Louisiana LLC in 2026: Articles and Initial Report, the Annual Report, geauxBIZ and the October 2026 Fee Increase

Louisiana LLC fees went up on October 1, 2026. Under Act 921 of the 2026 Regular Session, the Secretary of State now charges $125 to file the articles of organization and initial report (it was $100) and $35 for each annual report (it was $30), so most guides online are now out of date. This guide is for anyone starting a Louisiana LLC or keeping one in good standing. It covers the articles and the initial report, the notarized agent affidavit, filing on geauxBIZ, the annual report, what happens if reports are missed, Louisiana taxes, and worked budgets. Fees were checked against the Secretary of State's fee schedule effective October 1, 2026 and the Louisiana Revised Statutes in October 2026.

Quick answer

To form a Louisiana LLC, file articles of organization and the initial report with the Louisiana Secretary of State, usually online through geauxBIZ, and pay $125. The initial report names the registered agent, who signs an affidavit accepting the job. Then file an annual report on or before each anniversary of formation for $35. Register with the Department of Revenue if you sell taxable goods or hire.

• Fees rose on October 1, 2026 (Act 921): $125 to form, $35 a year

• Card payments add a $5 convenience fee

• 24-hour expedite $35; while-you-wait $60

• Three years without annual reports and the articles are revoked

• Income tax is a flat 3% from 2025

What a Louisiana LLC is and who should form one

A Louisiana LLC is formed under the Limited Liability Company Law in Title 12 of the Louisiana Revised Statutes, starting at R.S. 12:1301. It is a separate legal person, so the company's contracts, leases and debts are its own and the members are generally not personally liable for them. That protection depends on keeping the LLC separate: its own bank account, contracts signed in the company's name, and filings kept current.

The Commercial Division of the Louisiana Secretary of State, in Baton Rouge, keeps the register. Taxes are handled separately by the Louisiana Department of Revenue (LDR) and, for sales tax, by parish collectors as well, while the Louisiana Workforce Commission runs unemployment insurance. All three agencies work through geauxBIZ.

An LLC suits most small Louisiana businesses: contractors, restaurants and food trucks, shrimpers and charter captains, salons, consultants, landlords and online sellers. One person can form it, and owners need not live in Louisiana. If your business operates mainly in Texas or Mississippi, form there and register in Louisiana only if you also do business here.

What changed on October 1, 2026: Act 921

Act 921 of the 2026 Regular Legislative Session raised fees for the Secretary of State's Commercial Division from October 1, 2026. The Secretary of State posted a notice on its forms page and a new fee schedule, and its forms now carry a revision date of October 2026 with the new amounts printed on them.

Louisiana LLC fees before and after October 1, 2026

Filing	Before Oct 1, 2026	From Oct 1, 2026
Articles of organization and initial report	$100	$125
Annual report	$30	$35
Supplemental initial report	$25	$30
Foreign LLC application	$150	$185
Name reservation	$25	$25
Amended articles, merger, dissolution	$100	$125

Articles of organization and initial report

Before Oct 1, 2026

$100

From Oct 1, 2026

$125

Annual report

Before Oct 1, 2026

$30

From Oct 1, 2026

$35

Supplemental initial report

Before Oct 1, 2026

$25

From Oct 1, 2026

$30

Foreign LLC application

Before Oct 1, 2026

$150

From Oct 1, 2026

$185

Name reservation

Before Oct 1, 2026

$25

From Oct 1, 2026

$25

Amended articles, merger, dissolution

Before Oct 1, 2026

$100

From Oct 1, 2026

$125

If you prepared a paper filing with an old form or an old check amount, it will be short. Download the current form from the Secretary of State and pay the new fee. Filings made online through geauxBIZ charge the correct amount automatically.

Step 1: Choose and check the name

The initial report instructions say the name must contain "limited liability company" or an abbreviation such as "L.L.C." or "L.C.". It must also be distinguishable from other names on the Secretary of State's records. Search the business filings database, and test variations and domains with our LLC name checker.

You can reserve a name for $25 through geauxBIZ if you need time before filing. If the LLC will trade under a different name, register it as a trade name with the Secretary of State; our DBA guide explains when that is worth doing.

Step 2: Choose a registered agent

Every Louisiana LLC needs at least one registered agent with a municipal street address in Louisiana; a post office box alone is not accepted. The agent receives lawsuits and official notices, including the notice the Secretary of State must send before revoking an LLC for missed annual reports. That makes the agent's reliability a real business risk.

