By StartBusinessByStatePublisher: Robert SmithResearch process
Make your Florida business official. Have your LLC paperwork prepared and filed so you can focus on getting your business off the ground.
- Your business name checked before filing.
- Your Articles of Organization prepared and submitted.
- Your formation documents together in an online account.
$0 service fee + $125 Florida state fee
Filing service by ZenBusiness. Choose Starter for the price above. Optional services and trial renewals cost extra; see details.
We may earn a commission if you buy through our links, at no additional cost to you.
Get your business set up as its own company
A Florida LLC gives your business a legal identity of its own. It can enter contracts, hold a business bank account and continue operating under the company name as you grow.
Florida law generally shields LLC owners from personal responsibility for the company’s debts. Support that separation with a business account, company records and contracts signed in the LLC’s name. Personal guarantees and your own actions can still create personal liability.
A filing service takes the paperwork off your list
With ZenBusiness, you supply the business details and its team handles the formation filing. You get electronic records and customer support by phone, chat and email. Starter keeps the base formation cost at Florida’s required $125.
What it costs to start a Florida LLC
The required state total is $125. It includes a $100 Articles of Organization fee and a $25 registered-agent designation fee. With the $0 Starter service fee, your base filing total remains $125.
| State charge | Amount | When it applies |
|---|---|---|
| Articles of Organization | $100 | Initial filing |
| Registered-agent designation | $25 | Initial filing, including when you name yourself |
| Required formation total | $125 | To create your Florida LLC |
| Annual report | $138.75 | By May 1 each reporting year |
| Late annual report | $538.75 | After May 1, including the $400 late fee |
| Certified copy | $30 | Optional |
| Certificate of status | $5 | Optional |
The two optional documents bring a filing to $160. Ask your bank which documents it needs before ordering them. Formation plus your first on-time annual report totals $263.75 in state fees, paid at different times. Provider services, licenses and insurance are separate.
Source: Florida Division of Corporations LLC fee schedule.
Choose the services you want with your filing
Starter’s base formation service does not renew. Registered-agent service, an EIN service, an operating agreement and faster preparation are optional purchases.
The preselected website-builder trial renews at $15/month after 30 days; you can remove it at checkout. Optional Worry-Free Compliance is free for the first year and renews at $199/year. Review your selected services and renewal terms before paying.
Offer details checked October 14, 2026 against ZenBusiness’s formation plans.
How to start your Florida LLC
The application turns your company details into the Articles of Organization Florida needs to create your LLC. Here is what the process involves:
- Choose your name and company details. Pick a distinguishable name with an LLC designation. Have your principal-office and mailing addresses, registered-agent information and management details ready.
- Start your filing and review the order. On ZenBusiness, select Florida and the services you want. Its team prepares and submits the Articles using your answers.
- Receive your approved formation documents. Once Florida accepts the filing, save the documents for your banking and business records. Then complete the practical setup tasks below.
What information should I have ready?
- Company name: include “LLC,” “L.L.C.” or “Limited Liability Company.” You can check existing names in the Florida business search. A company-name check is separate from trademark clearance.
- Addresses: principal-office street address, mailing address and an email for filing correspondence.
- Registered agent: the agent’s name, Florida street address and agreement to accept the appointment.
- Management: decide whether members or managers will run the LLC and who is authorized to act for it. Use the Sunbiz FAQs to check filing titles.
- Effective date: choose when the LLC should begin. Florida allows a date up to 90 days after filing, or up to five business days before filing.
This process is for a new Florida LLC. A company already formed in another state uses Florida’s foreign-registration process.
Allow for preparation and state processing
Starter lists 7–10 business days to prepare and submit a complete order. Florida’s review follows. Check Sunbiz’s current processing dates when planning your launch; a provider’s preparation time is separate from state approval.
Can I file directly on Sunbiz?
Yes. You can complete the Sunbiz Florida LLC filing yourself and pay the same $125 state fee. A filing service handles preparation and submission from the information you provide.
Give your LLC a reliable address for legal notices
Your registered agent receives official legal papers for the company at a Florida street address. You can name yourself if eligible, another eligible person or a commercial service. The LLC cannot act as its own agent.
If you work at customers’ properties or travel during business hours, a commercial agent can give those deliveries a consistent location. ZenBusiness lists registered-agent service separately at $199/year; first-year promotions may differ.
The state’s $25 designation fee records the appointment. It does not purchase a commercial agent’s service. Florida filings are public, so check which address fields a service covers before choosing it. The official LLC instructions explain the address and acceptance requirements.
Keep your LLC active with one annual state filing
Florida’s annual report confirms or updates your company details. An LLC effective in 2026 files its first report in 2027. File between January 1 and May 1 and pay $138.75, including when your details are unchanged.
Put that first deadline on your calendar after approval. File through the Sunbiz annual-report service or use paid filing assistance. The state fee remains separate from a provider’s compliance-service charge.
After May 1, Florida adds $400. Continued nonfiling can lead to administrative dissolution in September. Near year-end, consider your intended start date: an allowed future effective date can change the year your first report is due.
Get your Florida LLC filing underway
Put the formation paperwork in ZenBusiness’s hands. Start with a $0 service fee plus Florida’s $125 filing fee.
Continue to ZenBusiness to enter your details and review your order. Optional services and renewal details.
We may earn a commission if you buy through our links, at no additional cost to you.
Put your approved LLC to work
Once your formation is approved, use the company name and records to finish setting up the business:
- Write down the ownership and operating rules. An operating agreement records contributions, decisions and profit sharing. Our LLC operating agreement tool can help with a basic draft; tailored terms need individual review. Keep the agreement with your company records.
- Arrange your tax ID and bank account. Get an EIN when needed through the free IRS application after formation. Ask your bank for its document checklist and keep company income and expenses separate.
- Complete your operating requirements. Use the Florida business requirements guide for taxes, licenses and local approvals. Choose insurance for your work, employees and equipment.
Find insurance guidance for your Florida business
Coverage depends on the work you do. See the dedicated Florida guides for cleaning, food trucks, HVAC, landscaping or daycare.
Planning equipment purchases or expansion? Our Florida business financing guide explains funding options and eligibility.
Florida LLC questions before you start
Can I form a Florida LLC for $125?
Yes. The required state formation fee is $125. ZenBusiness Starter adds a $0 base service fee. Optional services, trial renewals and future state annual reports add to that base amount.
Do I have to pay the annual-report fee when I form?
Your first annual report is due in the calendar year after your LLC’s effective year. An LLC effective in 2026 files its first report in 2027. The on-time report costs $138.75.
Does forming an LLC also give me a business license?
Formation creates the company. You then obtain any professional licenses, local business tax receipts or other approvals required for your work and location.
Does an LLC automatically change how I pay taxes?
Federal tax treatment depends on the number of owners and any tax election. A single-member LLC is generally disregarded for federal income tax; a domestic LLC with two or more members generally defaults to partnership treatment. An eligible LLC can elect corporate treatment.
Does a new Florida LLC need a federal BOI report?
Under FinCEN’s current rule, entities created in the United States are exempt from beneficial-ownership reporting. That includes a new Florida LLC. Foreign-created entities registered in the United States follow different rules.
Federal references: IRS LLC tax classifications and FinCEN’s current BOI guidance. Florida filing facts and provider details checked October 14, 2026.