How much does it cost to start an LLC in Vermont?

Filing Articles of Organization with the Vermont Secretary of State costs $155, set by 11 V.S.A. 4012(a)(1). The fee is the same online or by mail, and the state charges nothing extra for filing online. Recurring costs are the $45 annual report plus, for a multi-member LLC taxed as a partnership, a $250 minimum business entity tax under 32 V.S.A. 5921 - roughly $295 a year in total.

How much is the Vermont LLC annual report fee?

The annual report for a domestic Vermont LLC costs $45 (11 V.S.A. 4012(a)(15)). A foreign LLC registered in Vermont pays $170 for the same report. It must be filed within three months after the end of the company's fiscal year.

Is the Vermont LLC filing fee $125 or $155?

It is $155. The $125 figure is out of date - 11 V.S.A. 4012 was amended by 2023 Act 77, section 37, effective June 20, 2023, and both the statute and the Secretary of State's published fee schedule now show $155 for Articles of Organization.

Does a Vermont LLC have to pay a minimum state tax?

Yes, if it is taxed as a partnership. 32 V.S.A. 5921 imposes a flat $250 annual minimum entity tax, paid to the Department of Taxes with Form BI-471 by the federal return due date - generally March 15. It is owed even in a loss year. A single-member LLC treated as a disregarded entity and reporting on Schedule C does not file Form BI-471 and does not owe the $250.

LLC Costs · VT

How Much Does an LLC Cost in Vermont?

By Edmond Hui · Fees verified July 29, 2026 against the Vermont Secretary of State fee schedule

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.

Forming an LLC in Vermont costs $155 to file the Articles of Organization with the state, the Annual Report costs $45 every year. That puts the first-year state cost at $200, before any registered-agent service.

Articles of Organization$155

Annual Report$45

First-year state cost$200

Five-year state cost$380

What you actually pay in Vermont

Vermont charges $155 to file Articles of Organization and $45 for the annual report, both set directly by statute at 11 V.S.A. 4012. The bigger recurring cost is the $250 minimum business entity tax under 32 V.S.A. 5921, which a multi-member LLC taxed as a partnership owes to the Department of Taxes every year regardless of profit - so realistic annual upkeep is about $295, not $45. Single-member LLCs treated as disregarded entities escape the $250. The annual report deadline is unusual: it runs three months after the company's fiscal year end rather than from the formation anniversary. A certificate of existence is $35 and a certified copy is $25.

Vermont LLC fee breakdown

Cost	Amount	How often	Charged by
Articles of Organization	$155	One time	Vermont Secretary of State
Annual Report	$45	Every year	Vermont Secretary of State
Required state cost, first year	$200	—	—
Minimum Business Entity Tax — does not apply to a standard Vermont LLC	$250	Only if it applies	Vermont Department of Taxes
Registered agent service (optional)	$50–$300	Every year	Commercial provider
Name reservation (optional)	$25	One time	Vermont Secretary of State
Certificate of good standing (optional)	$35	Per copy	Vermont Secretary of State

The fee is $155 whether filed online or on paper; the Secretary of State states there is no extra fee for online filing, and all filings must be initiated through the Online Business Service Center even when paying by check.

Minimum Business Entity Tax: A flat $250 per year, not a percentage - it is a floor that does not scale with income and is owed even at a loss. An LLC that does not receive partnership treatment federally is taxed as it is federally, so a single-member LLC that is a disregarded entity reporting on Schedule C does not file Form BI-471 and does not owe the $250. Partnerships whose activities are limited to maintaining and managing intangible investments, with annual investment income of $5,000 or less and total assets of $20,000 or less, are exempt.

Why the Minimum Business Entity Tax is not in the total: 32 V.S.A. 5921 reaches a partnership or an LLC taxed as a partnership. A single-member LLC that is a disregarded entity reporting on Schedule C does not file Form BI-471 and does not owe the $250.

Nothing in 11 V.S.A. chapter 25 or the Secretary of State's LLC filing pages imposes a newspaper-publication requirement.

Registered agent is listed separately because it is a commercial service, not a state charge. Commercial registered-agent services, not a state charge. Range and $125 midpoint match the assumption used by /tools/llc-true-cost. Most states let you serve as your own registered agent at no cost if you have a physical in-state address. Run your own numbers in the true-cost calculator.

