The IRS routes on your principal business, office or agency. If you formed the entity in Delaware, Wyoming or Nevada but run it from North Carolina, you use the Kansas City center above. Filing on the basis of your state of incorporation is the single most common routing mistake.
Where to file Form 2553 in North Carolina
If your business operates in North Carolina, Form 2553 goes to the IRS Kansas City service center. You can fax it or mail it — it cannot be filed online.
Fax it to
855-887-7734
Keep the transmission report. It is your proof of filing.
Or mail it to
Department of the Treasury Internal Revenue Service Kansas City, MO 64999Sending by FedEx, UPS or another courier
Couriers cannot deliver to the ZIP-only IRS address. Use this street address instead:
Internal Revenue Submission Processing Center 333 W. Pershing Kansas City, MO 64108It is where you operate, not where you formed
Filing is only half the state picture — see the full North Carolina S-corp tax guide for how North Carolina treats the election, state taxes, and payroll registration.
Your next deadline
For a calendar-year business electing for 2027, the deadline is March 15, 2027. You can file at any time during 2026 for a 2027 effective date. There is no extension. How the deadline is calculated.
Where you register for payroll in North Carolina
An S corporation has to run payroll for its working owners, and that means a state registration on top of the federal election.
(1) North Carolina Department of Revenue withholding account — register for a North Carolina withholding identification number through NCDOR (Form NC-BR, Business Registration Application). Employee elections are on Form NC-4. Deposits and returns are made on Form NC-5 (or NC-5P for semiweekly payers) per the assigned frequency, with Form NC-3 as the annual withholding reconciliation, filed through the eNC3 application along with W-2s and 1099s. (2) North Carolina Division of Employment Security (NC Department of Commerce) — state unemployment insurance account and quarterly tax and wage reports. Separately, the S corporation has its own withholding duty on nonwage compensation and on nonresident owners: "Nonresident Withholding. Enter the amount of tax withheld on behalf of a nonresident corporation for nonwage compensation during the taxable year on Line 20d."
Before you send it
- Sign and date page 1 by hand. The IRS did not make those boxes fillable, so they cannot be typed.
- Have every owner sign and date Column K on page 2. A typed name is not a consent, and a missing one is the most common rejection reason.
- If mailing, send the original rather than a photocopy, and use certified mail with return receipt.
The full pre-send checklist covers printing, copies and what to keep as proof.
What goes wrong in North Carolina
The $200 minimum franchise tax is owed every single year no matter what — including by a corporation with no revenue, no assets, and no activity — and the consequence of ignoring it is not just a bill. The CD-401S instructions state: "A corporation that is inactive and without assets is subject annually to a minimum franchise tax of $200. A return containing a statement of the status of the corporation is required to be filed. Failure to file this return and pay the minimum tax will result in suspension of the articles of incorporation or certificate of authority." Owners who form an NC S corp, don't get the business off the ground, and quietly stop filing end up administratively suspended and owing accumulated minimum tax, penalties and interest. A close second, specific to the S election: the Taxed S Corporation election is an ANNUAL election made by filling in a circle on the return — practitioners and owners who made it once assume it carries forward, and a year where the circle isn't answered "Yes" silently drops the entity out of Taxed S Corporation status, losing the federal SALT deduction for that year with no way to fix it after the fact.
Filing from a different state?
Look up any state below.
The IRS routes on your principal business, office or agency — not where you incorporated. A Delaware LLC run from Ohio uses Ohio.
IRS Kansas City service centerServes 24 jurisdictions
Fax
855-887-7734
Sending by FedEx, UPS or another courier?
Couriers cannot deliver to the ZIP-only IRS address. Use the street address instead:
Internal Revenue Submission Processing Center 333 W. Pershing Kansas City, MO 64108Fax or mail?
Faxing is faster and gives you an immediate transmission report. Certified mail with return receipt gives you dated proof of filing, which is stronger evidence if the IRS later says it never arrived. Keep whichever proof you get — it is the only thing that establishes your filing date. If you mail it, send the original rather than a photocopy.
Expect Notice CP261 within about 60 daysVerified July 30, 2026 against irs.gov
Form 2553 cannot be e-filed. Mail or fax is the only way to submit it.
Nearby in the Kansas City group: Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Tennessee, Vermont.
Questions about filing from North Carolina
Where do I mail Form 2553 from North Carolina?
Send it to the IRS Kansas City service center: Department of the Treasury, Internal Revenue Service, Kansas City, MO 64999. If you are using a courier such as FedEx or UPS, use the street address instead: Internal Revenue Submission Processing Center, 333 W. Pershing, Kansas City, MO 64108.
What is the fax number for Form 2553 in North Carolina?
855-887-7734. That is the IRS Kansas City service center, which handles 24 jurisdictions including North Carolina. Keep the transmission confirmation — it is your proof of filing.
I incorporated elsewhere but operate in North Carolina. Which address applies?
North Carolina, because the IRS routes on your principal business, office or agency rather than your state of incorporation. A Delaware or Wyoming entity operated from North Carolina uses the Kansas City center.
Does North Carolina need anything beyond the federal election?
North Carolina franchise tax on net worth: "$200 for the first one million dollars ($1,000,000) of the corporation's tax base and $1.50 per $1,000 (.0015) of its tax base that exceeds one million dollars," with an absolute minimum of $200 owed every year, even by an inactive corporation. North Carolina automatically recognizes the federal S election and gives you no choice in the matter. The 2025 CD-401S instructions are explicit: "There is no separate S election for North Carolina income tax purposes.
How long does the IRS take to respond?
The IRS says to expect Notice CP261 within about 60 days. It does not publish a live processing estimate for Form 2553, so treat that as its stated expectation rather than a guarantee. If nothing arrives, call 800-829-4933 with your proof of filing.
Want the form completed for you?
Scorply fills in your Form 2553, works out the right effective date, handles every shareholder consent, and hands you a checklist with this address already on it.
Start my Form 2553North Carolina sources
- https://www.ncdor.gov/tax-forms/2025-cd-401s-s-corporation-tax-return-instructions/open
- https://www.ncdor.gov/taxes-forms/corporate-income-franchise-tax/corporate-income-and-franchise-tax-rates
- https://www.ncdor.gov/taxes-forms/individual-income-tax/tax-rate-schedules
- https://www.sosnc.gov/divisions/business_registration/annual_report_due_dates
- https://www.ncdor.gov/taxes-forms/withholding-tax
Address and fax number verified against irs.gov on July 30, 2026. The IRS changes these occasionally — we re-check regularly, but confirm against irs.gov if you are filing close to a deadline.