Form 7004 must be filed by midnight local time on the normal due date of the return. In the case of a 1065, this is by the 15th day of the 3rd month after the end of the tax year for the return. An accepted Form 7004 provides a 6-month extension of time to file the return. See Drake Tax – Return Due Dates and Deadlines for more information about the due date of Form 7004 and perfection period if the extension request is rejected.

Generate and File Form 7004

1. Open the return.

2. Enter demographic information on screen 1, at least the name, address, city, state, zip and EIN.

3. On the 7004 screen:

   • Select the option Generate an extension.

   • Select 09 - Form 1065 from the drop list in the line 1a.

   • Enter any other necessary information.

4. Open the EF Selections screen:

   • Under Federal E-file Override, select the Federal 7004 only check box.

   • Under State E-file Override, check Do NOT send any states if you do not wish to send a state return. If you are also e-filing a separate state extension, select the state EXT option from one of the drop lists.

5. View the return and clear any ETD_MSG page errors.

   • Only those messages on the ETD_MSG page must be cleared to transmit the extension by itself. These messages are related to the extension not the actual return, and must be cleared before it can be transmitted.

   • Any regular MESSAGES page refers to the return itself and may be produced because the return is not finished. These will not prevent the extension from being eligible for e-filing.

6. On the 1065 EF page, confirm that the 7004 will be transmitted.

7. e-File the extension form using the EF menu.

• An additional extension form can be e-filed by checking the box "Send additional extension form..." on the 7004 screen. Important: this should only be done if you need to file both an extension for 1065 (code 09) and an extension for 8804 (code 31).

• If you are electronically filing a state extension, the PIN screen may need to be completed to allow electronic filing of the state extension (where supported), even though the PIN screen is not required for the federal extension.

Ready to File the Regular Return

There is no need to delete the 7004 screen when you are ready to file the regular return. If you have filed a 7004 for an 1065 return and now want to send the regular return, complete the following steps:

1. Complete the return.

2. to the 7004 screen and select the option Extension was previously filed; regular return now ready for filing.

3. If a payment was made with the extension, enter the payment in the Amount paid with extension field on the 7004 screen.

4. On the EF Selections screen select the 1065 to e-file instead of the 7004.

5. Check the View/Print mode for any red message pages regarding the return.

6. Select the return for e-file and transmit.