Start a Free LLC in Pennsylvania

Per the Pennsylvania Department of State, as of September 2026, Pennsylvania charges $125 to file the Certificate of Organization. After that, the Annual Report costs $7 every year. With LLC Register, formation is included in the $99-a-year Pennsylvania registered agent service, so year one costs $224.

The Pennsylvania Department of State does not publish a standard processing time. Expedited filing is available for $100 extra (same-day), $300 extra (3-hour) or $1,000 extra (1-hour service). Your LLC exists once the state accepts your filing.

To start an LLC in Pennsylvania, choose an available name, appoint a Pennsylvania registered agent, and file the Certificate of Organization with the Pennsylvania Department of State for $125. Then sign an operating agreement, get a free EIN from the IRS, open a business bank account and register for any state taxes. LLC Register files it for you as part of the $99-a-year registered agent service.

Yes. You can file online through Pennsylvania Business Filing Services (file.dos.pa.gov), or by mail. The Certificate of Organization costs $125.

In Pennsylvania you form an LLC by filing the Certificate of Organization (Form DSCB:15-8821) with the Pennsylvania Department of State. Other states call this document the articles of organization or the certificate of formation. The filing fee is $125.

Yes. Expedited filing is available for $100 extra (same-day), $300 extra (3-hour) or $1,000 extra (1-hour service). The Pennsylvania Department of State does not publish a standard processing time.

Use the Pennsylvania Department of State's free online business name search to check whether your LLC name is available. Your Pennsylvania LLC name must include "company," "limited" or "limited liability company," or an abbreviation such as "LLC" or "L.L.C.". It must be distinguishable from other business names on file with the Department of State.

Your Pennsylvania LLC name must include "company," "limited" or "limited liability company," or an abbreviation such as "LLC" or "L.L.C.". It must be distinguishable from other business names on file with the Department of State. The rules are set by the Pennsylvania Consolidated Statutes, Title 15 (Associations Code), Chapter 88, Limited Liability Companies (Act 170 of 2016, Pennsylvania's version of the Uniform Limited Liability Company Act, effective February 21, 2017).

Yes. You can reserve a name for $70; the reservation lasts 120 days. A reservation is optional; filing the formation document also secures the name.

Yes. Every Pennsylvania LLC must have a registered agent. Pennsylvania calls this a "registered office," not a registered agent. It must be an actual Pennsylvania street address or rural route box, a plain P.O. Box is not accepted. If your LLC has no Pennsylvania address, you can name a Commercial Registered Office Provider (CROP) from the state's official list instead.

Yes. A member or manager with a Pennsylvania street address can serve as the LLC's registered office. Your address becomes public record, and someone must be there during business hours to accept legal papers.

Not as your registered agent's address. Pennsylvania calls this a "registered office," not a registered agent. It must be an actual Pennsylvania street address or rural route box, a plain P.O. Box is not accepted. If your LLC has no Pennsylvania address, you can name a Commercial Registered Office Provider (CROP) from the state's official list instead. A PO box can usually serve as a mailing address, but the registered agent needs a physical address in Pennsylvania.

File the Statement of Change of Registered Office (ancillary filing) with the Pennsylvania Department of State. The fee is $70.

Serving as your own Pennsylvania registered agent is free if you qualify. Commercial registered agents charge a yearly fee. LLC Register's Pennsylvania registered agent service is $99 a year and includes LLC formation and annual report filing.

Yes. Pennsylvania LLCs must file the Annual Report every year. The state fee is $7.

The Annual Report is due by September 30 every year (the filing window opens January 1). Your first one is due September 30, 2025, the first year Pennsylvania required it. It is filed with the Pennsylvania Department of State.

Per the Pennsylvania Department of State, as of September 2026, the Annual Report state fee is $7. It is due by September 30 every year (the filing window opens January 1). LLC Register files it for you at no extra service fee while your registered agent service is active.

Missing the 2025 or 2026 report carries no administrative-dissolution risk. Starting with the report due September 30, 2027, a missed filing leads to administrative dissolution six months after the deadline. File as soon as possible to keep your LLC in good standing.

Pennsylvania has no franchise or capital stock tax on LLCs; that old tax was fully phased out and, even when it existed, applied to corporations. An LLC that elects to be taxed as a corporation instead pays the Corporate Net Income Tax.

Pennsylvania taxes an LLC the way the IRS does by default, so profits pass through to the members' personal returns, taxed at the state's flat individual income tax rate. An LLC that elects to be taxed as a corporation instead pays the Corporate Net Income Tax. Federally, a single-member LLC is taxed like a sole proprietorship and a multi-member LLC like a partnership, unless it elects to be taxed as a corporation.

