St. Louis Form E-234, Type E-4: Business Earnings Tax Return

St. Louis Form E-4 is not a separate form. It’s the return type incorporated businesses select on Form E-234, the city’s single business earnings tax return, to report and pay the 1% tax on net profit. Corporations, LLCs, and S-corps check “Type E-4” at the top of the E-234, work through the net profit calculation, apportion any income earned outside city limits, and file with the Collector of Revenue.

Who Files as Type E-4

Every incorporated business located in the City of St. Louis owes the 1% earnings tax on its profits unless it qualifies for an exemption. Non-resident corporations that perform work, provide services, or conduct business activity within the city also have to file.¹

If any one of these three things is inside the city, you have to file: property, gross receipts from services or goods delivered here, or wages paid to employees working here.² A company with a physical location in the city but no employees still owes the tax on the business itself. If your company had no city activity during the year but you want to keep the account open, file a return showing zero.

Two categories are exempt. Nonprofits, once they’ve submitted a photocopy of their federal or state tax-exempt certificate along with Form E-9.³ And businesses located exclusively at St. Louis Lambert International Airport.²

One rule surprises multi-entity filers: consolidated returns aren’t allowed. Each incorporated entity with its own FEIN files a separate E-234.¹

Open the Account First

Before you file, you need an earnings tax account with the Collector of Revenue. Download Form E-9, complete it, and send it to the Earnings Tax Department by mail, email, or fax. You won’t get a confirmation number back. Your account number is your FEIN.⁴

Completing the E-234 as Type E-4

Download the fillable E-234 and its instruction sheet from the Collector of Revenue’s website.³ Check “E-4” as your return type. Every section must be filled in. Mark anything that doesn’t apply as “N/A.” Incomplete, illegible, or unsigned returns won’t be processed.¹

General Information

At the top: taxable year beginning and ending dates, daytime phone, FEIN, principal business activity, and email. Check any status boxes that apply (amended return, change of address, initial return, account terminated). If you’re closing the account, include the termination date, reason, and successor business information.

Section A: Net Profit

Section A is a seven-line calculation:

Line 1: gross receipts or transactions, minus returns and allowances.
Line 2: cost of goods sold, with an itemized list attached.
Line 3: gross profit (Line 1 minus Line 2).
Line 4: other income or loss, itemized.
Line 5: total gross profit (Line 3 plus Line 4).
Line 6: business expenses from Section A-1.
Line 7: net profit or loss (Line 5 minus Line 6).

Section A-1 breaks out deductible expenses: vehicle costs, commissions, depreciation, dues and publications, insurance, legal and professional fees, office supplies, rent, repairs, taxes (excluding federal, state, and local income taxes), utilities, wages and salaries, and any other deductions.

Section B: Three-Factor Allocation

If your business operates both inside and outside the city, Section B determines what share of your net profit is taxable. Average these three ratios:

Property: average value of real and tangible personal property (including inventory) located in the city, over total property everywhere.
Gross receipts: receipts from services performed or goods delivered in the city, over total receipts.
Wages and salaries: compensation paid to employees (excluding officers) working in the city, over total compensation.

The average of the three percentages is your allocation factor.

Section C: Computing the Tax

Apply the Section B allocation percentage to your Section A net profit to get taxable net profit. The tax is 1% of that. No tax is due if the calculated amount is less than $1.00. Section C also captures the payroll expense tax credit, any extension payments or prepayments, and any penalty or interest, producing your final amount due or overpayment.

Payroll Expense Tax Credit

If your business also pays the city’s payroll expense tax on Form P-10, claim a credit in Section C-1. The credit is the smaller of 20% of the total quarterly payroll expense tax you paid during the year, or 25% of your earnings tax due. Complete Section C-1 before finalizing your balance so the credit is applied.

Filing Deadlines and Extensions

Calendar-year businesses file by April 15. Fiscal-year businesses have 105 calendar days after the close of their fiscal year.¹

For an extension, complete Form E-8 and send it to the Earnings Tax Department. An extension buys time to file, not time to pay. Include a payment covering 100% of your estimated tax with the request. If your prepayment ends up below 90% of the actual tax due, the city will assess penalty and interest on the shortfall.¹

How to Submit

Send the completed, signed E-234 with supporting documents to the Earnings Tax Department by any of these channels:

Mail: Gregory F.X. Daly, Collector of Revenue, 1200 Market Street, Room 410, St. Louis, MO 63103
Email: earningstaxcor@stlouis-mo.gov
Fax: (314) 622-4847

There’s no online filing portal. The E-234 is a fillable PDF you download, complete, and submit through one of the channels above.² If you owe a balance, pay online at pay.payitgov.com/stlearningstax. Questions go to the Earnings Tax Department at (314) 622-4101.

Penalties and Interest for Late Filing

Returns and payments received after the deadline are hit with a penalty of 5% of the tax owed for each month or partial month the return is late, capped at 25%. Interest accrues at 1% per month, or 12% annualized, until the balance is paid in full.⁵ The charges stack. A return five months late with an unpaid balance would carry the 25% penalty plus five months of interest.

Closing the Account

If your business closes, is sold, or permanently stops operating in the city, complete Form E-5 and return it to the Earnings Tax Department by mail, email, or fax.² Depending on when activity stopped, you may still owe a final E-234 covering the period through your closing date.

1
City of St. Louis. File Business Earnings Taxes
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City of St. Louis. Business Earnings Tax Information
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City of St. Louis. E-234 Form (Fillable) and Instructions
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City of St. Louis. Open an Earnings Tax Account
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City of St. Louis. Individual Earnings Tax Information