How to Form an L.L.C. in Pennsylvania
A Pennsylvania LLC is a legal business arrangement that protects your personal assets, like your home, car, and personal bank account, in case your company is sued.
A Pennsylvania L.L.C. can be used to run a business or hold assets like land, cars, boats, and planes.
A. L.L.C. Name:
Look up the name you want for your Pennsylvania LLC toensure it is available.Your name must differ from the names of other businesses already listed with the Bureau of Corporations and Charitable Organisations of the Pennsylvania LLC.
Use the Pennsylvania Business Entity Searchto ensure that another company isn’t already using the name of your L.L.C.
Name of the Limited Liability Company
Your L.L.C.’s name must end with a “designator.” The following identifiers are allowed by Pennsylvania law:
* Co.
* Ltd.
* LTD
* LLC (most popular)
* “L.L.C.” stands for “Limited Company.”
* Ltd. Liability Co.
* Limited Liability Co.
* Ltd. Liability Company
* Limited Liability Company Limited Liability Co.
B. Place of Registration
Pennsylvania Registered Office is an official address on file with the Pennsylvania LLC and is used for legal mail. This is called “Service of Process.”
You must have a Registered Office Address in Pennsylvania. It also needs to be a street address. A PO Box is not an option. Your Registered Office Address could be your home address, your office address, the address of a friend or family member (with their permission), or the address of a Registered Agent Service, also known as a Commercial Registered Office Provider.
Using a Registered Agent Service has these benefits: Your address won’t be in public records to protect your privacy.
LLCU Recommendation
We suggest Northwest Registered Agent if you want to hire a Registered Agent Service ($125 per year). Northwest has been in business for over 20 years, and its customer service is excellent. They will scan any mail sent to your L.L.C. and send it to your online account.
C. Organisational Certificate and Docketing Statement
You will file the Pennsylvania Certificate of Organisation to make your L.L.C.
legal.PA LLC registration fee: $125
L.L.C. approval time: 5-6 weeks
Filing methods
You can file by mail or online, which is the better option.
File Online
You can file online using the P.A. Business One-Stop Hub (you’ll need a Keystone Login).
Send by mail
Send your Certificate of Organisation, Docketing Statement, and file fee to the Pennsylvania Department of State Bureau of Corporations, P.O. Box 8722, Harrisburg, PA 17105-8722.
What you get out of it
The Pennsylvania Department of State will give you a Welcome Letter and a stamped and approved Certificate of Organisation.
D. L.L.C. Operating Agreement
In the Pennsylvania Operating Agreement, the owners of the L.L.C. are mentioned as “L.L.C. Members.” This document says how much each Member owns, how earnings are divided, how taxes are paid, and more.
Your Pennsylvania L.L.C. Operating Agreement is an “internal document.” You don’t need to send your Operating Agreement to any government organizations. Just keep it with the other business records for your L.L.C.
Even if you only have one Member in your Pennsylvania L.L.C., it’s still best to have an Operating Agreement. When you go to the bank to open a business bank account for your L.L.C., the bank may ask for one.
E. Federal Tax ID Number (E.I.N.)
The Internal Revenue Service (I.R.S.) gives out Pennsylvania E.I.N. Numbers, also called Employer Identification Numbers, which are used to open bank accounts, file taxes, and, if needed, pay employees.
Think of the E.I.N. as your L.L.C.’s “social security number” in P.A.
Common names: Federal Tax Number, Federal Employer Number, FEIN, Federal Tax ID Number, E.I.N., or Federal Employer Identification Number. All of these say the same thing.
Until the L.L.C. is approved: You should only apply for an E.I.N. after your Pennsylvania L.L.C. is accepted.
Fee: $0. The I.R.S. does not charge for E.I.N.s. You can get an E.I.N. by mailing in Form SS-4, sending a fax to 855-641-6935, or going online, which is the best option.
You can’t get an E.I.N. online if you don’t live in the United States or don’t have a social security number. Send Form SS-4 by mail or fax and write “Foreign” on line 7b.
F. Yearly Report
L.L.C.s in Pennsylvania don’t have to make an Annual Report, which is different from most states. They may, however, need to file a Pennsylvania L.L.C. Decennial Report.
The goal of the Pennsylvania Decennial Report is to make sure that the state has the most up-to-date contact information for your L.L.C.
The Pennsylvania Bureau of Corporations checks to see if your L.L.C. has filed anything with their office every ten years (in years that end in “1”). If it has, the L.L.C. doesn’t need to file a Decennial Report. If the L.L.C. hasn’t already done so, it needs a Decennial Report.
The latest report was supposed to be done in 2021. In 2031, the next report will be due.
Except for a Restricted Professional Company: If you have a PLLC, which in Pennsylvania is called a Restricted Professional Limited Liability Company, you need to file an Annual Report known as the Certificate of Annual Registration.
The state must get your Certificate of Annual Registration by April 15 every year, starting the year after your Restricted Professional L.L.C. is accepted. There is no need for Restricted Professional Companies to make a Decennial Report.
G. Licences and/or Permits for Businesses
Your L.L.C. might need a Pennsylvania Business Licence or other permissions to do business. You need to call the city, county, township, or borough where your L.L.C. is located to find out if you need a business license and/or permit. These rules are very different based on where your business is and what kind of business you have.
We suggest hiring a professional license company to do the study for you if you want to save time.
IncFile is our favorite company. They will give you a complete set of all the licenses and permits your Pennsylvania L.L.C. needs. To get started, just fill out their 1-minute form.
H. Taxes
Each company has its own Pennsylvania L.L.C. Taxes needs, but we can give you a general idea of how taxes work for Limited Liability Companies.
Federal taxes
“Pass through” taxes are used for L.L.C.s. Profits or losses from your business show up on your personal tax return, generally on Schedule C.
Local and state taxes
Pennsylvania LLC must register with and pay fees to both the P.A. Department of Revenue and your local government (city, town, county, etc.).
LLCU Recommendation
After your L.L.C. is set up, we suggest getting an accountant. Check out Thumbtack or read our tips on how to find a good accountant.
I. L.L.C. Business Bank Account: Open a bank account for your L.L.C. so that
you can keep your personal and business funds separate. This helps protect you from responsibility.
Business debit card: After you open an account, your bank shall give you a debit card.
Business credit card: You can also obtain a business credit card to get points, miles, and other benefits.
Items needed
When you go to open your business bank account, you’ll need to bring you: Approved Pennsylvania Certificate of Organisation E.I.N. for your L.L.C.
Driver’s Licence LLCU Recommendation
Some banks may also need a copy of your Operating Agreement in addition to your Certificate of Organisation and E.I.N. number. We suggest calling your bank ahead of time to make sure you have all the papers you need.
You should also do some shopping. Some banks charge fees every month for a business bank account, while others don’t. You should call a few P.A. banks to compare your choices.
J. Business Phone Number
Instead of using your home phone number or your cell phone, you can buy a “virtual business number” for your Pennsylvania L.L.C. at a reasonable price. You can set this virtual business phone to forward to your cell phone, go to voice prompts, or be set up in any way you want.
We suggest using Phone.com because they have the best customer service and the cheapest plans.
They have both local phone numbers and toll-free 1-800 lines. You can easily put up call forwarding, pre-recorded prompts, and voicemail notes to be sent to your email.
Getting a different business phone number for your Pennsylvania LLC is also a good idea if you don’t want “public record” websites to be able to see your personal number.
Pennsylvania Contact Information for the State Department PA
Department of State PA Bureau of Corporations and Charitable Organisations
