Office No. 8, Floor M, Century Tower, Kalma Chowk, Gulberg III, Lahore
Lahore, Pakistan · US Tax Preparation Specialists
Own a US LLC with zero sales? You still have IRS filing obligations — and missing them carries penalties starting at $25,000 under current IRS rules. We prepare and submit your US returns from Lahore, whether you're in Karachi or an overseas Pakistani in the US, UK or Gulf.
Form 5472 + 1120 · Form 1040-NR · Form 1065 · Treaty Positions · Catch-Up Filings · IRS Notice Response
16+
Years of Experience
IRS
Certifying Acceptance Agent
SECP
Registered Firm
3
Licensed Partners
Are You on the Hook?
US filing obligations don't depend on where you live — they depend on what you own and what you earn. If any card below describes you, the IRS already expects a filing this year, whether you're in Lahore, Dubai or Dallas.
Every foreign-owned single-member LLC owes the IRS a Form 5472 filing annually, revenue or not. Formed a company through our US entity formation advisory or anywhere else — the obligation is identical.
Rental income, dividends, royalties, US property sales or business income effectively connected with the US — all reportable on Form 1040-NR.
Marketplace income flowing through a US entity or reported on US forms comes with return obligations the seller dashboard never mentions.
An ITIN unused on a return for three consecutive years expires. Filing is also how treaty refunds are claimed — see our ITIN services guide.
Claiming reduced Pakistan–US treaty withholding — or recovering the 30% already withheld — happens through correct forms and, usually, a filed return.
On a US visa filing Form 1040 or 1040-NR, or managing US holdings from Riyadh, Dubai or London — the same remote engagement covers you, on your time zone.
The Paperwork, Decoded
Each form in one honest sentence — so you know which ones belong to your situation before we even talk.
The annual information filing every foreign-owned single-member LLC must make — the one with penalties starting at $25,000 for skipping it.
The personal US return for non-resident individuals — how income is reported, treaty positions disclosed and over-withheld tax claimed back.
The partnership return for multi-member LLCs, with Schedule K-1s issued to each member for their own filings.
The C-Corporation return — for founders who incorporated (or elected corporate treatment) rather than staying a pass-through.
The certificate you give US payers so withholding is correct from the start — often confused with a tax return, which it is not.
Where your entity's state requires an annual report or return, we prepare it alongside the federal package so the company stays in good standing.
Read This Before Anything Else
Here is the scenario we see every month at our Lahore office. A founder formed a Wyoming or New Mexico LLC two years ago — for Stripe, for Amazon, for a client who wanted a US invoice. The business made little or nothing, so they assumed there was nothing to file. Then a letter arrives from the IRS.
The rule they never heard: a foreign-owned single-member LLC must file Form 5472, attached to a pro-forma Form 1120, every single year — reporting the money that moved between owner and company, including the founder's own deposits. Zero revenue does not remove the obligation; it usually just makes the form shorter. Non-filing carries penalties starting at $25,000 under current IRS rules, per form, per year, and late filing is treated the same as no filing.
The honest good news: if you're behind, the answer is a properly prepared catch-up — the missed years filed together with a reasonable-cause statement where your facts support one. The IRS weighs these case by case; silence, by contrast, has no defense at all. The worst position is the founder who knows and keeps waiting.
If you own an LLC and have never filed, this consultation is the one to stop postponing: message us on WhatsApp with your formation date, and we'll tell you exactly where you stand.
Mark the Calendar
US deadlines follow the US calendar, not Pakistan's tax year — and they arrive earlier than most owners expect. The dates below are the standard pattern; when a date falls on a weekend or US holiday it shifts to the next business day.
| Filing | Standard deadline | Extension route |
|---|---|---|
| Form 1065 (multi-member LLC) | March 15 | Form 7004 — six additional months |
| Form 5472 + pro-forma 1120 | April 15 | Form 7004 — six additional months |
| Form 1040-NR (wages subject to US withholding) | April 15 | Form 4868 — six additional months |
| Form 1040-NR (no US wage withholding) | June 15 | Form 4868 — to mid-December |
An extension extends the paperwork, not the payment: any tax owed still accrues interest from the original date. We calendar both dates for every client engagement.
Two Tax Systems, One Income
The Pakistan–US income tax treaty exists so the same income is not fully taxed by both countries. In practice it works through positions you claim, not benefits you receive automatically: reduced withholding rates on certain income categories, sourcing rules that decide which country taxes what, and credits that offset one country's tax against the other's.
Getting this right is mechanical, not magical. The treaty position must match your actual facts — residency, income type, permanent-establishment status — and be claimed on the correct form: a W-8BEN lodged with the payer before payment, disclosures on the 1040-NR after. What the treaty never does is erase filing obligations, and no adviser can promise you a particular outcome before seeing your facts.
