What is the New York Biennial Statement?
New York does not make LLCs file a yearly annual report. Instead it asks for a Biennial Statementone filing every two years, submitted to the New York Department of State. It is short, it costs $9, and its only job is to keep two pieces of information current: the address to which the Department of State forwards legal process served on the LLC, and the LLC's principal business location if it chooses to list one.
The lightness of this filing is exactly why it is easy to miss. There is no annual drumbeat, no large fee to focus the mind, and, increasingly, no reliable paper reminder. Two years is long enough that people genuinely forget the obligation exists, then discover it only when they try to get a certificate of good standing and find the LLC listed as past due.
When is the Biennial Statement due?
The Biennial Statement is due every two years, during the calendar month in which the LLC originally filed its Articles of Organization. If the LLC was formed in March, its statement is due every second March. There is no fixed statewide date the way Florida uses May 1, the deadline is tied to your own formation month.
Because the Department of State no longer sends dependable mailed reminders, the anniversary month is the thing to record and honour. If you are not certain which year you are due, you can check the LLC's status through the Department of State's online business search, which shows the date of the next required statement.
How much it costs and how to file
The filing fee is $9genuinely one of the cheapest recurring state filings in the country. It has been stable for years, but as with any fee, confirm the current figure on the Department of State's website when you file. You file online through the Department of State's e-filing system, which processes the statement immediately, or by mail using the form the Department provides.
To file you need the LLC's exact name and its Department of State ID number. The statement mainly confirms the address for service of process; if that address is current and nothing has changed, the filing is a formality, but it still has to be filed.
The separate LLC filing fee you should not confuse it with
Do not mistake the $9 Biennial Statement for New York's tax obligations. Separately from the Department of State filing, most LLCs owe an annual filing fee to the New York State Department of Taxation and Financecalculated on New York-source gross income and ranging from a small amount up to several thousand dollars for higher-income LLCs. On top of that sit the LLC's and members' income tax obligations. These are entirely separate from the $9 Biennial Statement, and paying one does nothing for the other. Confirm the current tax filing fee amounts with the Tax Department.
What happens if you miss it?
If the Biennial Statement is not filed, the LLC becomes past due with the Department of State and is no longer shown as in good standing. That status can get in the way when you need a certificate of good standing, for a loan, a sale, a lease, or to register the LLC in another state. Unlike Florida or California, New York does not administratively dissolve an LLC solely for a missed Biennial Statement, and there is no separate cash penalty attached to the $9 filing. The delinquency simply sits on the record until you file the overdue statement, which brings the LLC back into good standing.
A note on New York's publication requirement
New York is well known for its one-time publication requirementnew LLCs must publish notice of formation in two newspapers and file a Certificate of Publication. That is a formation requirement, done once at the start; it is not part of the Biennial Statement and it does not recur. People sometimes conflate the two because both are “New York LLC paperwork,” but the publication step has nothing to do with the ongoing biennial filing covered here.
How dissolving the LLC ends the obligation
The Biennial Statement and the annual LLC filing fee both exist only while the LLC does. Close the LLC and both stop. Dissolving the LLC ends the biennial obligation going forward.
In New York you dissolve an LLC by filing Articles of Dissolution with the Department of State; the state filing fee is around $60, confirm the current amount when you file. Note a common point of confusion: a corporation dissolving in New York needs written consent from the Tax Department (Form TR-960), but that consent step is a corporation requirement, not an LLC one. We set out the LLC process on our guide to dissolving an LLC in New Yorkwith the general mechanics on how to dissolve an LLC.
Once the dissolution is processed, no further Biennial Statements or LLC filing fees accrue. If the LLC ever obtained an EIN, dissolving with the state does not close your IRS business accountthat is a separate final step on the federal side.
Deciding what to do next
If the LLC is active and you plan to keep it, the discipline is easy to hold: note the anniversary month, file the $9 Biennial Statement every second year, and keep the Tax Department filing fee current. If the LLC has finished its purpose, filing another statement just keeps a dormant entity on the register, and keeps the annual filing fee running. Dissolving it ends both.
We do not sell Biennial Statement filing; our work is dissolution, closing a New York LLC properly so the Department of State agrees it is done. If you are unsure whether to keep the LLC or close it, a specialist can talk it through first with no obligation. See the wider view on the LLC annual report hub.