Forming a Pennsylvania LLC: Certificate of Organization, $125 Fee, $7 Reports
We form your Pennsylvania LLC for $199, plus the state's $125 filing fee — Pennsylvania registered agent coverage is billed on its own at $99/yr to keep the filing compliant.
Establishing a Pennsylvania LLC has three phases: the state filing, the registered office assignment, and the year-after-year compliance work. The document is called a Certificate of Organization, $125 is the state's filing charge, and the maintenance budget starts at $7 a year for the annual report. What follows: the whole sequence, the dollar amounts in detail, and where we come in.
Form Your Pennsylvania LLC — $199
Hand the work to us for $199. We prepare the Certificate of Organization and its docketing statement, file with the Pennsylvania Department of State, and send confirmation when the state approves.
Why Form an LLC in Pennsylvania
The LLC's job is containment: in the normal case, business debts and courtroom trouble stay with the entity while personal assets sit outside its reach. For most Pennsylvania small operators, that shield with barely any upkeep is the whole argument.
The Cost Picture for Pennsylvania LLCs
| Item | Cost |
|---|---|
| Our LLC formation service | $199 one-time |
| State filing fee (Pennsylvania Department of State) | $125 one-time |
| Registered agent (required for every Pennsylvania LLC) | $99/year |
| State annual report fee | $7/year |
$199 is what we charge for the filing service. The Pennsylvania Department of State collects the state's fee. The agent plan is $99/year, billed independently.
The $125 State Filing Fee
Pennsylvania charges a flat $125 to file a Certificate of Organization, per the fee schedule at 15 Pa.C.S. § 153. No share-count math, no tiers. The full schedule sits on the Department of State fees and payments page.
Certificate of Organization: What Pennsylvania Actually Files
Skip the phrase "Articles of Organization" here. Pennsylvania's formation document is the Certificate of Organization, form DSCB:15-8821, authorized by 15 Pa.C.S. § 8821. It travels with a companion filing, the New Entity Docketing Statement (DSCB:15-134A). The certificate lists the LLC name, the registered office or CROP, the management structure, and the organizer signatures; the docketing statement gives the state its administrative snapshot.
How to Form Your Pennsylvania LLC, Step by Step
- Clear the name. It must carry an LLC designator and be distinguishable from every entity already in the state database, so run the state's entity search before falling in love with anything. Banking, insurance, and government words are restricted without the relevant approval.
- Set the registered office. Pennsylvania wants a registered office in place from day one, and naming a commercial registered agent (a CROP) satisfies it. The listing is public. Our $99/year service puts our address there instead of yours.
- Deliver the Certificate of Organization and docketing statement. File DSCB:15-8821 with DSCB:15-134A and the $125 fee, online through Business Filing Services or on paper by mail. Online is the faster lane.
- Write the operating agreement. Not filed with the state, still essential: ownership shares, distributions, decision rights, and exit terms. Skip it and Title 15's off-the-rack defaults run your company their way.
- Grab the EIN. Free at IRS.gov, issued at the end of a short online session. Third parties charging for this are reselling a free government form.
- Run the compliance loop. Registered office maintained without interruption, the $7 annual report filed in the January 1 to September 30 window each year, clean separation of business and personal money, taxes on time.
Want us to handle it? One $199 payment and we file the Pennsylvania LLC for you.
The Registered Agent Piece
Here is Pennsylvania's twist: the statute never demands an "agent." It demands a registered office (15 Pa.C.S. § 8825), and it lets a CROP under § 109 stand in for one. Functionally you still need what every other state calls a registered agent, which is why everyone keeps using the term. The role means:
- A real Pennsylvania street address on record (a PO box alone gets refused), or a CROP named instead
- Somebody dependable on the receiving end when process servers show up
- Fast relay of legal and state mail so deadlines survive
List your home address and it is public the moment the certificate is filed. For $99/year, our Pennsylvania office takes the role and your address stays out of the database.
The Annual Report, New Since 2025
Act 122 of 2022 killed the Decennial Report. In its place: an annual report, form DSCB:15-146, $7 for LLCs, filed between January 1 and September 30 through the state's online portal. Skipping it grows teeth starting with reports due in 2027, when administrative dissolution enforcement begins. We flag the deadline for every client.
Pennsylvania LLC FAQ
How much does it cost to form an LLC in Pennsylvania?
$125 in state fees for the Certificate of Organization, then $7 a year for the annual report. Our filing service, if you want it, is $199 on top.
How long does it take to form an LLC in Pennsylvania?
Depends on the state's queue. Business Filing Services submissions process faster than mail, and the Department posts its current turnaround times.
Does Pennsylvania require an annual report?
Yes, as of 2025. $7 for LLCs, due by September 30 each year.
Do I need a registered agent for my Pennsylvania LLC?
You need the registered office the statute requires, and a commercial registered agent (CROP) is the standard way to provide it. The obligation runs from filing day until the LLC winds up.
Can I form an LLC in Pennsylvania if I live in another state?
Sure. Residency is irrelevant to ownership. The registered office has to be in Pennsylvania, and our $99/year service covers exactly that.
Get Your Pennsylvania LLC Filed
You can file directly with the Pennsylvania Department of State through Business Filing Services, pay the $125, and manage the registered office yourself. Or:
We act as the RA listed on your filing. Pricing: $99 a year — your filing carries our Pennsylvania address, documents are scanned to your portal the day they arrive, and we ping you before every compliance date.
Need just the RA piece? Our registered agent service is $99/year.
Got other questions about Pennsylvania LLCs or how the agent role works? Answers live on the FAQ page, or reach us through the contact form.