Equally important: your US filing and your FBR filing are separate obligations that must tell one consistent story. A Pakistani tax resident's worldwide income generally belongs in the FBR return, with treaty relief managing the overlap. We prepare the US side with the Pakistani side in view and coordinate your FBR filing through our Pakistani tax services — one firm, both returns, no contradictions between them.
Step by Step
Five steps, no mystery, and you approve the numbers before anything reaches the IRS.
You receive a checklist matched to your situation — formation papers, EIN letter, bank summary, any 1099/1042-S forms — and share everything in one thread, from any country.
Our US tax team prepares the full package — return, schedules, treaty disclosures — and a partner reviews it before you ever see it.
We walk you through the draft in plain language — Urdu or English — until every number makes sense. Nothing is submitted until you sign off.
Returns are e-filed where the IRS supports it; fax-or-mail forms like the 5472 package go through our submission channels with transmission proof retained.
You receive the filed return, submission proof and next year's deadline calendar in one archive — the file your bank, visa officer or future accountant will someday ask for.
The Number Question
For a personal return like Form 1040-NR — yes, the return needs your taxpayer identification number. What most providers won't tell you: you don't need to obtain the ITIN first and file later. The W-7 application and the tax return are designed to be submitted together as one package, and the IRS issues the ITIN while processing the return.
This is where our setup is genuinely different: because IMAAR is an IRS Certifying Acceptance Agent, the ITIN happens inside the same engagement — your passport is certified at our Lahore office rather than mailed anywhere, the W-7 reason box is matched to your return by the same person preparing it, and one fee quote covers both. Start with our complete ITIN services guide, see W-7 form preparation help for the application itself, or read how certification by a Certifying Acceptance Agent keeps your passport in Pakistan.
When the Letter Arrives
IRS letters to Pakistan arrive late, look alarming and always carry a deadline that started running before you opened the envelope. The correct response is neither panic nor the drawer — it's a timely, documented reply that addresses exactly what the notice raises.
For returns we prepared, notice response is part of the service: we draft the reply, attach the supporting records and track the case to closure. For penalty notices on filings done elsewhere — most commonly 5472 penalty assessments — we take on notice-response engagements that begin with an honest read of your position, including whether a reasonable-cause request is genuinely supportable on your facts. What we will not do is promise abatement; the IRS decides each case on its record.
If a notice is sitting in front of you now, photograph every page and send it to us on WhatsApp — the response clock matters more than anything else on this page.
The Firm Behind the Filing
A US-only preparer never sees your FBR position; a Pakistani-only one never sees the IRS. We practice both, so your two returns tell one consistent story — the thing audits actually test.
As an IRS Certifying Acceptance Agent, we solve the taxpayer-number problem that blocks most first-time non-resident filers — without your passport leaving Pakistan.
5472 packages, zero-revenue years, catch-up filings, K-1s for partners in three cities — this is our daily work, not an exotic request. Formation clients from our LLC service roll straight into filing season with us.
When one return a year stops being enough — bookkeeping, statements, planning — our US accounting & CPA services pick up where filing ends. A verifiable firm either way: SECP-incorporated, 16+ years, credentials on our Licenses & Credentials page.
Fees
Filing fees depend on entity type, forms involved and how many years need attention — so we quote after a short free consultation, in writing, as a fixed figure. Multi-year catch-ups are priced as packages, not per-form penalties of our own.
Rs. 15,000
Starting from Rs. 20,000 — based on activity level
Starting from Rs. 25,000 — depends on number of partners & activity level
Starting from Rs. 40,000 — depends on number of shareholders & activity level
Contact us for a specific quote
Package quote after case review
Visit or Write
IMAAR International
Office No. 8, Floor M, Century Tower,
Kalma Chowk, Main Boulevard, Gulberg III,
Lahore, Pakistan
Hours: Mon–Sat, 10:00–18:00 (placeholder — confirm) · Video calls scheduled for US, UK & Gulf time zones
Message Us on WhatsAppMessage us on WhatsApp or call directly — a licensed consultant replies personally, and your first consultation is free. No form, no waiting.
Office No. 8, Floor M, Century Tower, Kalma Chowk, Gulberg III, Lahore · Mon–Sat
Straight Answers
Yes — this is the most dangerous misunderstanding among Pakistani LLC owners. A foreign-owned single-member LLC must file Form 5472 with a pro-forma Form 1120 every year it exists, even with zero revenue and no activity beyond formation. The filing reports transactions between you and the company — including your own capital contributions. Skipping it triggers penalties starting at $25,000 under current IRS rules.
