Start a Free LLC in Tennessee

Per the Tennessee Secretary of State, as of September 2026, Tennessee charges $300 to file the Articles of Organization. After that, the Annual Report costs $300 every year. The Tennessee franchise and excise tax has a minimum of $100 a year. With LLC Register, formation is included in the $99-a-year Tennessee registered agent service, so year one costs $399.

The Tennessee Secretary of State does not publish a standard processing time. Tennessee does not offer paid expedited processing for LLC formations. Your LLC exists once the state accepts your filing.

To start an LLC in Tennessee, choose an available name, appoint a Tennessee registered agent, and file the Articles of Organization with the Tennessee Secretary of State for $300. 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 the TNCaB portal, by mail, or in person at the Secretary of State's office in Nashville. The $300 fee covers an LLC with up to six members; each additional member adds $50, up to a $3,000 maximum. The Articles of Organization costs $300.

In Tennessee you form an LLC by filing the Articles of Organization (Form SS-4270) with the Tennessee Secretary of State. Other states call this document the articles of organization or the certificate of formation. The filing fee is $300.

No. Tennessee does not offer paid expedited processing for LLC formations. The Tennessee Secretary of State does not publish a standard processing time.

Use the Tennessee Secretary of State's free online business name search to check whether your LLC name is available. Your Tennessee LLC name must contain "Limited Liability Company" or the abbreviation "LLC" or "L.L.C.", and must be distinguishable from other business names on file with the Secretary of State. A name suggesting banking, credit union or trust services, or containing "insurance company", needs written approval from the relevant state regulator before it can be filed.

Your Tennessee LLC name must contain "Limited Liability Company" or the abbreviation "LLC" or "L.L.C.", and must be distinguishable from other business names on file with the Secretary of State. A name suggesting banking, credit union or trust services, or containing "insurance company", needs written approval from the relevant state regulator before it can be filed. The rules are set by the Tennessee Revised Limited Liability Company Act, Tenn. Code Ann. Title 48, Chapter 249.

Yes. You can reserve a name for $20 with Form SS-9425; the reservation lasts 120 days (four months) and can be reapplied for once it expires. A reservation is optional; filing the formation document also secures the name.

Yes. Every Tennessee LLC must have a registered agent. Your registered agent can be an individual or a business organization with a physical street address in Tennessee, a P.O. box, route number or box number alone is not accepted, and the agent must be available to accept legal documents at that address.

Yes. A member or manager can serve as the LLC's registered agent as long as they have a physical street address in Tennessee. Your address becomes public record, and someone must be there during business hours to accept legal papers.

Not as your registered agent's address. Your registered agent can be an individual or a business organization with a physical street address in Tennessee, a P.O. box, route number or box number alone is not accepted, and the agent must be available to accept legal documents at that address. A PO box can usually serve as a mailing address, but the registered agent needs a physical address in Tennessee.

File the SS-4534 Statement of Change of Registered Agent/Office by Entity or Agent with the Tennessee Secretary of State. The fee is $20.

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

Yes. Tennessee LLCs must file the Annual Report every year. The state fee is $300.

The Annual Report is due on or before the first day of the fourth month after the close of your LLC's fiscal year, which is April 1 for a calendar-year LLC. Your first one is due on or before the first day of the fourth month after the close of your first fiscal year as an LLC. It is filed with the Tennessee Secretary of State.

Per the Tennessee Secretary of State, as of September 2026, the Annual Report state fee is $300. It is due on or before the first day of the fourth month after the close of your LLC's fiscal year, which is April 1 for a calendar-year LLC. LLC Register files it for you at no extra service fee while your registered agent service is active.

The $300 fee also covers up to six members, and rises by $50 per member above that, up to a $3,000 maximum. Tennessee does not publish a separate late fee, but an LLC that does not file is administratively dissolved and must pay a $70 fee to be reinstated. File as soon as possible to keep your LLC in good standing.

Every Tennessee LLC owes the franchise and excise tax: a 0.25% franchise tax on the LLC's net worth, with a $100 minimum, plus a 6.5% excise tax on its Tennessee taxable income. A 2024 law removed the old property-based alternative measure, so net worth is now the only franchise tax base.

Tennessee has no personal income tax on wages or business profits, so pass-through LLC income is not taxed again on the members' state returns. The LLC itself still owes the franchise and excise tax described above. 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 Certificate of Registration for sales and use tax with the Tennessee Department of Revenue through the Tennessee Taxpayer Access Point (TNTAP). Online registration is free.

Before you hire, register with the Tennessee Department of Labor and Workforce Development for unemployment insurance tax. Tennessee has no state income tax, so there is no state wage withholding to set up. You also need an EIN from the IRS before you run payroll.

It depends on your industry and location: Tennessee regulates some professions and activities through state licenses, and many cities and counties require local business licenses. Start with the Tennessee Department of Economic and Community Development.

Tennessee does not require an operating agreement, and it is never filed with the state. State law recognizes a written, oral or implied agreement among the members. LLC Register includes an operating agreement with every Tennessee 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 Tennessee or be a U.S. citizen to form a Tennessee LLC. You do need a registered agent with a physical address in Tennessee. Non-U.S. owners without a Social Security number apply for an EIN with IRS Form SS-4.

Yes. Tennessee 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.

Yes. Tennessee's Revised Limited Liability Company Act allows a series LLC that meets the requirements of T.C.A. § 48-249-309, certified on the Articles of Organization.

Yes. Licensed professionals can form a professional LLC by checking the professional designation on the Articles of Organization and certifying that its members are qualified persons under T.C.A. § 48-249-1102.

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

Order a Certificate of Existence from the Tennessee Secretary of State for $20. 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 Tennessee by filing the Application for Certificate of Authority, Foreign Limited Liability Company (SS-4233) with the Tennessee Secretary of State. The fee is $300, and the LLC needs a Tennessee registered agent. A foreign LLC's Application for Certificate of Authority must be accompanied by a certificate of existence from its home state dated within the prior two months.

File the Articles of Amendment to LLC Articles of Organization (SS-4451) with the Tennessee Secretary of State for $20. Amend when you change your LLC's name or other information in the formation document.

File the Articles of Termination of Existence (SS-4245) with the Tennessee Secretary of State for $20. Before you file, wind up the business: pay debts, close tax accounts and distribute what is left to the members.

File an Application for Registration of Assumed Name (Form SS-4402) with the Tennessee Secretary of State for $20 before you use the name. 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. Tennessee has no personal income tax on wages or business profits, so pass-through LLC income is not taxed again on the members' state returns. The LLC itself still owes the franchise and excise tax described above.

An LLC separates your personal assets from business debts and lawsuits, keeps pass-through taxation, and needs less paperwork than a corporation. In Tennessee it costs $300 to form and the Annual Report is $300 every year.

A sole proprietorship costs nothing to start, but you are personally liable for the business's debts. A Tennessee LLC costs $300 to form and protects your personal assets, with the same pass-through taxes by default.

Usually not if your business operates in Tennessee. An out-of-state LLC doing business here must also register as a foreign LLC in Tennessee for $300 and keep a Tennessee registered agent, so you pay two states' fees.

No. Formation is included in the $99-a-year Tennessee registered agent service. The state still charges its $300 filing fee, which we pass through at cost.

For $99 a year plus the $300 state fee: Tennessee LLC formation in year one, a Tennessee 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 Tennessee Secretary of State, Division of Business and Charitable Organizations, handles LLC formations, amendments and annual filings. Its office is at 312 Rosa L. Parks Avenue, Nashville, TN 37243-1102.

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