When is my LLC annual report due?

Deadlines vary widely by state. Some tie the due date to your formation anniversary, others to a fixed calendar date the same for every entity, and others to a set month. A few states use a two-year (biennial) cycle instead of annual. Because there is no single national deadline, check your specific state's schedule and set a reminder, missing it is what triggers penalties.

How much does an LLC annual report cost?

It ranges enormously by state, from around $0 to $50 in many states, up to several hundred dollars where the report is bundled with a franchise tax or minimum tax. California's LLCs, for example, face an $800 annual minimum franchise tax on top of a separate statement of information. Confirm both the report fee and any franchise or minimum tax your state charges.

What happens if I miss my LLC's annual report?

First a late fee or penalty, then loss of good standing, and eventually administrative dissolution, where the state involuntarily shuts your LLC down for non-compliance. Along the way you may be unable to get a certificate of good standing, open financing, or complete other filings. The fees and penalties keep accruing until you either bring the company current or formally dissolve it.

Does a dissolved LLC still have to file annual reports?

No. Once your LLC is properly dissolved, it no longer exists as an active entity, so it stops owing annual reports and stops accruing franchise or minimum taxes going forward. That is a key reason to formally dissolve an LLC you are done with rather than simply abandoning it, abandonment leaves the obligations running until the state administratively dissolves it, often after piling on penalties.

What is the difference between an annual report and a franchise tax?

An annual report is an informational filing confirming your company's details. A franchise tax (or minimum tax) is a fee for the privilege of existing in the state, often owed regardless of income. Some states charge one, some the other, some both, and some combine them into a single filing. Where both apply, the franchise tax is usually the larger and more important number.

Can I file my LLC annual report myself?

Yes. Most states let you file the annual report online through the business filing office's website in a few minutes, you confirm or update the listed information and pay the fee. You need your entity name and state file number. It is straightforward enough that most owners handle it themselves; the main risk is forgetting the deadline, not the difficulty of the form.

What information do I need to file an annual report?

Typically your LLC's legal name and state file number, the principal office and mailing address, the registered agent and its address, and in some states the names of members or managers. Some states also ask you to confirm the nature of the business. Have your formation documents handy so the details match the state record exactly, and update anything that has changed.

LLC Annual Report, Deadlines, Fees & Penalties by State

Q: What is an LLC annual report?

An LLC annual report is a recurring filing you submit to the state to confirm or update your company's basic information, its name, address, registered agent, and sometimes members or managers. It keeps your LLC in good standing. Most states require it yearly or every two years, usually with a fee. It is a compliance check-in, not a tax return, though some states combine it with a franchise tax.

What is an LLC annual report?

An LLC annual report is a recurring filing that keeps the state's record of your company current and keeps your LLC in good standing. On a schedule the state sets, most often once a year, sometimes every two years, you confirm or update your company's basic information and pay a fee. It is a compliance check-in, not a tax return, although several states pair it with a franchise or minimum tax that is due at the same time.

The report goes by different names, statement of information (California), annual report, biennial statement (New York), periodic report (Colorado), annual registration (Georgia), but the function is the same everywhere: the state wants a periodic confirmation that your company still exists, still has a valid registered agent, and can still be reached. It is distinct from an amendmentwhich you file only when a specific detail changes; the annual report comes due on the calendar whether anything changed or not.

What does an annual report include?

The report is short. Most states ask you to confirm or update:

The LLC's legal name and state file number.
The principal office and mailing address.
The registered agent and its in-state address.
In some states, the names and addresses of members or managers.
Sometimes a brief description of the business.

Because you can update these details on the report, minor changes, a new address or registered agent, can often be handled here rather than through a separate amendment. Bigger changes, like a legal name change, still need a proper amendment. Have your formation documents nearby so everything matches the state record.

How do deadlines vary across the 50 states?

