When is my Michigan LLC annual report due and what happens if I'm late?

Your Michigan LLC annual statement must be filed by February 15 each year with the Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs (LARA), regardless of your formation date. The one exception is at the start: an LLC formed after September 30 does not file on the February 15 immediately following formation, and begins with the February 15 after that. The fee is $25 for an LLC, or $75 for a professional LLC. Filing late costs you nothing extra, because Michigan imposes no late fee on an ordinary LLC statement and the $50 late fee in circulation is a professional LLC charge. The real risk is structural: LARA dissolves, revokes, or marks not in good standing a business that stops filing after a two-year grace period, which suspends your ability to operate normally in Michigan, and getting back costs $50 for a Certificate of Restoration of Good Standing plus every missed $25 fee. The practical takeaway is that a $25 annual filing prevents a much larger cleanup. Set a calendar reminder for early February and file through the MiBusiness Registry Portal at michigan.gov/lara or by mail.

Do I need to publish my LLC formation in Michigan newspapers?

No, Michigan doesn't require LLC formation notices to be published in newspapers, unlike states such as New York or Arizona. Nothing in the Michigan Limited Liability Company Act imposes a publication requirement, which saves you the publication costs a New York LLC still faces. What you do file is the Articles of Organization (form CSCL/CD-700) with LARA's Corporations Division, not with the Secretary of State. The fee is $50, the same online or on paper. Expedited service is optional and stacks on top of that $50: $50 for 24-hour handling, $100 for same day, $500 for two hours, and $1,000 for one hour. The practical benefit is real. A New York LLC must publish formation notices in two newspapers for six consecutive weeks and then file a certificate of publication, a process that adds both cost and delay. Michigan owners skip it entirely and submit form CSCL/CD-700 online through the MiBusiness Registry Portal or by mail. Your next step is to file the Articles of Organization with LARA at michigan.gov/lara/bureau-list/cscl/corps before you start doing business, which is what gives your LLC legal existence in Michigan.

Can I be my own registered agent for my Michigan LLC?

Yes, you can serve as your own resident agent for your Michigan LLC if you maintain a physical street address (not a PO box) within Michigan and are consistently available during regular business hours to accept legal documents on behalf of your company. You list yourself as the resident agent on your Articles of Organization filed with the Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs (LARA). This decision carries practical implications. As your own agent you are personally responsible for receiving service of process, subpoenas, and tax notices, and missing them can produce a default judgment against your LLC or a blown tax deadline. You must also tell LARA when you move, which means filing a certificate of change of registered office or resident agent. Many Michigan LLC owners start out self-appointed to avoid the $100 to $300 a year that commercial registered agent services charge, then switch later for privacy and reliable mail handling as the business grows. Weigh your availability and your document handling before deciding. Your next step: confirm your Michigan address meets LARA's physical address requirement, then make sure your Articles of Organization name you as resident agent before you file.

Does Michigan charge franchise taxes or other ongoing fees for LLCs?

Michigan doesn't impose a franchise tax or a minimum entity-level tax on an LLC taxed as a partnership or a disregarded entity, which makes it one of the most cost-effective states for ongoing compliance. Your only recurring state filing obligation is the $25 annual statement, due each February 15 to the Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs (LARA). A professional LLC pays $75 instead. The statement asks for basic information about your business address, registered agent, and member or manager details, and the $25 stays flat regardless of your LLC's revenue or asset size. Without a franchise tax you avoid the escalating charges that LLC owners face in states like California or New York. Missing the February 15 deadline adds nothing to the bill, because Michigan has no late fee on an ordinary LLC statement, but it does start a two-year clock: after that grace period LARA dissolves or revokes the business, and restoration costs $50 plus every missed $25 fee. Members still pay Michigan income tax on their share of the profits. File your annual statement online through the MiBusiness Registry Portal at michigan.gov/lara to keep the LLC active.

Compliance · MI

Michigan LLC Annual Compliance Requirements (2026)

Everything your Michigan LLC must do to stay in good standing, annual report deadlines, registered agent rules, and state-specific obligations.

First-Year Total$75

Annual Ongoing$25/yr

vs National Avg- $157.13

By Edmond Hui · Last updated: August 22, 2026

Michigan is one of the cheapest states to start and keep an LLC. The $50 fee to file Articles of Organization (form CSCL/CD-700) is the 8th lowest in the country, the annual statement is $25 due February 15, and total first-year state cost comes to $75, roughly $157 below the national average. Michigan imposes no franchise tax and no minimum entity-level tax on an LLC taxed as a partnership or a disregarded entity, so the $25 statement is the only recurring state filing cost. Expedited formation is available on a wide ladder if you need it: $50 for 24-hour service, $100 for same day, $500 for two hours, and $1,000 for one hour, each on top of the $50 filing fee.

