North Carolina LLC Fees: What the State Charges
Budgeting a North Carolina LLC takes two numbers, not one. The formation fee is $125, paid once. The annual report is $200, paid every year the company exists. Over a five-year horizon the reports outweigh the formation fee several times over, which is why this page treats the recurring fee as the headline and works down from there.
Formation: $125, One Time
The Articles of Organization (Form L-01) carry a $125 filing fee under the schedule in N.C. Gen. Stat. § 57D-1-22, payable to the North Carolina Department of the Secretary of State, Business Registration Division. Filing is online or by PDF upload at sosnc.gov.
Annual Report: $200 Base, Every Year
Each April 15, every North Carolina LLC files an annual report with the Secretary of State. The base fee is $200. How you pay changes the total slightly:
- Paper filing: $200 flat.
- Online by ACH: $202 ($200 plus a $2 electronic transaction fee).
- Online by credit card: $203 ($200 plus a $3 fee).
The $2 and $3 are payment-processor add-ons layered on the statutory $200, not different state fees. Your first report is due April 15 of the year after the year of organization, so a 2026 formation owes nothing until spring 2027. Full detail on our annual requirements page.
Smaller State Fees
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Get Started- Registered agent or office change: $5. Form BE-06, the Statement of Change of Registered Office and/or Registered Agent, filed under N.C. Gen. Stat. § 55D-31.
- Foreign LLC registration: $250. The Application for Certificate of Authority for an out-of-state LLC entering North Carolina.
State Fee Table
| Filing | State fee | Frequency |
|---|---|---|
| Articles of Organization (Form L-01) | $125 | Once |
| Annual report | $200 paper, $202 ACH, $203 card online | Every year, due April 15 |
| Statement of Change of Registered Agent/Office (Form BE-06) | $5 | As needed |
| Certificate of Authority (foreign LLC) | $250 | Once |
Our Service Pricing
| Service | Price | Includes |
|---|---|---|
| LLC formation | $199 + $125 state fee | Preparation and filing of Form L-01, plus first year of registered agent service; renews at $99/year |
| Registered agent only | $99/year | For existing North Carolina LLCs |
| Foreign qualification | $199 + state fees | Certificate of Authority filing for out-of-state LLCs |
The First-Year and Five-Year Math
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Get StartedForm through us and year one totals $324: $199 service plus the $125 state fee, registered agent included for the first twelve months. No annual report is owed in the formation year. From year two onward, plan on $200 to the state each April (plus the $2 or $3 processor fee if filing online) and $99/year for registered agent service. Five years in, you will have paid the state roughly $925 versus $125 at formation, which is the whole argument for budgeting the report from the start.
A Note on What We Do Not Charge
No compliance-package upsells, no renewal escalators, no processing tiers. The tables above are the complete price list, and the CTA below goes to the same numbers.