You can be your own agent if you have a Louisiana street address, name another person, or pay a commercial registered agent. As an estimate based on providers' published 2026 prices, commercial agents charge about $50 to $300 a year; this is a market estimate, not a state fee. Changing the agent later costs $30.

Step 3: File the articles of organization and the initial report

Louisiana splits formation into two documents that are filed together. The Secretary of State will not accept the articles without the initial report.

Articles of organization (Form 365). The articles give the LLC's name, its purpose (any lawful activity, or a narrower one if you choose), its duration, which may be perpetual, and whether it is member-managed or manager-managed. They are signed by the organizers and, on the paper form, acknowledged before a notary.

Initial report (Form 973). The initial report gives the municipal address of the registered office, the full name and municipal address of each registered agent, and the names and addresses of the first managers or members. The registered agent signs an affidavit and acknowledgement accepting the appointment, which on the paper form must be sworn before a notary. If no managers or members have been chosen when you file, you later file a supplemental initial report for $30.

The combined fee is $125. If the articles are filed within five working days after they are acknowledged, the LLC's existence begins from the time of acknowledgement. You can also ask the Secretary of State in writing to file the documents as of a later specified date.

Forming a Louisiana LLC on geauxBIZ

1. 1

   Create a geauxBIZ account

   One login for the Secretary of State, the Department of Revenue and the Workforce Commission.

2. 2

   Check or reserve the name

   Search the business filings database; reserve for $25 if needed.

3. 3

   Prepare the initial report

   Registered office, agent and first managers or members, with the agent's acceptance.

   Tip: Use a street address for the office and agent; a PO box alone is rejected.

4. 4

   File and pay

   Submit the articles and initial report and pay $125, plus $5 if paying by card.

5. 5

   Register for taxes

   Continue in geauxBIZ to set up Department of Revenue and unemployment accounts if needed.

   Louisiana Secretary of State — file business documents

Online, in person, by fax or by mail. geauxBIZ handles original filings, many amendments and annual reports online. The Commercial Division also takes filings at its office at 8585 Archives Avenue in Baton Rouge, by fax and by mail. Walk-in filings can be processed while you wait for a $60 priority expedite fee or within 24 hours for $35, on top of the filing fee. The Secretary of State's current transmittal form says business owners in Ascension, Bossier, Caddo, Calcasieu, East Baton Rouge, Jefferson, Lafayette, Livingston, Orleans, Ouachita, Rapides, St. Tammany, Tangipahoa and Terrebonne parishes must file all available business documents online through geauxBIZ.

Why filings get rejected. The usual problems are a name too close to an existing one, a missing entity ending, a PO box given as the office or agent address, a missing initial report, an agent affidavit that was not notarized on a paper filing, a notary who did not print their name and notary or bar roll number, and the old $100 fee.

Step 4: EIN, operating agreement and tax accounts

EIN. Apply to the IRS for an employer identification number once the LLC exists. It costs Free ($0). Our EIN application guide walks through the online application.

Operating agreement. Louisiana does not require you to file one, but you should sign one setting out ownership, management, profit shares, who can sign for the LLC and what happens when a member leaves. Banks ask for it.

Bank account. Open an account in the LLC's exact name with the certificate of organization, the EIN letter and the operating agreement, and run all business money through it.

State and parish taxes. If you sell taxable goods or services, register for sales tax with the Department of Revenue and with your parish's local collector; Louisiana is one of the few states where local sales taxes are collected separately from the state's. If you hire, register for withholding with LDR and for unemployment insurance with the Workforce Commission. geauxBIZ starts all of these from one place. Our Louisiana sales tax guide covers rates and filing.

Your first weeks as a Louisiana LLC

Step 1

geauxBIZ account

free

Step 2

Articles + initial report

$125

Step 3

EIN

free

Step 4

Bank account

Step 5

LDR and parish tax accounts

if selling or hiring

Step 6

Occupational licence

Local licences. Many Louisiana parishes and cities require an occupational licence, and trades such as contracting and food service need state or parish permits. geauxBIZ can generate a list of possible federal, state and local licences for your activity.

Beneficial ownership. Companies formed in the United States no longer file BOI reports with FinCEN (current position: Not required for US-formed companies).

The annual report

Under R.S. 12:1308.1, every Louisiana LLC files an annual report on or before the anniversary of the date it was organized. A manager signs it if the LLC is manager-managed, and a member signs it if management is reserved to the members. The report states the municipal address of the registered office, the name and municipal address of each registered agent, and the name and municipal address of each manager or, for a member-managed LLC, each member. Post office boxes alone are not accepted for any of them.

