Like any other state in the country, keeping track of formation and annual costs in Connecticut is a crucial step to maintain your good standing. Although it may sound pretty simple, non-compliance can damage your company’s reputation and incur hefty penalties. In this post, let our trade experts discuss all CT LLC fees to help you avoid such conflicts in the long run.
Formation Costs for a CT LLC
Business Name Reservation
It’s not mandatory to reserve your desired LLC name. However, if you’re not yet planning to apply for a certificate of organization, you can secure exclusive rights on any available trade label by paying $60.
For 120 days, no other business entity can apply for that name until you decide to proceed with the filing. Considering that this isn’t a necessary procedure, our business specialists suggest proceeding with the registration instead if there’s no conflict on your end.
Certificate of Organization
Before anything else, keep in mind that the state of Connecticut won’t recognize your LLC unless you submit an application for a certificate of organization. You have the option to go through this procedure via online, mail, or in-person. Regardless of what you choose, you’ll still have to pay a $120 one-time filing fee.
Operating Agreement
Another step our experts highly recommend is crafting an operating agreement for your LLC. Although it’s not mandatory, these internal documents will aid your business in terms of management and ownership rights. You can create one yourself to dispel charges, but it’s wise to seek legal advice to ensure comprehensive provisions.
EIN Registration
As a legal entity, you’ll have to perform business transactions like paying taxes, hiring employees, and opening a company bank account. To accomplish all these, you’ll need to present an Employer Identification Number (EIN) as proof that your LLC is a registered business. You can acquire this code for free at the IRS website.
Registered Agent
As you may already know, appointing a registered agent is part of the application when you form your LLC. This role entails a crucial obligation to represent your company and manage all government demand and notices.
And while you can act as a registered agent for your LLC, our trade specialists suggest hiring a professional service provider if you want to focus on running your business. Through their services, rest assured that your documents are promptly delivered to you. But no service is free, so expect that it’ll cost you monthly or annually.
Business License/s
All CT LLC fees don’t end with filing your formation documents. In fact, before you can legally operate in the market, you have to apply for business-specific licenses and permits. These requirements depend on the nature of your company and the transactions you’re involved in.
If your LLC offers professional services, then you may need to qualify for certain licensure exams along with your registration.
Other Taxes
As an LLC, your business doesn’t have an obligation to file for corporate tax returns; only the company members need to do so. However, there are specific business transactions that may require you to pay taxes, like selling merchandise or hiring employees.
Foreign LLC Registration
If your LLC is an entity formed under the law of a different state [1], you have to submit a Foreign Registration Statement to expand your business in Connecticut. The submission of these documents can be done through online or in-mail filing and comes with a $120 processing fee.
LLC Formation Services (Optional)
Admit it or not, not everyone has the time to handle all the registration legwork personally. If you feel confused with all the procedures and requirements entailed with LLC formation, professional services are available to aid you.
(For those starting a business in this challenging time, here are the tips you must know when setting up a new business during the pandemic)
Connecticut Annual LLC State Fees
Annual Report
Similar to other places, the Connecticut secretary of state obliges all LLCs under its jurisdiction to submit annual reports. This submission exists for the sole purpose of updating your business records with the state. You have to pay $20 every year, so our team suggests adding this to your yearly expenses.
Overall Costs
Excluding professional services and other non-mandatory fees included in this guide, the overall estimation of costs when forming an LLC is around $140. This calculation also excludes the procurement of business licenses, permits, and tax obligations.
FAQ
How long does it take to get an LLC in CT?
It takes around three to five business days to get an LLC in CT. Upon submitting your certificate of organization to the Secretary of State’s office, you’ll have to wait for approval before legally operating.
Conclusion
Keeping track of all CT LLC fees before forming your business is a great step to manage your available budget. While entrepreneurs who handle their filings are indeed impressive, there’s also no shame in being overwhelmed at first. If you feel like you can’t do it yourself, our team recommends seeking professional services to ease your experience.
For related pages, we also listed the LLC formation costs and annual fees in these locations:
