Before you file Articles of Organization, first ensure that you have an accurate understanding of how much opening an LLC in NY costs. You’ll want a solid grasp of all associated fees and expenses, including both initial and ongoing ones. A New York LLC formation service can tell you what expenses to budget for and how much the entire process should cost. Alternatively, you can wade through the many fees and expenses yourself.
If you prefer the self-serve approach, here are the various LLC filing fees and other expenses that you should budget for.
Costs when forming a New York LLC
The multi-step process of forming an LLC in New York comes with several distinct costs. While some steps have no associated fee, the fees for other steps can be hundreds of dollars.
Here are the costs you should expect to incur in that process.
Name reservation (optional)
Your New York LLC must have a name that can be distinguished from all other business names used in the state. The easiest way to check whether a name is distinct enough is by conducting a NYS entity search using the Department of State’s Corporation and Business Entity Database. There is no cost for using the database to conduct searches.
Although there isn’t a cost to search for a business name, keep in mind that you might want to reserve a name and/or obtain a “doing business as” (DBA). Both of these do have costs associated with them:
- Business names can be reserved for 60 days by filing an Application for Reservation of Name. The fee to reserve a business name is $20.
- DBAs that allow businesses to operate under an assumed name can be obtained by filing a Certificate of Assumed Name. The fee for an LLC is $25, and there’s no county fee for LLCs.
Estimated Cost of Naming Your LLC: $0–$45
Filing articles of organization
In order to actually form your LLC, you’ll have to file Articles of Organization. The articles are what officially register your LLC with the state, and the New York LLC filing fee is paid when you file these articles. There’s a $200 state filing fee, plus $5 for a plain copy of the filed Articles ($205 total).
State filing fee: $200
Plain copy of filed Articles: $5
Appointing a registered agent
Every New York LLC designates the Secretary of State as its agent for service of process in its Articles of Organization. Naming a registered agent is optional.
If you choose to name a registered agent, you can designate yourself, another individual, or a commercial registered agent service, as long as the person lives in or has a business address in New York, or the company is a New York or registered out-of-state LLC or corporation.
There is no cost if you rely on the Secretary of State alone or take on the responsibility yourself. Hiring a commercial registered agent service typically costs $50–$300 per year.
There are good reasons (e.g., privacy, convenience, compliance) to hire a registered agent service, even though it is an added cost. This is one place where you’ll have to evaluate the expense and the benefit.
Estimated Cost for a Registered Agent: $0–$300 per year
Cost of creating an operating agreement
New York requires LLC members to adopt a written operating agreement before, when, or within 90 days after filing. The law doesn’t set a penalty for not having one, and you don’t file it with the state.
A good operating agreement covers a business’s organization, management and voting, capital contributions, distributions, membership changes, dissolution, and any other major event.
While you can write an operating agreement yourself, this is one document that you should strongly consider getting assistance with. The operating agreement is most needed when tension arises within an LLC, and that’s not the time when you want to find out that the operating agreement is invalid or insufficient.
If you’d like assistance with an operating agreement, you can either use an operating agreement service or hire an attorney. A service will be more affordable than most attorneys, as costs for attorneys can vary.
Estimated Cost for an Operating Agreement: $0–$1,000
Publishing your New York LLC
New York is also unique in that the state requires all LLCs to publish notifications of their formation. The notifications must run in two newspapers, one daily and one weekly, designated by the county clerk of the county where your LLC’s office is located (the county in your Articles of Organization). Additional LLC publishing requirements must also be met.
The LLC publishing requirement adds on two expenses:
- A $50 fee to file the Certificate of Publication with the Department of State after your notices have run. This is separate from the $200 filing fee.
- Each paper’s fee for running notifications must also be paid to the respective papers. This expense varies from paper to paper, but is highly dependent upon the county where your LLC’s office is located. Publication costs are often $1,500 or more in Manhattan and can be about $100 to $200 in some upstate counties.
Estimated cost of publishing: $150–$2,050
Estimated cost range for filing
According to these estimates, you can expect to spend anywhere between $355 and $3,600 to form an LLC in New York. How much you spend will largely depend on how you approach the registered agent, operating agreement and publishing requirement.
If you use an LLC formation service that includes a commercial registered agent and operating agreement, your total depends mostly on where you publish. Even then, much of the cost still stems from New York’s mandatory filing fee and publishing requirements.
Other Annual and Additional New York LLC Costs
In addition to the initial filing fees, there are some ongoing fees to be aware of and prepared for.
One ongoing fee is the cost of a registered agent if you’re using a commercial registered agent service. You can decide on a year-by-year basis whether this service is worthwhile for your business. Many business owners do decide to retain a commercial registered agent service.
Other additional and ongoing fees include licenses and permits, the Biennial Statement, and the annual LLC filing fee.
Business license and permit fees
Local, state and federal governments may require certain businesses to obtain licenses and/or permits. A New York business license or permits allows a business to carry out specific functions, which can be anything from operating a nuclear reactor to building a one-bedroom addition.
