public accounting firm staff and senior associates

CPAs

S corporation tax filers

Objectives

Recognize the advantages and disadvantages of S corporation status.
Recognize when the S election becomes effective.
Identify shareholder consent rules and causes of invalid elections.
Identify permitted fiscal years, elections, and user fees.
Recognize events causing involuntary termination.
Recognize when an S corporation is subject to tax at the entity level.
Recognize how accumulated earnings and profits, accumulated adjustments accounts, other adjustments accounts, and shareholder bases are affected by distributions.
Recall the applicability of various S corporation filing requirements.