Corporate Tax Lawyers in South Portland

In South Portland, Maine, a "corporation" is an entity that is, under the law, distinct from any of its owners. Essentially, this means that the people who own a corporation, and the corporation itself, are distinct "persons."

This concept is referred to as "corporate personhood" in Maine, and it essentially means that, for many purposes under the law, corporations are treated the same as individual people, being subject to many of the same rights and responsibilities.

An evident example of this concept is a corporation's obligation to pay income taxes similar to how an actual person would.

Corporate Tax Rate in South Portland, Maine

Every corporation in the United States is obligated to pay federal income tax. Most states also have a corporate income tax, which corporations doing business in South Portland, Maine are obligated to pay.

The federal corporate income tax rate is different from the tax rate that applies to individuals. The highest corporate tax rate at the federal level is 35% of income - applying to companies that make over .3 million per year. Corporations earning under ,000 pay a 15% tax rate. There are several tax brackets in between.

The tax rate in Maine for corporations probably also differs from the taxes that individuals must pay. In some states, the government has determined that their interests would be best served by making corporate taxes as low as possible. So in many states, the tax rate for corporations is much lower than the one paid by individuals, unlike the federal corporate tax.

Whatever a company's legal tax rate is, all corporations in South Portland, Maine must pay the taxes assessed against them. If they don't, they can be made to pay very large fines - usually much larger than their original tax bill.

How Can a South Portland, Maine Corporate Tax Lawyer Help?

Most extremely large corporations have tax attorneys and accountants on staff, as full-time employees, who help them stay in conformity with every applicable state and federal income tax laws.

Of course, smaller companies in South Portland can't afford to have full-time legal and accounting departments on their payroll. Therefore, if your business is organized as a corporation, and has an issue with its taxes, it's essential that you contact a South Portland, Maine tax attorney as soon as possible.