Updated September 4, 2026. Quick answer: New Jersey stopped requiring its own S-election in 2022, but every S-corp still owes a mandatory Corporation Business Tax minimum, $375 to $1,500 a year on a sliding scale, that sits entirely outside the flat LLC filing-fee regime.
Does this state require its own election
No separate New Jersey filing exists to obtain S-corp status; the federal election controls. P.L. 2022, c.133 eliminated New Jersey’s separate S-corp election for privilege periods beginning on or after December 22, 2022; a valid federal election now carries over automatically, though the entity must still register as an ‘1120 Filer.’ An opt-out to C-corp tax status remains available, requiring 100% shareholder consent.
“While the new law eliminates the requirement for a separate New Jersey S corporation (or QSSS) election, the entity is still required to be registered as an 1120 Filer. … an entity can opt out of being treated as an S corporation by making a C Corporation Tax Status Election, which requires the C Corporation Tax Status Election Consent of 100% of the shareholders.”
New Jersey Division of Taxation, S Corporation FAQ
What it costs at the entity level
New Jersey’s Corporation Business Tax imposes a minimum tax on S-corps at 75% of the C-corp minimum at every gross-receipts tier. This CBT minimum framework is specific to entities taxed as corporations and is not the mechanism by which a default LLC or partnership is taxed.
| What New Jersey charges | Figure |
|---|---|
| Rate | S-corp CBT minimum is 75% of the C-corp minimum at each tier |
| Minimum | $375 (under $100,000 receipts) rising to $1,500 (at $1,000,000 or more) |
“Less than $100,000: $375.00 [S corp] … $1,000,000 or more: $1,500.00 [S corp]”
New Jersey Division of Taxation, Corporation Business Tax rates
The comparison against a plain LLC
The extra election step is gone as of late 2022, but the entity-level CBT minimum, $375 to $1,500 depending on receipts, is a cost outside the LLC filing-fee regime, owed every year regardless of profit.
What this does not model
This page does not model the affiliated/controlled-group $2,000 flat minimum that applies to large corporate groups with $5,000,000 or more in total payroll.
No federal tax modelling is repeated here; see the federal S-corp election calculator for the payroll-tax and QBI mechanics this page assumes but does not recompute. No personal New Jersey income tax on the pass-through income itself is modelled either.
Sources
Every figure on this page is read from the text quoted above, fetched directly from the state’s own site or code, as read on September 4, 2026.
| What it establishes | Source |
|---|---|
| Whether New Jersey requires its own S-corp election | New Jersey Division of Taxation, S Corporation FAQ |
| What New Jersey charges an S-corp at the entity level | New Jersey Division of Taxation, Corporation Business Tax rates |
General consumer information, not financial, tax or legal advice. State rules are as published by the cited source on September 4, 2026 and change; your own facts govern, and an S-corporation election is a decision to take with a tax professional who has seen your books.