What a California LLC has to file, what it pays, and where to look it up. An LLC is a state entity, so every figure on this page is specific to California.
Verified against the California Secretary of State, the Franchise Tax Board, the CDTFA and the EDD, August 2026.
LLC rules, taxes, details California
Formation
You form a California LLC by filing Articles of Organization, Form LLC-1, with the California Secretary of State. Filing is done online at bizfileOnline.sos.ca.gov.
It costs $70. An out-of-state LLC that wants to do business in California registers on Form LLC-5, which also costs $70.
The Articles must contain:
- The LLC name
- The street address of the initial designated office, and a mailing address if it differs
- The name and California street address of the agent for service of process
- Whether the LLC is managed by one manager, more than one manager, or all its members
- The signature of the organiser
Naming rules
- The name must contain Limited Liability Company, LLC or L.L.C. Limited can be shortened to Ltd and Company to Co.
- The name cannot suggest the LLC is a bank, trust company or insurer, and it cannot use words reserved for corporations such as Incorporated or Corp.
- The name has to be distinguishable from every other entity already registered with the Secretary of State. Check it in the business search before you file, not after.
Agent for service of process
California calls the registered agent an agent for service of process, and every LLC must keep one on file.
- The agent is either an individual who lives in California, or a corporation registered with the Secretary of State as a 1505 agent.
- An individual agent needs a California street address. A PO Box is not accepted.
- The LLC cannot act as its own agent for service of process.
Statement of Information
California does not use an annual report. It uses a Statement of Information, Form LLC-12, which costs $20.
- The first one is due within 90 days of registering the LLC.
- After that it is filed every two years, in the six-month window ending with the anniversary month of registration.
- Miss it and the Franchise Tax Board assesses a $250 penalty. The Secretary of State can also suspend or forfeit the LLC’s rights, which means it cannot legally do business or defend a lawsuit until it is put right.
Full fee schedule
| Articles of Organization, Form LLC-1: | $70.00 |
| Foreign LLC registration, Form LLC-5: | $70.00 |
| Statement of Information, Form LLC-12: | $20.00 |
| Penalty for a missed Statement of Information: | $250.00 |
| Certificate of Amendment, Form LLC-2: | $30.00 |
| Certificate of Correction, Form LLC-11: | $30.00 |
| Certificate of Dissolution, Form LLC-3: | no fee |
| Certificate of Cancellation, Form LLC-4/7: | no fee |
| Certificate of Status: | $5.00 |
| Certified copy: | $25.00 |
| Reinstatement: | $100.00 |
| Certificate of merger, per party: | $25.00 |
| Certified copy of record: | $30.00 |
| Certificate of status: | $5.00 |
| Certified copy: (for the first page) | $1.00 |
| for each page after that | $0.50 |
Two details people get wrong
Licensed professionals cannot use an LLC in California. A domestic or foreign LLC may not render professional services in this state. Doctors, lawyers, accountants, architects and other licensed professionals use a professional corporation or a limited liability partnership instead. This is the single biggest difference between California and almost every other state, and people who copy a Florida or Delaware structure get it wrong.
The $800 is owed whether you trade or not. The annual minimum franchise tax applies from the year you register and every year after, until you file a certificate of cancellation. A dormant LLC with no income still owes it. The first-year waiver that existed for LLCs formed between 1 January 2021 and 31 December 2023 has expired, so an LLC formed now pays from year one.
LLC tax information California
California is an expensive state to hold an LLC in. It taxes personal income, it charges an $800 minimum every year, and above $250,000 of California income it adds a second fee on top.
Federal classification
- A single-member LLC is disregarded by default. The income reports on the member’s personal return.
- A multi-member LLC is a partnership by default. It files Form 1065, with a K-1 to each member, due 15 March.
- An LLC can elect corporate treatment instead. Form 8832 gives C corp treatment, Form 2553 gives S corp treatment. An S corp files 1120-S by 15 March, a C corp files 1120 by 15 April.
California state taxes
- Personal income tax: yes. California taxes the income members receive from the LLC on their own California returns. This is not a no-income-tax state.
- Annual minimum franchise tax: $800, every year, paid on Form 3522. It is due by the 15th day of the 4th month of the taxable year.
- LLC fee on California income: an additional fee, paid on Form 3536 by the 15th day of the 6th month, on top of the $800. It is $900 on total California income of $250,000 to $499,999, $2,500 from $500,000 to $999,999, $6,000 from $1,000,000 to $4,999,999, and $11,790 at $5,000,000 and above. Below $250,000 there is no fee.
- LLC return: Form 568, the Limited Liability Company Return of Income.
- Sales and use tax: 7.25% statewide, plus district taxes of 0.10% to 2.00% depending on location, so the real rate is usually higher. Register with the CDTFA before the first taxable sale.
- Unemployment insurance: new employers pay 3.4% for two to three years on the first $7,000 of each employee’s wages. Experience rates for 2026 run from 1.5% to 6.2%. Employment Training Tax adds 0.1% on the same $7,000.
LLC lookup California
California’s register is public and free. You can confirm a name is available, check whether a company is active or suspended, find the agent for service of process, and read the filed documents.
Search the register
The search sits at bizfileOnline.sos.ca.gov.
- By entity name. The one most people need. It confirms whether a name is taken, and whether the entity is Active, Suspended, Forfeited, Dissolved or Cancelled.
- By entity number. Goes straight to one record when you already hold the twelve-digit California entity number.
- By agent name. Finds the entities a named agent for service of process is attached to.
A status of Suspended or Forfeited is worth taking seriously. A suspended LLC cannot legally do business, enforce a contract or defend a lawsuit in California until it is revived.
File and register
- bizfile Online, at bizfileOnline.sos.ca.gov. Form the LLC, file the Statement of Information, amend, dissolve, cancel, or order a certificate of status.
- Franchise Tax Board, at ftb.ca.gov. The $800 annual tax, the LLC fee and Form 568 all go here. This is separate from the Secretary of State.
- CDTFA, at cdtfa.ca.gov. Register for a seller’s permit and sales and use tax before your first taxable sale.
Getting help with a California LLC
Indinero Handles The Accounting, tax and CFO work behind all of this for California LLCs. If you would rather not track the $800 payment, the LLC fee tier and the biennial statement yourself, talk to an expert.
Fees and rates are taken from the California Secretary of State, the Franchise Tax Board, the CDTFA and the EDD, and were verified in August 2026. They change. This page is general information, not tax or legal advice for your situation.
LLC information by state: California, Texas, Florida, New York, Pennsylvania, Illinois, Ohio, Georgia, North Carolina, Michigan.