Who this is for
- Owners about to form a US LLC and deciding whether to file it themselves or pay a formation service, a lawyer or a tax adviser
- Owners whose LLC someone else just formed who want to check what is still left to do
Not covered here
- Step-by-step state filing instructions and each state's fees
- Choosing a preparer for yearly returns, and what accountants charge
- Forming or running a US company while living outside the US
Can I form an LLC myself, or do I need a lawyer, CPA or formation service?
You can form an LLC yourself. The state filing is one form (California, Florida and New York all take it online), and the EIN comes free from the IRS once the state approves the LLC. New York's Department of State says there is no requirement to use a lawyer to form an LLC, though it suggests considering one because the articles and the operating agreement have legal effect.
Each route covers a different part of the job:
| Route | What it usually covers | What it leaves to you |
|---|---|---|
| Yourself | The state filing online and the free EIN from the IRS | Everything else: the agent, operating agreement, tax classification, yearly reports and taxes |
| Formation service | The state filing; it may also act as agent or apply for the EIN (check what your order covers) | Tax classification, state tax accounts, yearly reports and taxes, books and returns |
| Lawyer | The articles and the operating agreement, including terms between owners | Tax classification and elections, unless a tax adviser is involved; yearly reports and taxes |
| CPA or tax adviser | Tax classification and election timing, the EIN as your designee, first-year state tax, books and the first return | Legal terms between owners |
The pieces, and who can do each:
| Piece | Who can do it | Where |
|---|---|---|
| Articles of organization (or certificate of formation) | The owner, or an organizer the state allows; in New York any person or business may be the organizer | The state's business filing office, online or by mail (California LLC-1) |
| Agent to receive legal papers | Rules differ by state; New York names its Secretary of State | See registered agents |
| Operating agreement | The owners; a lawyer for terms between several owners | Kept by the LLC, not filed; required in New York and California |
| EIN | The responsible party, or a third-party designee with signed authorization | IRS, free |
| Tax classification | The owners, ideally with a tax adviser | Default rules, or an election on Form 8832 or 2553 (the entity-type box on the EIN application, line 9a, is not an election) |
| State tax accounts, yearly reports and taxes | The LLC, every year | The state's tax agency and filing office |
A case stops being simple when the LLC has two or more owners, plans an S corporation election, is formed in California or New York (extra first-year steps), expects an investor, serves a licensed profession, or has an owner living abroad. Before choosing who helps, gather the owners and their percentages, the state, expected profit for the first year, and any plan to hire or raise money.
For the filing itself, step by step, see how to form an LLC; for state fees, see LLC cost by state.
What does an LLC formation service file, and what is left for you?
An LLC formation service files the state formation document you could file yourself, and may also serve as the agent or apply for the EIN. Check what your order covers. The tax classification, state tax accounts, yearly reports and taxes, books and returns stay the LLC's responsibility, whoever filed the articles.
After a service files, confirm each item yourself:
| Item | Where to confirm it |
|---|---|
| The LLC exists, with the right name and filing date | The state's filing receipt or business search |
| Who the agent is, and who pays to renew it | The articles and the agent's renewal notice |
| The EIN, and the IRS notice that assigns it | The IRS mails the EIN notice to the LLC even when a designee applied (Form SS-4 instructions) |
| Which tax classification applies | Any Form 8832 or 2553 actually filed; the EIN application's entity-type box (line 9a) records the type but is not an election (Form SS-4 instructions) |
| The operating agreement | A copy signed by every owner |
| The state online account and the email address on file | The state's online portal |
If you formed the LLC through a service while living outside the US, see taxes after an online formation service.
Do I need a lawyer to form an LLC?
Not to file it: New York's Department of State says no lawyer is required. A lawyer is worth paying when the terms between people carry real weight, because the articles have legal effect and an operating agreement creates enforceable rights and duties among the members.
Situations where those terms carry weight:
- Two or more owners: who decides, who can withdraw money, and what happens if one owner leaves, dies or stops working.
- Investors or outside money: how a new member is admitted and what rights the investor gets.
- A licensed profession: states set their own rules. New York forms a professional service LLC (PLLC) for licensed professionals under section 1203 of its LLC law; California does not let an LLC provide professional services at all. See PLLC or professional corporation.
- Buy-sell terms: the price and timing when an owner sells or is bought out.
Legal drafting is a lawyer's work; the tax terms inside the agreement (profit shares, capital accounts, tax distributions) are a tax adviser's. See operating agreement tax terms.