Don't panic, and don't keep waiting — the exposure grows with each unfiled year. We review your formation date, reconstruct the missed years, and file the overdue returns together, with a reasonable-cause statement where the facts support one. The IRS considers such statements case by case; no one can promise penalty removal, but a properly presented catch-up filing is far stronger than silence.
Typically: your formation documents and EIN letter, a summary of money in and out of the company (bank statements or a simple ledger), any 1099 or 1042-S forms you received, your passport details, and last year's return if one exists. We send a short checklist tailored to your situation on WhatsApp, and most clients gather everything within a few days.
Both, depending on the form. Many non-resident returns are e-filed normally; some foreign-owned LLC filings — notably Form 5472 with its pro-forma 1120 — are still submitted to the IRS by fax or mail under current procedures. We handle the transmission either way and send you proof of submission for your records.
It depends on your entity and situation. Partnership returns are generally due in mid-March, and most non-resident individual and corporate returns in mid-April, with some non-residents without US wage withholding getting until mid-June. Extensions are available on request. Exact dates shift year to year — see the deadlines table on this page for the current calendar.
For a personal return such as Form 1040-NR, yes — the return needs a taxpayer number, and if you don't have one, the ITIN application (Form W-7) is filed together with the return in a single package. As a Certifying Acceptance Agent we certify your passport in-house for that application. Form 5472 for your LLC, by contrast, can use a foreign taxpayer reference, so the company filing needn't wait.
They can, yes. The most common case is over-withholding: US payers often withhold 30% on payments to non-residents, reported on Form 1042-S, when the Pakistan–US treaty or your actual tax position supports a lower amount. Filing Form 1040-NR is how that excess is claimed back. Whether a refund exists depends entirely on your numbers — we tell you honestly before filing whether one is worth pursuing.
The Pakistan–US tax treaty can reduce US withholding on certain categories of income and prevent the same income being fully taxed in both countries. Treaty positions are claimed through the right forms — W-8BEN with payers, and disclosures on the return itself. Every position must match your facts; we assess what genuinely applies rather than promising treaty magic.
Form W-8BEN is a certificate you give a US payer so they withhold correctly — it is not filed with the IRS and it is not a tax return. A tax return (1040-NR, 1065, 1120) is your annual filing to the IRS itself. Many Pakistanis hand a W-8BEN to a client or platform and believe their US obligations are finished; often the return is still required.
US filing and FBR filing are separate obligations that need to tell a consistent story. If you are a Pakistani tax resident, foreign income generally belongs in your FBR return too, with treaty relief managing the overlap. Because we practice on both sides, we prepare the US return with your Pakistani position in mind — and coordinate the FBR side through our tax practice.
Yes. Many of our clients are overseas Pakistanis living in the United States on work, student or investor visas, filing Form 1040 or 1040-NR depending on residency status. The entire engagement runs remotely — WhatsApp, email and video calls scheduled on your time zone — and we are used to the dual-status and first-year questions visa holders actually face.
Absolutely. Overseas Pakistanis in the UK, Saudi Arabia, UAE and elsewhere use the same remote process as clients inside Pakistan: documents over WhatsApp or email, drafts reviewed on a call, and filings submitted by us. Distance changes nothing except the meeting time we schedule — engagement letters and payment all work internationally.
We quote a fixed fee for the defined filing scope before work begins — based on entity type, number of forms and years involved. Catch-up engagements covering several missed years are quoted as a package. There are no hourly meters and nothing added at submission time; the free WhatsApp consultation ends with your exact quote.
Yes. If the IRS sends a notice about a return we filed, responding is part of the service — we draft the reply, attach the support and track the outcome. For penalty notices on past filings done elsewhere, we offer notice-response engagements, including reasonable-cause requests where your facts genuinely support them.
Your return is prepared by our US tax team at the Lahore office and reviewed by a partner before anything is submitted — the same team that handles your ITIN and LLC work, so nothing about your structure gets lost between providers. Credentials and firm registrations are listed on our Licenses & Credentials page.
We treat tax documents the way the engagement letter promises: files shared over WhatsApp or email are stored on access-controlled systems, used only for your filings, and never shared with third parties without your instruction. Passport handling follows the same secure-document procedures we apply as an IRS Certifying Acceptance Agent.
Client Voices
“Their services are excellent and their early response is highly appreciated.”
Content reviewed by Abdur Rehman Sandhu, Attorney of the High Court. Last updated: July 2026.
Deadlines Don't Wait
One free assessment tells you which forms you owe, which deadlines apply, whether a refund is worth chasing and your fixed fee — whether you're in Lahore, London or Los Angeles.
