LLC Formation and Maintenance Fees

In this article, we will talk about the expenses associated with forming a domestic LLC. Bear in mind that this information is most useful in the time that it has been published and costs may change in the future so please check with the Secretary of State for more accurate information.

The first cost for forming an LLC is the filing fees charged by the state. Because each state has its unique filing fee, this is an essential cost for your LLC. It costs $125 in New Jersey, $75 in Nevada, $50 in Arizona, $100 in Georgia, and $300 in Texas. As you can see, costs range from $50 to $300, which is the situation in every state. The lone exception is Massachusetts, which charges a $500 filing fee for an LLC.

The filing fee usually covers the costs of submitting your articles of incorporation or organization with the state. A lawyer may be hired by certain business owners to draft their articles of incorporation/organization then you should anticipate paying more than $2,000 in this situation.

Of course, you can do it yourself, but you risk making a lot of mistakes. Instead of using lawyers you can hire us at Swahili Finance - with our experience filing more than 50 LLCs you get the certainty of filing your LLC correctly and paying a lot less than what lawyers charge.

In most cases, the articles of incorporation include the following:

Name of the LLC

Address of the LLC

Name and address of the registered agent

How the LLC will be run and managed?

Statement of Purpose

The annual maintenance costs are a second expenditure. After you register an LLC, you will have to pay an annual maintenance charge to the state to keep it operational, like the Texas Franchise Tax Forms that must be paid yearly. Failure to pay or file this report can result to dissolution of the LLC and hefty penalties. Like filing fees, it varies by state but typically costs $20 or more. If there have been any changes to the firm, your annual report will detail these changes.

The Final Cost to forming an LLC is Registered Agent Fees. A registered agent is a person or company who receives legal and other paperwork on your behalf, such as tax notices and warrants.

If you recall, you must include your registered agent's name and address when filing your articles of incorporation/organization. You can be your own registered agent; however, it may be more convenient to delegate this role to another entity. Having a registered agent can be useful for online or home based businesses that don’t want their home address in public records.