Pennsylvania LLC

What is a Pennsylvania LLC?

A Pennsylvania LLC is formed by filing a Certificate of Formation with the Secretary of State and paying the appropriate filing fee. A Pennsylvania LLC is governed by its Operating Agreement, which is written and agreed upon by its members, and which lays out the management structure of the company. Each member offers a capital contribution in return for an ownership percentage.

Learn more below about the structure of a Pennsylvania LLC and how one is formed.

Pennsylvania LLC Requirements

1. Pennsylvania Certificate of Organization.
2. State Filing Fee of $125.
3. A Registered Agent located in Pennsylvania. See our service here.
4. Beneficial Ownership Information Report filing. Your report must be submitted after company formation starting January 1, 2024.

Pennsylvania LLC Structure

PA Limited Liability Companies are structured legally with the Pennsylvania Articles of Organization for a Limited Liability Company. Like many states, the document for an LLC is short and simple.

The required information to be listed:

• Name
• Registered Office
• Organizer(s)
• Effective Date

Name

The term “company”, “limited”, “limited liability company” or an abbreviation of those terms must be included in the name of the Pennsylvania Limited Liability Company.

Registered Office

The registered agent name and the registered office of the Limited Liability Company is to be listed on the official record.

Organizer

The name of each Organizer and their signature is required to file the PA LLC Certificate of Organization.

Date

You may have the Certificate of Organization for an LLC in Pennsylvania become effective at the time of filing or at a future date, right down to a specific hour.

Pennsylvania LLC

Steps to Form a Pennsylvania LLC:

1. Name Your Pennsylvania LLC
   You must name your LLC in accordance with the Pennsylvania Consolidated Statutes. Names that do not adhere to the law will be rejected. You cannot register a name already in use by another entity. To check for availability, you can conduct a PA business name search at the Department of State website.
2. File Your Certificate of Organization
   To form a limited liability company, you must file a Certificate of Organization with the Bureau of Corporations and Charitable Organizations. This form officially creates your entity and grants it the authority to transact business within the Commonwealth (but not outside of it). There is a $125 filing fee. You must include with the filing a New Entity Docketing Statement.
3. Appoint Your Pennsylvania Commercial Registered Office Provider
   In order to form your LLC, you must designate a Pennsylvania commercial registered office provider on your Certificate of Organization. Your provider (also called a Pennsylvania registered agent) accepts service of process—notice of a lawsuit—on behalf of your company.
4. Write Your Operating Agreement
   An Operating Agreement is the guiding document of your LLC. It lays out the ownership of your company: the initial members, the contributions of members in return for an ownership percentage, as well as the rights and responsibilities of members. An Operating Agreement also determines the management structure of your business: whether it is managed by the members or by a manager.
5. Open Your Business Bank Accounts
   Your LLC will need a business bank account with which to process monetary transactions. Without a business account, your limited liability protection is endangered. Most banks will need to see copies of your Certificate of Organization, Operating Agreement, and an initial resolution authorizing the opening of the account.
6. File Decennial Report
   LLCs in Pennsylvania must file a Decennial Report. Generally, you will have a number of years before needing to file, since the report is filed only once every 10 years, and only on years ending in 1 (such as 2011, 2021, 2031, etc.). Notices are sent by December 15 in years ending in zero. The report can be filed online with the Corporation Bureau.
7. Submit Beneficial Ownership Information Report
   You must a file a BOI report with the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network after formation, starting January 1, 2024. The BOI report is free to file and must be submitted online.

What is a Docketing Statement?

The Pennsylvania Bureau of Corporations and Charitable Organizations requires you to file in conjunction with your Certificate of Organization a New Entity Docketing Statement. The Docketing Statement is a single-sheet form that simply states the name of your entity, the name and address of the individual responsible for filing the initial tax report, and a description of your business activity.

There is no additional fee for filing this form.

Does My LLC Name Have to Be in English?

No. Pennsylvania Consolidated Statutes demand that all LLC names be expressed in Roman letters or characters, or Arabic or Roman numerals. It does not, however, specify that the name be expressly in English.

LLC names must also include a business designator: Company, Limited, Limited Liability Company, or an abbreviation of one of those terms.

Can I Reserve the Name of My Pennsylvania LLC?

Yes. To reserve a name for your LLC, you must file a Name Reservation/Transfer of Reservation form. This is submitted either by mail or online to the Bureau of Corporations and Charitable Organizations. The fee for filing this form is $70.

Name reservations last for a period of 120 days (except in the case of bank name reservations, which last for six months).

What is a Pennsylvania Commercial Registered Office Provider?

A Pennsylvania commercial registered office provider (also called a registered agent) is designated to accept service of process on behalf of your LLC. A registered agent must fulfill the following duties as outlined by the laws of the Commonwealth:

1. Maintain a physical street location in the Commonwealth (called a registered office)
2. Maintain regular business hours throughout the year
3. Accept service of process (notice of a lawsuit) on behalf of clients
4. Contact clients when documents are accepted
5. Forward all documents to clients in a timely manner

The purpose of a registered agent is to ensure that a business entity can be reliably contacted in the event of a lawsuit being issued against that company.

Pennsylvania LLC Decennial Report

After you form an LLC, you will be required to file a Decennial Report every ten years. Decennial Reports are filed in years ending in 1 (2001, 2011, 2021, etc.). The report can be filed online at the Department of State website. There is a $70 filing fee.

Federal Beneficial Ownership Information Report Filing

As a newly-formed LLC, you’ll probably need to submit a Beneficial Ownership Information (BOI) Report to the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN). The BOI report provides the federal government with basic information about your LLC and the people with the most power over your business decisions and profits. Starting January 1, 2024, this report is due following company formation. This report is a little complicated, but we can make filing painless with our $9 BOI report filing service.

Why Hire Corporate Filing Solutions to Form Your Pennsylvania LLC?

Starting your LLC in Pennsylvania shouldn’t be a hassle or a time consumer. That’s why we offer Filings Made Easy™ to make starting an LLC in Pennsylvania super easy.

Hire us and relax while our filing experts form your new Pennsylvania LLC. Our staff will process orders the same business day as they are received. To make things even easier, we bundle the first year of Registered Agent service and ensure your Pennsylvania LLC comes fully equipped and ready to do its job.

Start your LLC in Pennsylvania and get Registered Agent service for as low as $55 a year.