Can an accountant set up an LLC? What a CPA or tax adviser does at formation
For the tax side, yes: a CPA or other tax adviser handles the tax choices that come with forming an LLC and can apply for the EIN as your designee. Who may prepare and file the articles for someone else is set by each state; New York lets any person or business sign and file as organizer. Applying for the EIN needs your signed authorization naming the adviser as third-party designee; the designee's authority ends once the EIN is assigned, and the IRS mails the EIN notice to the LLC (Form SS-4 instructions).
| Decision | Why timing matters |
|---|---|
| Default or elected tax classification | One owner: disregarded by default, income on the owner's return (for example, Schedule C). Two or more: partnership by default, filing Form 1065. Spouses who own the LLC as community property in a state such as California have special rules; see spouse and family LLCs. A Form 8832 election has a limited effective-date window; see LLC taxed as a C corporation. |
| S corporation election | Form 2553 is generally due within 2 months and 15 days after the start of the tax year it is to take effect (IRS instructions). Every owner must sign a consent on it and be eligible: a nonresident alien owner, or a corporation or partnership as an owner, rules the election out. See S corporation from day one. |
| Formation state and first-year state tax | California charges every LLC formed or doing business there and not taxed as a corporation $800 a year, due the first time by the 15th day of the 4th month after filing with the Secretary of State (FTB). An LLC that elects corporation or S corporation tax files and pays on California's corporation return (Form 100 or 100S) instead (FTB). |
| Books and the first return | The classification decides the return; the books should match it from the first deposit. |
For choosing a preparer, see CPA, enrolled agent or tax software; for fees, see small business accountant cost.
Do I ever need to pay for an EIN?
No. The IRS issues EINs free, online in minutes for a business based in the US, and warns about websites that charge for one. A site that charges is not the IRS. Paying someone to apply pays for their time, not for the number.
The IRS rules that matter when someone else applies (IRS EIN page):
- Form the LLC with the state first; applying before then can delay the EIN.
- The responsible party must be a person who owns or controls the LLC. Nominees are not authorized to apply, and the IRS warns that a nominee who applies puts the entity's information at risk.
- A business entity should have only one EIN.
- The online tool is not available if the principal place of business is outside the US or the responsible party has no SSN or ITIN (IRS); see an EIN without an SSN.
Who should hold the logins, notices and EIN letter?
Keep them where the owner sees them. In California, a missed Statement of Information may lead to a Franchise Tax Board penalty and suspension or forfeiture of the LLC. If state mail and email go to someone else's inbox, deadlines can pass unseen.
- State online account: since August 1, 2026, California shows the online Statement of Information filing only to users with User Access, which lets the entity control who files for it (California SOS).
- Email on file: Florida sends the filing confirmation and future email communications to the address given on the filing. Use one you check.
- EIN notice: keep the IRS letter that assigns the EIN. The IRS can confirm a lost EIN to someone authorized (IRS).
- IRS address and responsible party: a change of responsible party goes on Form 8822-B within 60 days; the same form changes the mailing address (Form SS-4 instructions).
- Agent mail: know who forwards legal papers and state notices, and who renews the agent.
What is easy to miss after someone else forms the LLC?
The first state tax or report and the tax election deadlines. Most of these dates start running when the LLC is formed, while a service's order may end at the filing itself.
| Item | Rule | Where |
|---|---|---|
| First annual tax | $800 by the 15th day of the 4th month after filing, for an LLC not taxed as a corporation | California (FTB) |
| Statement of Information | Within 90 days of registration, then every two years; penalty $250 if still not filed 60 days after a delinquency notice | California (SOS) |
| Operating agreement | Written, within 90 days after filing the articles | New York (DOS) |
| Publication | Notice in two newspapers for six weeks, certificate filed within 120 days, or the LLC's authority to do business is suspended | New York; see publication requirement |
| Annual report | Between January 1 and May 1 each year, starting the year after formation (section 605.0212); $400 late fee after May 1; an LLC that has not filed by the third Friday of September is administratively dissolved | Florida (Division of Corporations) |
| Yearly report, tax or fee | Varies by state | Other states: see LLC cost by state |
| S corporation election | Form 2553 within 2 months and 15 days of the tax year's start | Federal |
| First federal return | Schedule C, Form 1065, or the corporate return the election calls for | Federal |
A US-formed LLC no longer files a beneficial ownership report with FinCEN: US companies are exempt. The full list of next filings is in after you form your company.
How do I choose who forms my LLC?
Match the help to what can go wrong. Filing is the easy part; the tax classification and the agreement between owners decide how the LLC is taxed and run from the first day.
| Your situation | Who to involve | Why |
|---|---|---|
| One owner, one state, simple facts | Yourself, on the state's website and the IRS site | Both filings are online; a tax adviser can confirm the classification and first-year state taxes |
| Two or more owners | A lawyer for the operating agreement; a tax adviser for profit shares and capital accounts (each owner's running record of money put in and profit kept) | By default, the LLC files a partnership return and each owner gets a Schedule K-1 showing their share of income |
| S corporation tax planned | A tax adviser before the EIN application | An LLC that will elect checks Corporation on the EIN application and writes Form 1120-S (Form SS-4 instructions); Form 2553 has a short deadline |
| An investor or raising money soon | A lawyer and a tax adviser | Admission terms, and whether an LLC still fits; a one-owner LLC becomes a partnership by default when a second member joins (26 CFR 301.7701-3(f)(2)); see raising money as an LLC |
| A licensed profession | A lawyer and the state licensing board | Professional LLC rules differ by state; California bars an LLC from professional services as its law defines them and tells licensed businesses to ask their licensing authority before filing |
| California or New York | Yourself or any helper, with the extra steps on the calendar | See the California and New York guides |
| An owner living abroad or in two countries | A tax adviser who works with both countries | The online EIN tool needs a US place of business and an SSN or ITIN, a nonresident alien owner rules out an S election, and two tax systems can apply |
Example
These examples are illustrative; figures are in US dollars.