Vermont LLC cost over five years

State charges only in the first column; the second adds a registered-agent service at the $125/yr market midpoint.

Period	State cost only	With registered agent
Year 1 (formation + first filing)	$200	$325
Each year after	$45	$170
Five-year total	$380	$1,005

First filing timing: Vermont keys the deadline to the fiscal-year end on record for the company rather than to the formation date, so a new LLC's first report is due within three months after its first fiscal year end.

Is Vermont expensive compared with other states?

Vermont ranks 32nd cheapest of 50 states on first-year cost — $34.53 below the $234.53 national average. On ongoing annual cost it ranks 26th.

Cheaper state	First-year cost	You would save
Montana	$35	$165
Arizona	$50	$150
Missouri	$50	$150

A cheaper filing fee elsewhere rarely saves money if you live and operate in Vermont. Doing business here with an out-of-state LLC generally means registering it as a foreign LLC in Vermont anyway — paying both states. See foreign qualification in Vermont before forming elsewhere to save on fees.

Vermont filing deadline and late penalties

Annual Report

Frequency	every year
Due	Within three months after the expiration of the company's fiscal year
Fee	$45

Vermont's LLC fee statute sets no flat late fee; the cost of being late is the $35 reinstatement fee plus the $45 annual report fee for every year missed.

Under 11 V.S.A. 4034 the articles of organization terminate on failure to file the annual report; the LLC can be reinstated by filing the missed reports with the annual report fee and a $35 reinstatement fee for each missed year, but it loses the right to retain its name if the report is not filed within five years of its due date.

Full Vermont annual report filing guide · Deadline calculator

Cost traps specific to Vermont

The $250 minimum entity tax dwarfs the $45 annual report

32 V.S.A. 5921 imposes a flat $250 annual tax on an LLC taxed as a partnership, payable to the Department of Taxes by the federal return due date (generally March 15) on Form BI-471. The Department states there is no minimum dollar threshold for filing, so it is owed even in a loss year. A single-member LLC that is a disregarded entity does not owe it.

Fiscal-year-end deadline, not an anniversary date

Vermont ties the annual report to the fiscal year end on record for the company, and the report is due within three months after it (11 V.S.A. 4033(c)). Owners who assume a formation-anniversary deadline miss it.

Missing one report terminates the LLC outright

Under 11 V.S.A. 4034 the articles of organization terminate for failure to file the annual report - there is no flat late fee, just termination, and reinstatement costs $35 plus $45 for each year missed. A foreign LLC also pays $170 a year for the same report rather than $45.

Frequently Asked Questions

: Filing Articles of Organization with the Vermont Secretary of State costs $155, set by 11 V.S.A. 4012(a)(1). The fee is the same online or by mail, and the state charges nothing extra for filing online. Recurring costs are the $45 annual report plus, for a multi-member LLC taxed as a partnership, a $250 minimum business entity tax under 32 V.S.A. 5921 - roughly $295 a year in total.
: The annual report for a domestic Vermont LLC costs $45 (11 V.S.A. 4012(a)(15)). A foreign LLC registered in Vermont pays $170 for the same report. It must be filed within three months after the end of the company's fiscal year.
: It is $155. The $125 figure is out of date - 11 V.S.A. 4012 was amended by 2023 Act 77, section 37, effective June 20, 2023, and both the statute and the Secretary of State's published fee schedule now show $155 for Articles of Organization.
: Yes, if it is taxed as a partnership. 32 V.S.A. 5921 imposes a flat $250 annual minimum entity tax, paid to the Department of Taxes with Form BI-471 by the federal return due date - generally March 15. It is owed even in a loss year. A single-member LLC treated as a disregarded entity and reporting on Schedule C does not file Form BI-471 and does not owe the $250.

Where these numbers come from

Every fee above was checked against Vermont's own published sources on July 29, 2026 — the Vermont Secretary of State fee schedule, the governing statute, and where a state-level tax applies, the state tax authority. Commercial formation-service pages were not used.

The first-year total is the Articles of Organization fee plus the first year of any recurring state charge. Where a state's first report is not due until the following year, that is noted above. The five-year total is the filing fee plus five years of recurring charges, which avoids the timing question entirely. Registered-agent service is excluded from all state figures.

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