The fee is $35, and filing online through geauxBIZ is the norm; paying by card adds $5. An LLC organized on May 20 files by May 20 each year.

A Louisiana LLC formed on May 20, 2026

May 20, 2026

Articles and initial report filed (then $100; now $125)

May 20, 2027

First annual report due ($35)

May 21, 2027

Not filed: not in good standing; no state contracts

After three missed years

Revocation, after at least 30 days' notice to the registered agent

Within three years of revocation

Reinstate with an application, a current annual report and the fee

Not in good standing. An LLC that is late with its annual report is "not in good standing" under R.S. 12:1308.2. It may not engage in commercial business with the state or its boards, agencies, departments or commissions, and any such contract may be declared void. Banks, landlords and buyers who order a certificate of good standing will also see the problem.

Revocation. If an LLC fails to file annual reports for three consecutive years, the Secretary of State must revoke its articles of organization. At least 30 days before revoking, the office sends written notice by US mail to the last registered agent on record, or to the registered office if there is no agent.

Reinstatement. Within three years of the revocation, the LLC can be reinstated by filing an application signed and acknowledged by a member or manager, its current annual report, and the reinstatement fee set by statute; check the current amount on the Secretary of State's fee schedule before filing. Reinstatement is retroactive, so the LLC continues as though it had never been revoked. The name is protected from other businesses for three years after revocation; if it has been taken after that, you file an amendment changing the name.

Taxes for Louisiana LLC owners

Income tax. A single-member LLC is disregarded for income tax, so the profit goes on the owner's federal Schedule C and Louisiana individual return. Since tax periods beginning January 1, 2025, Louisiana taxes individual income at a flat 3%, replacing the old graduated brackets, under Act 11 of the 2024 Third Extraordinary Session. A multi-member LLC is taxed as a partnership by default and passes income through to its members. An LLC can elect S corporation treatment; see LLC vs S corp.

Sales tax. The state rate is 5%, and parishes add their own; in New Orleans the combined rate is 10%. The state rate is scheduled to fall to 4.75% from January 1, 2030. Remote sellers must register once Louisiana sales pass $100,000 a year.

Payroll. Employers withhold Louisiana income tax and pay state unemployment insurance through the Workforce Commission.

What it costs: worked first-year budgets

State fees come from the Secretary of State's fee schedule effective October 1, 2026. Card fees assume online payment by card. The registered agent line is a market estimate, and parish licence fees are left out because they vary.

Five-year view. A Louisiana LLC formed in 2026 pays $125 to form and four annual reports of $35 by 2030, or $265 in Secretary of State fees before card charges. That is $45 more than the same five years cost under the old fees.

Use our startup cost calculator to add insurance, permits and equipment.

Worked examples

An IT consultant in Baton Rouge. Dev files "Red Stick Systems LLC" on geauxBIZ in East Baton Rouge Parish, where online filing is required, naming himself as registered agent at his office. He pays $125 plus the $5 card fee and gets his EIN the same day. His services are not subject to sales tax, so he skips sales tax registration but files a Louisiana return at 3% on his profit.

A New Orleans restaurant run by two partners. Camille and Theo need the LLC before signing a lease, so they pay the $35 expedite fee. They name both partners as members on the initial report, register with LDR and Orleans Parish for sales tax at the 10% combined rate, and register with the Workforce Commission before hiring.

A Texas LLC opening a Lake Charles branch. A Houston plumbing company already formed in Texas registers in Louisiana as a foreign LLC for $185, appoints a Louisiana registered agent, and files a Louisiana annual report each year. Its Texas costs are covered in our Texas LLC cost guide.

Louisiana LLC launch checklist

0/8

• geauxBIZ account created
• Name checked, with an LLC ending
• Registered agent with a Louisiana street address, affidavit signed
• Articles and initial report filed; anniversary date noted
• EIN issued and operating agreement signed
• State and parish sales tax and payroll accounts if needed
• Parish or city occupational licence
• Annual report reminder set a month before the anniversary

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Common mistakes and how to fix them

Paying the old fees. Since October 1, 2026 the articles cost $125 and the annual report $35. A paper filing sent with the old amount is short, so expect it to be held or returned until the balance is paid.

Using a PO box. The registered office, agents and managers or members need municipal street addresses on both the initial report and the annual report.

