taxes for 2024

One piece of information that's missing is what type of business this is. 

If it's a sole proprietorship or a disregarded entity such as a single-member LLC, then it files using the tax year of the owner. This means since you (the owner) as an individual are on a calendar year basis, you would file with your next annual personal tax return on a Schedule C. You don't need to file a return for this type of business earlier just because it has been shut down. 

Now, if the business was some other type of entity such as a partnership, multi-member LLC or S Corporation, then you are correct, you need to file the return earlier. A partnership or multi-member LLC return is due two months and 15 days after the last day of the month in which the business was closed. 

Example: You closed the business on May 7th. The last day of this month is May 31. Two months and 15 days later is August 15. Your partnership return would be due August 15. 

One strategy you could use is to file an extension for this final return. You would have to file the extension on paper using Form 7004 and mail it in to the IRS. I recommend sending it via Certified Mail and keeping the tracking information. This would give you an automatic 6-month extension from the original due date you calculated above. It's possible, depending on when you closed the business, that this extension would give enough time for the 2024 TurboTax Business software to become available. (It's usually released sometime in December). 

It's also possible, for example, that you closed the business very early in the year and even a 6-month extension is not enough time to get the software. Or maybe you don't want to file an extension and just want to file the return and be done. In order to do this, since the 2024 forms have not been released by the IRS yet, you have to use the 2023 forms. You can open a new file in TurboTax Business 2023, or prepare the return by hand on paper forms. When you print the return, cross out the year on every single form and write in "2024" in its place, and file the return by mail. One challenge of this method is that the forms will not have been updated for any 2024 tax law changes and you would need to know if any such changes affect the return. Be sure you correctly indicate the beginning and ending dates of the tax year on the return, and consider including a cover letter explaining why the return is using the previous year forms so it is more likely to be processed accurately.

I hope this information is helpful!