Start a Free LLC in Vermont

Per the Vermont Secretary of State, as of September 2026, Vermont charges $155 to file the Articles of Organization. After that, the Annual Report costs $45 every year. The Vermont Business Entity Income Tax (minimum tax) has a minimum of $250 a year. With LLC Register, formation is included in the $99-a-year Vermont registered agent service, so year one costs $254.

Online filings take under one business day. Mailed filings take about 7–10 business days. Vermont does not offer paid expedited processing for LLC formations. Your LLC exists once the state accepts your filing.

To start an LLC in Vermont, choose an available name, appoint a Vermont registered agent, and file the Articles of Organization with the Vermont Secretary of State for $155. 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 Vermont Online Business Service Center, or by mail with a printed copy of the same online form. The Articles of Organization costs $155.

In Vermont you form an LLC by filing the Articles of Organization with the Vermont Secretary of State. Other states call this document the articles of organization or the certificate of formation. The filing fee is $155.

No. Vermont does not offer paid expedited processing for LLC formations. Online filings take under one business day. Mailed filings take about 7–10 business days.

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

Your Vermont LLC name must include "limited liability company", "limited company" or an abbreviation such as "LLC", "L.L.C.", "LC" or "L.C.". It must be distinguishable from every other name on record with the Secretary of State. The rules are set by the Vermont Limited Liability Company Act, 11 V.S.A. Chapter 25.

Yes. You can reserve a name for $25 through the Online Business Service Center; the reservation lasts 120 days and can be renewed for another $25. A reservation is optional; filing the formation document also secures the name.

Yes. Every Vermont LLC must have a registered agent. Your registered agent (Vermont calls this the "agent for service of process") must be either an individual Vermont resident or a business already authorized to do business in Vermont, and must consent to serve. Vermont also requires a separate "designated office" for notices, which does not have to be a Vermont address.

Yes. Any individual Vermont resident, including a member or manager, can serve as the LLC's agent for service of process if they consent to the appointment. 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 (Vermont calls this the "agent for service of process") must be either an individual Vermont resident or a business already authorized to do business in Vermont, and must consent to serve. Vermont also requires a separate "designated office" for notices, which does not have to be a Vermont address. A PO box can usually serve as a mailing address, but the registered agent needs a physical address in Vermont.

File the Statement of Change (filed through the Vermont Online Business Service Center) with the Vermont Secretary of State. The fee is $35.

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

Yes. Vermont LLCs must file the Annual Report every year. The state fee is $45.

The Annual Report is due within three months after the end of your LLC's fiscal year. Your first one is due within three months after the end of your LLC's first fiscal year after formation. It is filed with the Vermont Secretary of State.

Per the Vermont Secretary of State, as of September 2026, the Annual Report state fee is $45. It is due within three months after the end of your LLC's fiscal year. LLC Register files it for you at no extra service fee while your registered agent service is active.

Missing the deadline automatically terminates your Articles of Organization. Reinstating costs the $45 fee for every missed year plus a $35 reinstatement fee, and your reserved name rights are lost if a report stays unfiled for five years. File as soon as possible to keep your LLC in good standing.

Vermont has no franchise tax by that name, but every LLC that files as a pass-through entity, including any multi-member LLC, owes a $250 minimum Business Entity Income Tax each year, even with no profit. A single-member LLC that is disregarded for federal tax purposes is not itself subject to this filing; its owner reports the LLC's income directly.

Vermont taxes an LLC the way the IRS does, so profits pass through by default to the members' Vermont personal income tax returns. An LLC with nonresident members must withhold Vermont tax for them and file a Business Entity Income Tax return. 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 a Business Tax Account for Sales and Use Tax with the Vermont Department of Taxes through myVTax. Online registration has no state fee.

Before you hire, register with the Vermont Department of Labor for unemployment insurance and with the Department of Taxes through myVTax for income tax withholding. You also need an EIN from the IRS before you run payroll.

It depends on your industry and location: Vermont regulates some professions and activities through state licenses, and many cities and counties require local business licenses. Start with the Vermont Agency of Commerce and Community Development, Business Resources.

Vermont does not require an operating agreement, and you never file one with the state. Vermont law lets the agreement override most of the LLC Act's default rules on members' relations and the company's affairs. LLC Register includes an operating agreement with every Vermont 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 Vermont or be a U.S. citizen to form a Vermont LLC. You do need a registered agent with a physical address in Vermont. Non-U.S. owners without a Social Security number apply for an EIN with IRS Form SS-4.

Yes. Vermont 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. Vermont's LLC Act does not provide for series LLCs.

No. Vermont's LLC Act has no separate professional LLC designation; licensed professionals who want a licensed corporate structure instead organize as a professional corporation under a separate chapter of Title 11.

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

Order a Certificate of Existence (good standing) from the Vermont Secretary of State for $35. 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 Vermont by filing the Application for Certificate of Authority (foreign LLC) with the Vermont Secretary of State. The fee is $155, and the LLC needs a Vermont registered agent.

File the Articles of Amendment with the Vermont Secretary of State for $35. Amend when you change your LLC's name or other information in the formation document.

File the Articles of Termination with the Vermont 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 a Registration of Assumed Business Name with the Vermont Secretary of State for $70 within 10 days of starting to 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. Vermont taxes an LLC the way the IRS does, so profits pass through by default to the members' Vermont personal income tax returns. An LLC with nonresident members must withhold Vermont tax for them and file a Business Entity Income Tax return.

An LLC separates your personal assets from business debts and lawsuits, keeps pass-through taxation, and needs less paperwork than a corporation. In Vermont it costs $155 to form and the Annual Report is $45 every year.

A sole proprietorship costs nothing to start, but you are personally liable for the business's debts. A Vermont LLC costs $155 to form and protects your personal assets, with the same pass-through taxes by default.

Usually not if your business operates in Vermont. An out-of-state LLC doing business here must also register as a foreign LLC in Vermont for $155 and keep a Vermont registered agent, so you pay two states' fees.

No. Formation is included in the $99-a-year Vermont registered agent service. The state still charges its $155 filing fee, which we pass through at cost.

For $99 a year plus the $155 state fee: Vermont LLC formation in year one, a Vermont 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 Vermont Secretary of State, Business Services Division, handles LLC formations, amendments and annual filings. Its office is at 128 State Street, Montpelier, VT 05633.

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.