How to form an LLC in Georgia

The filing, step by step

Georgia's formation document is the Articles of Organization, filed through eCorp. You'll need:

The Georgia Corporations Division eCorp portal is the canonical filing path; Georgia processes online filings in about five to seven business days, faster with expedited service. The Georgia Department of Revenue business taxes page covers the post-formation sales tax, withholding, and corporate registrations required for any active Georgia business.

• An entity name ending in "Limited Liability Company," "LLC," "L.L.C.," "Limited Company," "LC," or "L.C." Check availability via the business search. A $25 name reservation buys 30 days.
• A registered agent with a Georgia street address, available during business hours. P.O. boxes are not acceptable.
• A principal office address, which becomes part of the public record.
• At least one organizer, who does not have to be a member or manager.
• An email address for official notices from the Secretary of State.

The online filing fee is $100 ($110 for paper). Standard processing is seven business days. Georgia offers expedited service: $100 for two-day, $250 for same-day, and $1,000 for one-hour processing. Most founders use standard.

After you file

1. Get an EIN from the IRS online application. Free, same day. Required for bank accounts and hiring.
2. Register with the Georgia Department of Revenue via the Georgia Tax Center if you will hire employees, collect sales tax, or need a withholding account.
3. File the federal Beneficial Ownership Information report with FinCEN. BOI enforcement has shifted with litigation; confirm current status on FinCEN's site and file within the current window.
4. Open a dedicated bank account. Keep personal and LLC funds strictly separate. This is the most important single step for preserving the liability shield.
5. Draft an operating agreement. Georgia does not require one; it does recognize them. The Georgia LLC Act (O.C.G.A. § 14-11) provides default rules only if your agreement is silent; which is rarely what you want.

Georgia's $100 formation plus $50 annual registration is one of the cleaner price packages in the Southeast. The real catch is the 5.39% flat income tax and the state's aggressive nexus stance for out-of-state sellers.

Ongoing compliance

Georgia's annual registration is $50 and is due between January 1 and April 1 each year, regardless of when you formed. This catches founders who form in December and immediately owe another $50 three months later. Plan accordingly.

Late filings incur a $25 penalty. Two consecutive years of non-filing trigger administrative dissolution. The Secretary of State sends an email reminder to the address on file; keep it current.

Tax

Georgia levies a 5.39% flat corporate income tax on entities that elect C-Corp treatment, dropping on a scheduled basis under the state's current tax-reduction program. For default LLCs, income passes through to the members and is taxed on their personal Georgia returns at the individual rate (also 5.39% flat, scheduled to decrease).

There is no franchise tax on Georgia LLCs; a meaningful differentiator against neighbors like Tennessee (which has a franchise tax) or North Carolina. Sales tax is 4% state plus local add-ons; register with the DOR if you sell taxable goods or services.

When Georgia is the wrong state

Standard cases:

• You live and operate somewhere else. Forming in Georgia when your business is in Florida or Alabama means paying Georgia fees plus foreign-entity registration in your actual home state. Use your home state.
• You are raising institutional venture capital. Delaware remains the investor default. Form a Delaware C-Corp and register as a foreign entity in Georgia.
• You want maximum privacy. Georgia makes member and manager addresses public via the annual registration. Wyoming and Delaware LLCs do not require disclosing members publicly. If this matters more than other factors, look there.

For the majority case; a Georgia resident starting a Georgia business; the state's $100/$50 fee structure, functional portal, and absence of a franchise tax make Georgia one of the more underrated domiciles in the Southeast.

Fees at a glance

Item	Cost
Articles of Organization (online)	$100
Articles of Organization (paper)	$110
Annual registration	$50
Annual registration late fee	$25
Name reservation (30 days)	$25
Certificate of existence	$10
Two-day expedited filing	+$100
Same-day expedited filing	+$250
Foreign LLC registration	$225

Fees are from the Georgia Secretary of State fee schedule and current as of this writing.

Post-formation: the first-year checklist

Formation is step one. The obligations that actually generate state and federal trouble if missed sit in the first twelve months after the Articles clear. Plan for:

1. EIN. Apply at the IRS EIN portal. Free, instant if you have a US SSN or ITIN.
2. Operating agreement. Not filed with the state, but every state presumes one exists for dispute resolution. A single-member LLC still benefits from a written one; banks routinely ask for it when opening a business account.
3. Business bank account. Opens only after the state filing clears and the EIN is issued. Commingling personal and business funds is the fastest way to expose yourself to a piercing-the-corporate-veil argument; the SBA's guide to business structures covers the basics of why separation matters.
4. BOI report. The FinCEN Beneficial Ownership Information reporting regime requires most new LLCs to report beneficial owners within 30 days of formation. Penalties are serious; the filing is free.
5. State tax registration. Sales tax, withholding, unemployment insurance: each is a separate account in most states. Register early so you are not back-filing returns.

Additional primary sources

• Georgia Corporations Division: https://ecorp.sos.ga.gov/
• Georgia Department of Revenue: https://dor.georgia.gov/business-taxes
• IRS LLC guidance: https://www.irs.gov/businesses/small-businesses-self-employed/limited-liability-company-llc