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How to start an LLC in Illinois

The filings, fees and deadlines for a new Illinois LLC, each linked to the official page it comes from.

To start an LLC in Illinois, you file the Articles of Organization with the Illinois Secretary of State and pay $150. From then on, state fees come to $75 a year.

File with the Illinois Secretary of State

Before you file in Illinois

Illinois LLCs pay only the annual report fee: the Illinois franchise tax applies to corporations, not LLCs. The name of an administratively dissolved Illinois LLC stays unavailable to others for three years.

The steps

  1. Check that the name is free

    Start from our Illinois business lookup or go straight to the official Illinois search. Search the Secretary of State's Business Entity Search by name; an LLC or corporation name must be distinguishable from names already on file. The name of an administratively dissolved Illinois LLC stays unavailable to others for three years.

    Add an ending such as "LLC" or "Limited Liability Company". What counts as too close to an existing name is in the name availability guide.

  2. Reserve the name, if you want to hold it

    Optional. If you are not ready to file, a reservation costs $25 and holds the name for 90 days. Source, checked 2026-10-26

  3. Appoint a registered agent

    Every Illinois LLC names one in its filing: a person or company with a street address in Illinois who accepts legal papers for it. You can be your own agent, but your address then goes on the public record. More in what a registered agent does.

  4. File the Articles of Organization

    File the Articles of Organization with the Illinois Secretary of State. The state fee is $150. Source, checked 2026-10-26

  5. Get an EIN from the IRS, free

    Once Illinois approves the LLC, apply for an Employer Identification Number on the IRS EIN page. It is free and issued online as soon as the application is approved; a site that charges for it is selling a service, not the number.

  6. Write an operating agreement

    It records who owns the LLC, how profit is split, who decides and what happens when a member leaves. It stays with the company's records; the Illinois Secretary of State never sees it. Without one, Illinois's default LLC rules fill the gaps. See what goes in one.

  7. Keep it in good standing

    Annual Report: $75, every year, due Before the first day of the entity's anniversary month (the month it was formed); it can be filed in the 60 days before. Source, checked 2026-10-26

    An LLC that falls behind on these, or is left without a registered agent, can be dissolved by the state.

What an Illinois LLC costs

To file $150
  • Articles of Organization: $150 Source, checked 2026-10-26
Every year to keep it $75 a year
  • Annual Report: $75 a year Source, checked 2026-10-26

Only state fees are counted here, not a registered agent service or a city or county license.

To check a name, a status or an agent on the state record, use the Illinois business lookup. Banking, licenses and the other steps that work the same everywhere are in how to start an LLC.

General information, not legal or tax advice. Facts checked 2026-10-26 against the official sources linked above; confirm with the state or the IRS before you file. How we check our facts · Report an error