There is no national due date, and this is where people get caught. States structure the deadline in different ways:

Anniversary-based. The report is due each year around the anniversary of your formation, so every company has its own date.
Fixed calendar date. The same due date applies to every LLC in the state, regardless of when it formed.
Assigned month or quarter. Tied to your entity or a set period.
Biennial. A handful of states require the report every two years rather than annually.

A few states require no regular report at all for LLCs. The practical takeaway: you cannot assume your state works like the last one you dealt with. Look up your specific state's schedule, note whether it is annual or biennial, and put a recurring reminder in place, the single most common cause of penalties is simply forgetting.

Set a reminder the day you form

Because deadlines are state-specific and easy to miss, calendar the due date the moment you form the LLC, and again each time you file. The report itself takes minutes; remembering it is the hard part.

What about fees and franchise tax?

Fees range dramatically. In many states the annual report is free or modest, roughly $0 to $50. In others, the cost is dominated by a franchise tax or minimum tax owed for the privilege of existing in the state, which can run to several hundred dollars regardless of whether the business made money. California is the well-known example: its LLCs owe an $800 annual minimum franchise tax to the Franchise Tax Board, entirely separate from the modest statement-of-information fee. Delaware LLCs owe an annual franchise tax as well.

The distinction matters because the franchise tax, not the report fee, is usually the number that makes keeping a dormant LLC expensive. If your company is not earning, that recurring tax is money spent to keep an entity alive that you may not need. Confirm both figures for your state, the report fee and any franchise or minimum tax, and see the fuller picture on the cost of closing a company by state.

What are the penalties for missing an annual report?

Missing the deadline sets off an escalating sequence:

Late fee or penalty. A flat charge or percentage added to the amount owed.
Loss of good standing. The state flags your LLC as delinquent, which blocks you from getting a certificate of good standing and can stall financing, contracts, and other filings.
Accruing charges. In states with a franchise or minimum tax, that keeps piling up alongside the penalties, month after month.
Administrative dissolution. Eventually the state shuts the company down involuntarily, covered next.

For a deeper look at how these charges stack up across annual reports, franchise tax, and federal returns, see our guide to entity late-filing penalties.

What is administrative dissolution?

If the delinquency goes on long enough, the state administratively dissolves the LLC, an involuntary shutdown for non-compliance. This is not the clean outcome it might sound like. The accrued fees, penalties, and back taxes usually still have to be dealt with; reinstating later (if you want the company back) costs more and requires clearing everything owed; and an administrative dissolution can leave loose ends the state does not tidy up for you, including your IRS business accountwhich the state never touches. Letting the state dissolve you is almost always messier and more expensive than dissolving voluntarily on your own terms.

How do you stop owing annual reports?

There is exactly one clean way: formally dissolve the LLC. A properly dissolved LLC stops owing annual reports and stops accruing franchise or minimum tax going forwardbecause it no longer exists as an active entity. This is the crucial point for anyone maintaining a company they no longer use.

Simply abandoning the LLC, not filing, not paying, does not stop the obligations. The report fees and franchise tax keep accruing, with penalties, until the state gets around to administratively dissolving it, and you may still be chased for the balance. If you are done with the company, the deliberate move is to close it yourself. A voluntary dissolution ends the annual-report treadmill, the franchise tax, and the registered-agent cost in one clean stroke, and, if the company ever had an EIN, closes the IRS side too, which no state filing does on its own.

Abandoning is not free

The most expensive way to “close” an LLC is to stop paying and hope it goes away. The charges keep running until the state formally dissolves it. Dissolving voluntarily is the only way to stop the clock deliberately.

What are the common mistakes?

The recurring ones: assuming your state's deadline works like another state's; overlooking a franchise or minimum tax hiding behind a cheap report fee; treating a change of address or agent as needing a full amendment when the annual report would carry it; and, the costliest, leaving a dormant LLC on the rolls, paying reports and franchise tax year after year on a company that earns nothing. File on time while the company is active, keep the details current, and when it has truly run its course, dissolve it properly so the obligations end for good.

LLC annual reports: what they are and why they matter