New E-Commerce startup

[Mike1611]

1. I am starting an e-commerce business with my brother-in-law, is it better to set this up as an LLC, partnership or sole proprietorship?

2. What are the tax obligations for this kind of business? There will be a loss for the remainder of this year.

[dev145]

First of all congratulations on starting your business. 

There are pros and cons for both partnership and LLC. The main drawback about partnership is liability. All partners are personally liable for the business’s debts and obligations. LLC is separate legal entity from the owners. Owners are in most cases are not held liable for debt and liabilities.  SBA has some great info. about LLC vs Partnership.

https://www.sba.gov/business-guide/launch-your-business/choose-business-structure

LLC and partnership both will file form 1065 and if you are expecting a loss, there will be no estimated tax payment requirements. Partnership or LLC do not pay any taxes but all income passes to the partners/members and they pay taxes on their personal returns. 

Thanks for participating in TurboTax's Ask the Expert event today. I hope this information was helpful!

[marctu]

A sole proprietorship is a non-registered, unincorporated business run solely by one individual proprietor with no distinction between the business and the owner.  So, it could be a partnership or an S-Corp, but it could not be a sole proprietorship.  There is an exception for husband and wife, which can be found here: Qualified Joint Venture 

Live Assisted/Live Full-Service Business  can help you file these taxes next year.  Even if you have a loss, you will be reporting the loss.   

Both a partnership and an S-Corp can be LLCs.  The choice of entity is beyond the scope of tax preparation though.   Both entities though should serve your purposes. 

Thank you so much for your question  @Mike1611 

Be well and safe!

Marc T.

Turbo Tax Expert

27 Years of Experience Helping Clients