A Florida tutor files her own LLC
A tutor with no employees files Florida articles of organization online. After approval she applies for the EIN on the IRS site at no cost. As the only owner, her LLC is disregarded, so its income goes on Schedule C of her own return. Her recurring state filing is the annual report, due between January 1 and May 1 each year, starting the year after she forms the LLC; filing after May 1 adds a US$400 late fee. Nothing at formation calls for paid help; a later S election might.
Two California co-owners use a formation service
Two co-owners, taxed as a partnership by default, pay a service that files their LLC with the California Secretary of State in March and names an agent. The order ends there. The first US$800 annual tax is due June 15 (March is month one), and nobody pays it. The FTB charges a late-payment penalty on the unpaid annual tax, plus interest. The Statement of Information, due within 90 days, is also missed. The Secretary of State sends a delinquency notice to the address on record; 60 days later, with nothing filed, it notifies the FTB, which assesses and collects a US$250 penalty.
Three founders expect an investor
Three founders contribute US$30,000, US$20,000 and US$10,000 and expect an investor within a year. A lawyer drafts the operating agreement, including how a new member joins and how a departing founder is bought out. A tax adviser confirms partnership classification, sets each founder's starting capital account to match the contributions, and checks whether the investor's terms call for a corporation instead, all before the first deposit.
Different for you?
- Two or more owners: see splitting ownership between LLC partners and operating agreement tax terms, and get business formation help.
- You want S corporation tax from the start: see S corporation from day one and get business formation help.
- California or New York: see starting an LLC in California, starting an LLC in New York and the publication requirement, and get business formation help.
- You live outside the US: see forming a US LLC while living abroad and taxes after an online formation service, and get business formation help.
- You are in the US on a visa: see starting an LLC on a visa and get business formation help.
- The LLC is formed and the first filings are next: see after you form your company and what your accountant needs from a new company, and get bookkeeping help for the books and the first return.
- A first state tax or report was already missed: get business formation help to file it and bring the LLC current.
- An election deadline already passed: see late S corporation election relief or late LLC tax election relief, and get business formation help.
Figures on this page
| Figure | Value | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Form 2553 ordinary election deadline File after the effective tax year begins; filing during the preceding tax year is also permitted | 2 months and 15 days | IRS: Instructions for Form 2553 Checked |
| California LLC annual tax Annual tax for LLCs organized or doing business in California, subject to exceptions | $800 | California Franchise Tax Board: Limited liability company Checked |
| California domestic LLC first annual tax deadline Count the month the domestic LLC files its articles with the California Secretary of State as month one; applies to disregarded or partnership-taxed LLCs | 15th day of the 4th month | California Franchise Tax Board: Limited liability company Checked |
| Date from which California requires web User Access to file a Statement of Information online The online Statement of Information option shows only to users with access established; User Access lets the entity control who may submit online filings for it | August 1, 2026 | California Secretary of State: Statements of Information filing tips Checked |
| Deadline to report an EIN holder's responsible-party change An entity with an EIN reports the change on Form 8822-B, lines 8 and 9, within this period after the change | 60 days | IRS: Form 8822-B, instructions Checked |
| California LLC or stock corporation late Statement of Information penalty Assessed after Secretary of State certification for failure to file; applies to LLCs and domestic stock corporations | $250 | California Franchise Tax Board: FTB 7268 Checked |
| Florida annual report late fee Late fee after May 1 for profit corporations, LLCs, limited partnerships and limited liability limited partnerships. | $400 Tax year 2026 | Florida Department of State: File Annual Report Checked |
Primary sources
- New York Department of State: Forming a limited liability company in New York
- IRS: Get an employer identification number
- IRS: Employer identification number
- IRS: Instructions for Form SS-4
- IRS: Limited liability company (LLC)
- IRS: LLC filing as a corporation or partnership
- IRS: Instructions for Form 2553
- IRS: Election for married couples unincorporated businesses
- California Secretary of State: LLC tax and professional services information
- California Secretary of State: Statements of Information filing tips
- California Secretary of State: Forms for California LLCs
- California Franchise Tax Board: Limited liability company
- California Franchise Tax Board: Penalties and interest
- California Franchise Tax Board: LLC treated as a corporation
- California Secretary of State: Business entities FAQs
- California Secretary of State: Types of business entities
- 26 CFR 301.7701-3: Classification of certain business entities
- Florida Department of State: File annual report
- Florida Department of State: Annual report filing instructions
- Florida Statutes: Section 605.0212, annual report
- FinCEN: Beneficial ownership information
About this guide
Published by Cloud Accounting under standing professional approval. This version has no separately recorded personal review. It explains general rules for the tax year shown. It is not advice for your situation.
Changes
- : First published.