While you should be financially prepared for any federal licenses or permits that your business needs, federal licenses will be a necessary expense no matter where within the United States your business operates. With regard to the specific cost of running an LLC in New York, local and state licenses are more pertinent.
Common New York and local licenses
Businesses that sell taxable goods or services need a Certificate of Authority from the Department of Taxation and Finance to collect sales tax. It’s colloquially referred to as a seller’s permit. There is no fee for obtaining a Certificate of Authority.
Other business licenses commonly do have fees associated with them. These can range from $10–$25 for a specific local permit to hundreds or thousands for a liquor license from the state.
You’ll have to contact a local clerk, a county clerk, and any overseeing state agency to determine whether your business needs any licenses or permits. You can find out how much the required licenses/permits will cost once you know what your business needs.
Some licenses require only a one-time fee, while other licenses have an ongoing annual fee. Permits likewise might be needed only once, or your business may have to pay for a new one with each project.
You might spend anywhere from a negligible amount to four figures on licenses and permits.
Estimated Cost for Licenses: $0–$1,000+
Biennial Statement
Instead of an annual report, New York LLCs file a Biennial Statement every two years. It confirms the address where the Secretary of State mails legal papers.
The Biennial Statement is due every two years in the month your LLC was formed, and the filing fee is $9.
Estimated cost for the Biennial Statement: $9 every 2 years
LLC fee
Although the Biennial Statement is due only every two years, an annual LLC fee must be paid every year. The annual fee’s amount depends on the LLC’s New York-source gross income for the prior year (a single-member LLC taxed as a disregarded entity pays a flat $25):
| New York Gross Income | Annual Fee |
| $0–$99,999 | $25 |
| $100,000–$249,999 | $50 |
| $250,000–$499,999 | $175 |
| $500,000–$999,999 | $500 |
| $1,000,000–$4,999,999 | $1,500 |
| $5,000,000–$24,999,999 | $3,000 |
| $25,000,000+ | $4,500 |
LLCs taxed as partnerships or disregarded entities pay this filing fee instead of New York’s corporate franchise tax. An LLC that elects to be taxed as a corporation pays corporate franchise tax instead.
Estimated Cost for Annual LLC Fee: $25–$4,500
What Expenses You Can Write Off
These expenses do provide some financial relief come tax time. Since many of these fees and costs are directly and solely for your LLC, many can be written off as legitimate business expenses.
You generally can write off LLC filing and annual costs such as the following:
- Articles of organization fee
- Publishing fee and costs
- Name reservation fee
- DBA fee
- Operating agreement costs
- Registered agent costs
- Attorney expenses
Still other fees and costs might qualify as write-offs. A tax professional can help you evaluate other expenses to see whether they meet the requirements for a business deduction.
New York LLC costs summary
| Item | Cost |
|---|---|
| State filing fee (Articles of Organization) | $200 |
| Plain copy of filed Articles | $5 |
| Certificate of Publication filing fee | $50 |
| Newspaper Publication Costs | About $100–$2,000+, depending on county |
| Annual LLC Fee | $25–$4,500 |
| Biennial Statement | $9 every two years |
| Local Business Licenses (e.g., building permit, basic business license) | $10–$100* |
| State Business Licenses (e.g., barber license, liquor license) | $30–$1,000+ |
| Registered agent service (optional) | $50–$300 per year |
| Operating agreement (required; DIY or paid help) | $0–$1,000 |
| DBA (optional) | $25 |
| Business Name Reservation (optional) | $20 |
*This is a general range for municipalities outside of New York City. New York City licensing costs can be much higher, possibly reaching hundreds or even $1,000+
Conclusion
Establishing a new LLC in New York isn’t cheap, but these costs shouldn’t prevent you from getting a business started. Budget accordingly for these various fees and costs, and you soon could have your own business despite the costs. The business’s potential success could far exceed these expenses one day soon.
FAQ
The state charges a $200 filing fee for the Articles of Organization to officially register your LLC, plus $5 for a plain copy of the filed Articles ($205 total).
Name searches are free, but if you want to reserve a name for up to 60 days, it costs $20. Want to operate under a different name (DBA)? That runs $25.
New York requires newly formed LLCs to publish a notice of formation in one daily and one weekly newspaper for six consecutive weeks. Publication costs vary by county, from about $100 to $2,000 or more. Additionally, you’ll pay a $50 Certificate of Publication filing fee.
Naming a registered agent is optional. Every New York LLC designates the Secretary of State as its agent for service of process at no extra cost, and you can serve as your own agent for free. Hiring a commercial registered agent service typically costs $50 to $300 per year.
Yes, New York requires a written operating agreement, though it doesn’t have to be filed with the state. You can draft one yourself for free or hire assistance, which can cost up to $1,000.
Initial formation costs typically fall between $355 and $3,600, depending on options like publication location, operating agreement assistance, and registered agent services.
Ongoing costs include a $9 Biennial Statement every two years, an annual LLC filing fee of $25 to $4,500 based on New York income, and any license or permit fees (roughly $10 to $1,000 or more).