Pennsylvania recently added a new yearly obligation for LLCs: since 2025, every LLC must file an Annual Report with the Department of State. It costs only $7 and is due by September 30, but starting with the 2027 reports, skipping it can get your LLC administratively dissolved. Forming the company itself takes one filing, the Certificate of Organization, for $125, and unlike Pennsylvania corporations, an LLC does not have to advertise its formation in the newspaper.
Pennsylvania LLC at a glance
Fees and deadlines from official state sources| Formation document | Certificate of Organization (DSCB:15-8821), plus a Docketing Statement (DSCB:15-134A) |
|---|---|
| Filing fee | $125 |
| Processing / expedite | Average of one business day reported by the Department; optional same-day ($100), 3-hour ($300) and 1-hour ($1,000) service |
| Annual report | Annual Report, $7, filed January 1 through September 30, starting the year after formation |
| State LLC tax | No annual LLC-level franchise or capital stock tax for a standard LLC |
| Registered agent | Pennsylvania registered office address or a Commercial Registered Office Provider |
| Newspaper publication | Not required for a domestic LLC |
| Where to file | Business Filing Services (file.dos.pa.gov) |
Step 1Pick a name Pennsylvania will accept
Your LLC’s name has to include “company,” “limited,” or “limited liability company,” or an abbreviation of one of those. It cannot suggest that the business is a corporation, so words like “corporation” or “incorporated” are out, and it cannot duplicate a name already on the Department’s records.
Some words need advance written approval from another agency. Names that suggest a licensed profession need sign-off from the relevant board under the Bureau of Professional and Occupational Affairs, and words implying a school, bank or financial institution, insurer, or public utility need approval from the matching state regulator.
Check availability with the free Business Name Search. If you are not ready to file, you can hold a name for 120 days by filing a name reservation for $70.
Step 2Set up a registered office
The Department says Pennsylvania does not use registered agents. Instead you list a registered office, and you have two choices: give a Pennsylvania street address (a P.O. box alone is not acceptable), or name a Commercial Registered Office Provider and the county of venue. You pick one or the other, not both. Official mail, including the Department’s annual report reminder postcards, goes to this address, so choose one that someone checks.
Step 3File the Certificate of Organization
The Certificate of Organization is short. It asks for:
- the LLC’s exact name, with its designator;
- the registered office address or Commercial Registered Office Provider;
- the names of all organizers, each of whom signs;
- an effective date (on filing, or a later date and time; not a past date);
- whether it is a restricted professional company or a benefit company, if either applies; and
- any additional provisions you choose to include.
A Docketing Statement goes with it. Online filing through Business Filing Services is what the Department calls the most efficient method; you create an account and start a new business filing there. Paper forms can be mailed to the Bureau in Harrisburg with a check or money order payable to the Department of State.
The fee is $125. In January 2026 the Department said business filings had averaged one business day since May 2025, though averages are not a guarantee. If you need a specific turnaround, expedited service costs extra on top of the filing fee: $100 for same-day (received before 10:00 a.m.), $300 for 3-hour (received before 2:00 p.m.) or $1,000 for 1-hour (received before 4:00 p.m.). Expedited requests are not accepted by mail.
Doctors, lawyers, accountants and certain other licensed professionals must form a restricted professional company instead, which carries its own yearly Certificate of Annual Registration due April 15.
Step 4File the Annual Report every year
Beginning the year after you form, your LLC files an Annual Report between January 1 and September 30. The fee is $7 for a for-profit LLC. The report asks for basic details only, such as the registered office, principal office and at least one governor; no financial information is required. Online reports are approved automatically.
The Department mails a reminder postcard to the registered office at least two months before the deadline, but not receiving one does not excuse a missed filing. Starting with reports due in 2027, an LLC that does not file is subject to administrative dissolution six months after the due date, and while it is dissolved another business can claim its name. A domestic LLC can reinstate with no time limit by paying $35 (filed online) plus $15 for each missing report.
Step 5Finish the setup
- Operating agreement. Not filed with the state, but a written agreement among the members helps set out ownership, management and what happens if someone leaves.
- EIN. Get a free Employer Identification Number from the IRS. Ignore any site that charges for one.
- State tax accounts. If you will hire employees or sell taxable goods, register through myPATH for employer withholding, unemployment compensation or sales tax accounts. There is no fee for these registrations.
- Licenses. Pennsylvania has no general state business license, but some occupations need special licensing, and your municipality may require local registrations, permits or zoning approval.
What it costs
| Certificate of Organization (one-time) | $125 |
|---|---|
| Optional expedite (one-time) | $100 to $1,000 |
| Optional name reservation (one-time) | $70 |
| Annual Report (yearly) | $7 |
| State LLC franchise tax (yearly) | None for a standard LLC |
| EIN | Free |
How Pennsylvania compares
State filing fee to form an LLC, next to neighboring states. The national median is $100.
National median · Fees from each state's official sources; some states charge a different amount online or by mail. If you live and run your business in Pennsylvania, forming your LLC in another state usually means also registering it here as a foreign LLC, so you pay both states' fees.
Pennsylvania taxes and your LLC
Pennsylvania does not charge a yearly LLC-level franchise tax. Its old Capital Stock and Foreign Franchise Tax was eliminated for tax years beginning January 1, 2016 and after, and the Department of Revenue lists single-member LLCs and multi-member LLCs taxed as partnerships or S corporations among the entities no longer subject to it.
For an LLC taxed as a partnership or S corporation, the members report their share of income on their Pennsylvania personal income tax returns, at the state’s 3.07% rate. An LLC that elects to be taxed as a corporation falls under Pennsylvania’s corporation taxes instead.
File it yourself or use a formation service?
Pennsylvania’s filing is straightforward enough that many owners handle it alone, and doing it yourself costs only the state fee. A paid formation service can be convenient if you want someone to supply a Commercial Registered Office Provider, track the yearly deadline or handle paperwork for you, but it adds its own charges on top of what the state collects. Either way, the state fees are the same.
What changed recently
The Annual Report requirement took effect in January 2025. Enforcement begins with reports due in 2027. The Department also reported in January 2026 that it has sustained an average processing time of one business day for business filings since May 2025.
Frequently asked questions
Does a Pennsylvania LLC have to publish a newspaper notice?
No. The Department of State says no advertising is required when forming a domestic LLC. The newspaper requirement applies to business corporations.
When is my first Annual Report due?
In the calendar year after you form the LLC, between January 1 and September 30.
Can I be my own registered office?
Yes, if you have a Pennsylvania street address where official mail can reach you. A P.O. box alone does not qualify. Otherwise you can use a Commercial Registered Office Provider.
Is there a late fee for the Annual Report?
The Department’s annual report page does not list a late fee. The real risk is administrative dissolution, starting with reports due in 2027, and reinstating costs $35 online plus $15 per missed report.
Sources
- PA Department of State: Fees and Payments
- PA Department of State: Annual Reports
- PA Department of State: Pennsylvania Limited Liability Company
- Certificate of Organization form DSCB:15-8821 (PDF)
- Name Reservation form DSCB:15-208 (PDF)
- PA Department of State: Filing Guidelines
- PA Department of State: Name Availability
- PA Department of State: Business FAQ
- PA Department of State: 2025 processing time announcement
- PA Department of State: New Annual Report requirement announcement
- PA Business One-Stop Hub: Register a PA Domestic LLC
- PA Department of Revenue: Partnerships, S Corporations and LLCs
- PA Department of Revenue: Capital Stock and Foreign Franchise Taxes
- IRS: Get an Employer Identification Number