Two Michigan-specific details matter more than the price. First, business filings go to the Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs (LARA), not the Secretary of State, and they run through the MiBusiness Registry Portal at michigan.gov/lara. Second, an LLC formed after September 30 does not have to file an annual statement on the February 15 immediately following formation, which spares a new company a filing it would otherwise make weeks after opening. There is also no late fee on an ordinary LLC annual statement: the $50 late fee printed in most fee tables applies only to professional LLCs. Michigan's position in the Great Lakes region and its automotive and advanced manufacturing base round out a state that keeps compliance simple and predictable.

Stat card for Michigan LLC compliance costs: $75 in unavoidable first-year charges and $25 a year after that, −$157.13 against the $232.13 national first-year average. Its annual report costs $25. — First-year total bundles the state filing fee with any report or entity tax due in year one; the recurring figure is what Michigan costs every year after that. Source: Michigan's published filing requirements and fee schedule, verified July 2026; national average from MyStateLLC's 50-state compliance dataset.

Annual Report Requirements

Due: February 15

Fee: $25

Frequency: annual

How: Online or mail

Full Michigan Annual Report Guide →

Registered Agent Requirements

Everything you need to know about choosing and maintaining a registered agent for your Michigan LLC, including state requirements, costs, and privacy considerations.

Before you compare paid services: in most states the LLC's owner, or another individual who qualifies, may serve as its registered agent themselves, generally subject to that state's rules on keeping a street address in the state and being available there during normal business hours. A paid service is one way to meet the requirement and not the only one. The Michigan registered agent requirements set out what Michigan itself asks.

Registered agent services for Michigan LLCs

Affiliate disclosure: Northwest Registered Agent, Bizee, ZenBusiness and LegalZoom pay us a commission if you sign up through our link, at no extra cost to you. We list only the registered agent services we have an affiliate relationship with, so this is not a survey of the whole market.

This list is not scored. The four are listed cheapest annual renewal first, and every claim below is about the services listed here rather than the whole market.

Northwest Registered Agent$125/yr renewal
Best for: Privacy-focused owners and anyone who just needs an agent, not a formation bundle
Bizee$149/yr renewal
Best for: A free first year on every plan, renewing at $149/yr, if you're comfortable with the BBB caveat
ZenBusiness$199/yr renewal
Best for: First-time founders forming a new LLC who want phone, email and chat support
LegalZoom$249/yr renewal
Best for: Complex structures that want attorney consultations, which come with LegalZoom's Pro and Premium formation plans rather than this renewal price

Note: Bizee holds a C rating from the BBB and is not accredited. BBB's profile carries a live alert describing a pattern of complaints about unexpected charges, difficulty canceling and filing delays, and Bizee has posted a response to it. We flag this so you can make an informed choice.

Annual renewal is each provider's own standard published rate. Check the current terms at each provider before you buy. The scored ranking, and the formula behind it, is in our full formation services review →

Michigan Registered Agent Requirements →

Late Filing Penalties

Penalty: No monetary late fee for a standard LLC (the $50 penalty applies only to professional LLCs), loss of good standing after two consecutive unfiled years

Michigan Late Fee Guide →

Michigan-Specific Compliance Considerations

No Franchise Tax

Michigan imposes no franchise tax and no minimum entity-level tax on an LLC taxed as a partnership or a disregarded entity, unlike many other states. Your only recurring state filing obligation is the $25 annual statement, or $75 for a professional LLC, which keeps long-term compliance costs highly predictable.

February 15 Annual Report Deadline

Michigan's February 15 deadline is a fixed statewide date, earlier than the anniversary-date or year-end deadlines most states use, and your formation month does not move it. One exception applies at the start: an LLC formed after September 30 need not file on the February 15 immediately following formation, so its first statement is due the February 15 after that. Online filing for the upcoming year opens October 15, so you can file months ahead.

Streamlined Online Filing System

LARA takes annual statements through the MiBusiness Registry Portal, and the window for the upcoming year opens October 15. The filing asks only for basic company information, the registered office and agent, and current member or manager details, so most owners complete it in one sitting.

Registered Agent Requirement

Michigan requires every LLC to maintain a resident agent at a registered office with a physical address in the state. The agent must be available during normal business hours to accept legal documents and official correspondence on behalf of your LLC, and LARA sends notices to that address.

No Late Fee, But a Two-Year Clock

Michigan charges no late fee on an ordinary LLC annual statement. Michigan law imposes no penalty, and the $50 late fee widely reported for Michigan LLCs is printed on LARA's fee schedule as a professional LLC charge only. The consequence of not filing is structural: LARA dissolves, revokes, or marks not in good standing a business that stops filing after a two-year grace period, one year for foreign corporations. Restoring good standing then costs $50 for a Certificate of Restoration of Good Standing (form CSCL/CD-770) plus every missed $25 statement fee.

This guide is general information, not legal or tax advice, and reading it does not create an attorney-client relationship. It reports what each state publishes about filing deadlines, fees, and the consequences of missing them, with the sources this page cites. It cannot tell you what your own company owes: the date turns on when and where you formed, states change these rules between our reviews, and in several states an entity-level tax falls due in a year when no report does. Confirm your own dates with the filing office named on this page before you rely on one here, because the penalty for missing a deadline can be administrative dissolution of the company.