Skipping the notary on paper. The agent's affidavit must be sworn before a notary who prints their name and notary or bar roll number. Filing online avoids most paperwork errors.

Letting reports lapse. One missed report already blocks state contracts and good-standing certificates. File late reports as soon as you notice, and update the registered agent so revocation notices reach you.

Forgetting parish sales tax. Registering with LDR alone is not enough in most parishes; local sales tax is collected separately.

Official links

• Louisiana Secretary of State — file business documents (geauxBIZ)Online, walk-in, fax and mail filing
• Louisiana Secretary of State — fee schedule effective 10/1/26 (PDF)$125 articles, $35 annual report
• Louisiana Secretary of State — Form 365 articles and initial report (PDF)Paper filing
• La. R.S. 12:1308.1 — annual reportDue by the anniversary of organization
• Louisiana Department of Revenue — RIB 25-012 income tax reform (PDF)Flat 3%
• IRS — Apply for an EINFree

What to do next

Create your geauxBIZ account, check your name with our LLC name checker, line up a registered agent and file the articles and initial report. Get your EIN, then set up sales tax and payroll accounts using our Louisiana sales tax guide. If you are still choosing a structure, our LLC registration guide compares the options.

This is general information, not legal or tax advice — confirm on the official source or with a professional.

Frequently asked questions

How much does it cost to form an LLC in Louisiana?

Since October 1, 2026, the Secretary of State charges $125 to file the articles of organization together with the initial report, up from $100. Paying by card adds a $5 statutory convenience fee. The EIN is Free ($0). Expedited 24-hour processing is $35 extra, and a name reservation is $25.

When is the Louisiana LLC annual report due and what does it cost?

The annual report is due on or before the anniversary of the date the LLC was organized, every year. It confirms the registered office, registered agents and the managers or members. The fee rose to $35 on October 1, 2026 (it was $30), and most owners file it online through geauxBIZ.

What happens if a Louisiana LLC doesn't file annual reports?

A late report makes the LLC not in good standing, and it cannot contract with state agencies while delinquent. If it fails to file for three consecutive years, the Secretary of State revokes its articles after at least 30 days' written notice to the registered agent. The LLC can be reinstated within three years of revocation by filing an application, a current annual report and the reinstatement fee.

What is the Louisiana LLC initial report?

It is a one-page form filed with the articles of organization that gives the registered office address, the registered agent's name and address, and the first managers or members. The registered agent signs an affidavit accepting the appointment, which is notarized on the paper form. The articles cannot be accepted without it.

What is geauxBIZ?

geauxBIZ is Louisiana's online business portal, run by the Secretary of State with the Department of Revenue and the Louisiana Workforce Commission. You can reserve a name, file the articles and annual reports, and register for state tax and unemployment accounts in one place. The Secretary of State's current transmittal form says businesses in 14 parishes must file all available documents online through geauxBIZ.

Does Louisiana have a state income tax for LLC owners?

Yes. From tax periods beginning January 1, 2025, Louisiana taxes individual income at a flat 3%. A single-member LLC's profit is taxed on the owner's return, and multi-member LLCs taxed as partnerships pass income through to their members. Louisiana also has a 5% state sales tax plus parish taxes.

Sources & verification

Figures on this page were checked against the sources below when it was last reviewed on 12 October 2026. Each rate and limit is stored once with its own official source and review date, and official update channels are monitored daily so changes are picked up. How we verify

1. 1.Fee Schedule Effective 10/1/26 (Act 921 of the 2026 Regular Session) — Louisiana Secretary of State · accessed 12 October 2026
2. 2.Forms & Fee Schedule — Louisiana Secretary of State · accessed 12 October 2026
3. 3.Articles of Organization and Initial Report (Forms 365 and 973, rev. 10/26) — Louisiana Secretary of State · accessed 12 October 2026
4. 4.File Business Documents — Louisiana Secretary of State · accessed 12 October 2026
5. 5.La. R.S. 12:1308.1 — Annual report — Louisiana State Legislature · accessed 12 October 2026
6. 6.La. R.S. 12:1308.2 — Failure to file annual report; revocation and reinstatement — Louisiana State Legislature · accessed 12 October 2026
7. 7.Revenue Information Bulletin 25-012: Louisiana Individual Income Tax Reform — Louisiana Department of Revenue · accessed 12 October 2026
8. 8.Get an employer identification number — IRS · accessed 12 October 2026
9. 9.Beneficial Ownership Information — FinCEN · accessed 12 October 2026