How Much Does a Delaware LLC Cost?

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How much does an LLC cost? For a Delaware LLC, the minimum state payment at formation is only the beginning. A useful budget separates required formation charges, recurring Delaware tax, optional services, and any costs owed where the company actually operates.

As of August 9, 2026, Delaware’s statutory charges for filing a standard Certificate of Formation total $110. A domestic or registered foreign Delaware LLC also faces a $400 annual tax. Those figures can change, and they do not include every business-specific expense.

The current Delaware formation charges total $110

Delaware Code title 6, section 18-1105 sets a $70 fee for filing an LLC Certificate of Formation. Section 18-201 separately imposes a $40 courthouse municipality fee on each instrument filed under the LLC formation provisions. Together, the mandatory state charges for a standard formation filing are $110.

The Certificate of Formation itself is short. It identifies the LLC name, the Delaware registered office, and the name and address of the registered agent. More detailed economic and management terms ordinarily belong in the operating agreement, not the public certificate.

The annual Delaware LLC tax is now $400

The Delaware Division of Corporations currently states that domestic and foreign LLCs formed or registered in Delaware pay a $400 annual tax on or before June 1. LLCs do not file an annual report with the Division.

The Division says a late payment produces a $200 penalty plus monthly interest of 1.5% on the tax and penalty. It also says the alternative-entity tax is not prorated and can be assessed when the entity was active in the Division’s records at any time during the calendar year.

A registered agent may create a recurring private cost

Section 18-104 requires every Delaware LLC to maintain both a registered office and a registered agent in Delaware. The agent can be the LLC itself, an individual Delaware resident, or a qualifying domestic or foreign entity, provided the statutory conditions are met.

Delaware does not set one universal private-agent price. An eligible owner may not receive a separate agent-service invoice, while a commercial provider sets its own rate. That private charge should not be confused with the state formation fee or annual tax.

Some formation add-ons are optional

A Delaware name reservation is optional rather than part of every formation. Section 18-1105 lists a $75 charge for a reservation, renewal, transfer, or cancellation of a reservation.

Expedited handling is also optional. The Division offers expedited services for additional fees, while standard submissions follow ordinary processing. Certified copies, certificates of status, amendments, and later cancellation filings are separate products or filings with their own charges.

The federal EIN does not require a service fee

An employer identification number is a federal tax identifier. The IRS states that an eligible applicant can obtain an EIN free and directly from the agency. Paying a formation company to request one is therefore a convenience charge, not a federal filing fee.

The IRS allows one EIN application per responsible party per day. Depending on eligibility and location, applications may be made online or through Form SS-4 by fax or mail.

Current federal BOI rules do not add a filing fee for domestic LLCs

FinCEN’s current rule exempts entities created in the United States, including Delaware domestic LLCs, and their beneficial owners from federal beneficial-ownership information reporting. Old checklists that treat BOI reporting as a universal domestic-LLC task are outdated.

The boundary matters for foreign entities. A company formed under foreign-country law and registered to do business in a state can still be a reporting company unless an exemption applies. FinCEN, not the Delaware Division of Corporations, administers that federal system.

Operating in another state can create a second layer of cost

Delaware formation does not eliminate the law of the state where the company conducts business. If a Delaware LLC must register as a foreign LLC elsewhere, that state may charge its own initial and recurring fees and may require another registered agent.

Local licenses, professional licenses, sales-tax registration, payroll administration, insurance, accounting, and legal work are activity-dependent costs rather than components of Delaware’s formation charge. A realistic budget identifies each required jurisdiction before adding optional vendors.

A practical Delaware LLC cost budget

The fixed starting point is $110 for the standard Delaware formation filing. The fixed recurring state item is currently the $400 annual tax. Everything else should be labeled by source: required government fee, required private arrangement, business-specific compliance cost, or optional convenience service.

This approach makes comparisons more accurate. An advertised “free LLC” may exclude state charges and annual obligations, while a bundled price may include services the owner could obtain separately or may not need.

Sources

• Delaware Code, LLC Act section 18-1105
• Delaware Code, LLC formation provisions
• Delaware Code, registered-office and registered-agent provisions
• Delaware Division of Corporations: LLC tax instructions
• Delaware Division of Corporations: Expedited Services
• IRS: Employer Identification Number
• FinCEN: Current beneficial-ownership reporting scope