Foreign LLC registration costs
A “foreign LLC” is not an overseas company — it is an LLC formed in one state that does business in another. When your activity in a second state crosses that state’s “transacting business” line (an office, employees, inventory, or regular in-person work there are the classic triggers), you register as a foreign LLC in that state and pay its registration fee on top of your home state’s charges.
Foreign registration fees, highest to lowest
| State you register in | Foreign LLC fee | (Domestic filing, for comparison) |
|---|---|---|
| South Dakota | $750 | $150 |
| Texas | $750 | $300 |
| Massachusetts | $500 | $500 |
| Alaska | $350 | $250 |
| Oklahoma | $300 | $100 |
| Tennessee | $300 | $300 |
| Oregon | $275 | $100 |
| Arkansas | $270 | $45 |
| Maine | $250 | $175 |
| Mississippi | $250 | $50 |
| New York | $250 | $200 |
| North Carolina | $250 | $125 |
| Pennsylvania | $250 | $125 |
| Georgia | $235 | $100 |
| Minnesota | $205 | $155 |
| Delaware | $200 | $110 |
| Washington | $200 | $200 |
| Vermont | $155 | $155 |
| Alabama | $150 | $200 |
| Arizona | $150 | $50 |
| Illinois | $150 | $150 |
| Rhode Island | $150 | $150 |
| West Virginia | $150 | $100 |
| Wyoming | $150 | $100 |
| North Dakota | $135 | $135 |
| Florida | $125 | $125 |
| Louisiana | $125 | $100 |
| Connecticut | $120 | $120 |
| Kansas | $115 | $85 |
| South Carolina | $110 | $110 |
| Missouri | $105 | $50 |
| Colorado | $100 | $50 |
| Idaho | $100 | $100 |
| Iowa | $100 | $50 |
| Maryland | $100 | $100 |
| Nebraska | $100 | $100 |
| New Hampshire | $100 | $100 |
| New Jersey | $100 | $125 |
| New Mexico | $100 | $50 |
| Virginia | $100 | $100 |
| Wisconsin | $100 | $130 |
| Ohio | $99 | $99 |
| Kentucky | $90 | $40 |
| Indiana | $75 | $100 |
| Nevada | $75 | $75 |
| California | $70 | $70 |
| Montana | $70 | $35 |
| Utah | $59 | $59 |
| Hawaii | $50 | $51 |
| Michigan | $50 | $50 |
Foreign fees per Shopify’s LLC cost roundup, cross-checked against the roundups in our sources note, October 2026. Tennessee’s foreign fee follows its per-member formula ($300 minimum).
What foreign registration actually involves
- Certificate of Existence / Good Standing from your home state, usually dated within 60–90 days — a small extra fee in most states.
- Application for Certificate of Authority in the new state, at the fee in the table above.
- A registered agent in the new state — you cannot use your home-state agent unless they also have an address there; commercial coverage runs ~$100–$300/yr per state (bulk pricing exists at 5+ states).
- That state’s annual report and taxes from then on. Foreign registration is not one-and-done: Florida charges foreign LLCs the same $138.75 annual report, Maine charges $150/yr, Mississippi $250/yr, and California applies its $800 annual tax to registered foreign LLCs too.
The two-state trap, with numbers
The classic mistake is forming in a “cheap” state while operating in an expensive one. Form in Wyoming ($100 + $60/yr) but operate from Texas, and Texas foreign registration adds $750 plus Texas franchise-tax reporting — total first-year state cost $850 instead of the $300 a Texas-native LLC would have paid. Form in Delaware ($110 + $300–$400/yr tax) and operate in California, and California adds its $70 foreign registration and the $800 annual tax. The formation state’s fees never replace the operating state’s; they stack. Form where you operate unless the business is genuinely location-independent — then the cheapest-states ranking applies cleanly.
Compare any two states side by side
The index shows domestic and foreign fees for all 50 states in one table: Open the all-50-states index →
Educational information only. LLC Cost Guide is not a law firm, accounting firm, or filing service, and nothing on this page is legal or tax advice. Fees and deadlines change; confirm the current figures with your Secretary of State (or Division of Corporations) before filing, and consult a licensed attorney or CPA for advice about your specific situation.