Frequently Asked Questions

: Your Michigan LLC annual statement must be filed by February 15 each year with the Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs (LARA), regardless of your formation date. The one exception is at the start: an LLC formed after September 30 does not file on the February 15 immediately following formation, and begins with the February 15 after that. The fee is $25 for an LLC, or $75 for a professional LLC. Filing late costs you nothing extra, because Michigan imposes no late fee on an ordinary LLC statement and the $50 late fee in circulation is a professional LLC charge. The real risk is structural: LARA dissolves, revokes, or marks not in good standing a business that stops filing after a two-year grace period, which suspends your ability to operate normally in Michigan, and getting back costs $50 for a Certificate of Restoration of Good Standing plus every missed $25 fee. The practical takeaway is that a $25 annual filing prevents a much larger cleanup. Set a calendar reminder for early February and file through the MiBusiness Registry Portal at michigan.gov/lara or by mail.
: No, Michigan doesn't require LLC formation notices to be published in newspapers, unlike states such as New York or Arizona. Nothing in the Michigan Limited Liability Company Act imposes a publication requirement, which saves you the publication costs a New York LLC still faces. What you do file is the Articles of Organization (form CSCL/CD-700) with LARA's Corporations Division, not with the Secretary of State. The fee is $50, the same online or on paper. Expedited service is optional and stacks on top of that $50: $50 for 24-hour handling, $100 for same day, $500 for two hours, and $1,000 for one hour. The practical benefit is real. A New York LLC must publish formation notices in two newspapers for six consecutive weeks and then file a certificate of publication, a process that adds both cost and delay. Michigan owners skip it entirely and submit form CSCL/CD-700 online through the MiBusiness Registry Portal or by mail. Your next step is to file the Articles of Organization with LARA at michigan.gov/lara/bureau-list/cscl/corps before you start doing business, which is what gives your LLC legal existence in Michigan.
: Yes, you can serve as your own resident agent for your Michigan LLC if you maintain a physical street address (not a PO box) within Michigan and are consistently available during regular business hours to accept legal documents on behalf of your company. You list yourself as the resident agent on your Articles of Organization filed with the Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs (LARA). This decision carries practical implications. As your own agent you are personally responsible for receiving service of process, subpoenas, and tax notices, and missing them can produce a default judgment against your LLC or a blown tax deadline. You must also tell LARA when you move, which means filing a certificate of change of registered office or resident agent. Many Michigan LLC owners start out self-appointed to avoid the $100 to $300 a year that commercial registered agent services charge, then switch later for privacy and reliable mail handling as the business grows. Weigh your availability and your document handling before deciding. Your next step: confirm your Michigan address meets LARA's physical address requirement, then make sure your Articles of Organization name you as resident agent before you file.
: Michigan doesn't impose a franchise tax or a minimum entity-level tax on an LLC taxed as a partnership or a disregarded entity, which makes it one of the most cost-effective states for ongoing compliance. Your only recurring state filing obligation is the $25 annual statement, due each February 15 to the Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs (LARA). A professional LLC pays $75 instead. The statement asks for basic information about your business address, registered agent, and member or manager details, and the $25 stays flat regardless of your LLC's revenue or asset size. Without a franchise tax you avoid the escalating charges that LLC owners face in states like California or New York. Missing the February 15 deadline adds nothing to the bill, because Michigan has no late fee on an ordinary LLC statement, but it does start a two-year clock: after that grace period LARA dissolves or revokes the business, and restoration costs $50 plus every missed $25 fee. Members still pay Michigan income tax on their share of the profits. File your annual statement online through the MiBusiness Registry Portal at michigan.gov/lara to keep the LLC active.

Sources

Each entry below is a document recorded in our verified Michigan sources, and each entry says what the document is. Some statutory text is read from an accurate mirror rather than from the state's own host, and those say so. Where we hold the citation but no stable public link, the citation is printed on its own rather than pointed at a guessed address.

Michigan statute: MCL 450.4207 (annual statement)
michigan.gov/lara/bureau-list/cscl/corpsMichigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs, Corporations Division: business entity filings
legislature.mi.gov/Laws/MCL?objectName=mcl-450-4207Michigan statute: Annual Statement
michigan.gov/lara/bureau-list/cscl/corps/limited-liability-co/filling-requirements-continued/annual-filingsMichigan agency guidance: Annual Statement

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Edmond Hui · Founder, MyStateLLC

Edmond Hui is a software engineer and serial entrepreneur based in New York who has founded multiple online businesses across e-commerce, media, and information publishing. Before transitioning into tech, he spent years as a commercial real estate professional closing deals totaling over 100,000 square feet, giving him firsthand experience with business formation and entity structuring. He built MyStateLLC to provide the free, state-specific LLC guidance he wished existed when forming his own companies.