If you sell taxable goods or services, register for a Sales, Use and Hotel Occupancy Tax License with the Department of Revenue before your first sale.

Before you hire, register for unemployment compensation with the Department of Labor & Industry, and for income tax withholding with the Department of Revenue. You also need an EIN from the IRS before you run payroll.

It depends on your industry and location: Pennsylvania regulates some professions and activities through state licenses, and many cities and counties require local business licenses. Start with the Pennsylvania Business One-Stop Shop.

Pennsylvania does not require an operating agreement, and you never file one with the state. The law recognizes written, oral or implied agreements among members. LLC Register includes an operating agreement with every Pennsylvania LLC it forms.

You need an EIN if your LLC has employees or more than one member, and most banks ask for one to open a business account. A single-member LLC without employees can use the owner's Social Security number for federal taxes, but an EIN keeps it off business paperwork.

Apply for free on the IRS website once the state has approved your LLC; online applicants receive the EIN immediately. Owners without a Social Security number can apply with Form SS-4 by fax or mail.

Yes. You do not have to live in Pennsylvania or be a U.S. citizen to form a Pennsylvania LLC. You do need a registered agent with a physical address in Pennsylvania. Non-U.S. owners without a Social Security number apply for an EIN with IRS Form SS-4.

Yes. Pennsylvania allows an LLC with a single owner. By default the IRS taxes a single-member LLC like a sole proprietorship, reported on the owner's personal return.

No. Pennsylvania's LLC law does not provide for series LLCs.

Yes. Licensed professionals form a restricted professional company (RPC) under Chapter 89, filing the same Certificate of Organization but also a separate Certificate of Annual Registration each April 15, for at least $500.

No. Pennsylvania does not require newspaper publication to form an LLC.

Order a Subsistence Certificate (certification of good standing) from the Pennsylvania Department of State for $40. Banks, lenders and other states often ask for one as proof your LLC is current with the state.

An LLC formed in another state registers to do business in Pennsylvania by filing the Foreign Registration Statement with the Pennsylvania Department of State. The fee is $250, and the LLC needs a Pennsylvania registered agent.

File the Certificate of Amendment (ancillary filing) with the Pennsylvania Department of State for $70. Amend when you change your LLC's name or other information in the formation document.

File the Certificate of Dissolution / Termination (ancillary filing) with the Pennsylvania Department of State for $70. Before you file, wind up the business: pay debts, close tax accounts and distribute what is left to the members.

File a Registration of Fictitious Name with the Pennsylvania Department of State for $70; state law also requires publishing notice of the registration, though no proof of publication is filed with the state. A DBA lets your LLC trade under another name without forming a new company.

Yes. An eligible LLC can elect S corporation tax status by filing IRS Form 2553. The election can reduce self-employment tax once profits are high enough to pay yourself a reasonable salary. Pennsylvania taxes an LLC the way the IRS does by default, so profits pass through to the members' personal returns, taxed at the state's flat individual income tax rate. An LLC that elects to be taxed as a corporation instead pays the Corporate Net Income Tax.

An LLC separates your personal assets from business debts and lawsuits, keeps pass-through taxation, and needs less paperwork than a corporation. In Pennsylvania it costs $125 to form and the Annual Report is $7 every year.

A sole proprietorship costs nothing to start, but you are personally liable for the business's debts. A Pennsylvania LLC costs $125 to form and protects your personal assets, with the same pass-through taxes by default.

Usually not if your business operates in Pennsylvania. An out-of-state LLC doing business here must also register as a foreign LLC in Pennsylvania for $250 and keep a Pennsylvania registered agent, so you pay two states' fees.

No. Formation is included in the $99-a-year Pennsylvania registered agent service. The state still charges its $125 filing fee, which we pass through at cost.

For $99 a year plus the $125 state fee: Pennsylvania LLC formation in year one, a Pennsylvania registered agent, an operating agreement, and filing of your Annual Report every year. Renewal is $99 a year. State fees are passed through at cost.

No. FinCEN has exempted companies created in the United States from beneficial ownership information (BOI) reporting. Only foreign companies registered to do business in a U.S. state still have to report.

The Pennsylvania Department of State, Bureau of Corporations and Charitable Organizations, handles LLC formations, amendments and annual filings. Its office is at 401 North Street, Rm 206, Harrisburg, PA 17120.

Yes, you should. Mixing business and personal money can weaken the liability protection your LLC gives you. Banks usually ask for your filed Certificate of Organization, your EIN and your operating agreement.