Form an LLC in Illinois
Start an Illinois LLC by filing the Articles of Organization with the Illinois Secretary of State for $150.
You can use our free tool to fill out the paperwork right here yourself. Or hire Northwest to do it for you and we’ll provide one year of registered agent service and a free Business Identity—all for $39.
How to Start an LLC in Illinois
A Limited Liability Company (LLC) is a permanent public record. Starting one requires sharing personal information with the government, banks, landlords, vendors, and of course, customers. We provide a Free Business Identity to anyone who needs it—that’s a domain name, website, phone line, email address, and Brand Protection. This helps protect your privacy and keep you in control of your intellectual property.
Want to register an out-of-state LLC in Illinois? Check out our Illinois Foreign Registration Guide.
1. Name your LLC
Choosing a name for your Illinois LLC is more than a legal requirement—it’s a marketing decision that will determine how people will recognize your business. A good company name should be easy to read, memorable, and flexible enough to grow with you over time. It’s also smart to check that your preferred name is available as a domain so you can secure a matching website and build a consistent online presence from the start.
Before deciding on your name, make sure it meets Illinois state guidelines and is available. You can verify availability using the Illinois Business Entity Search.
Your LLC name should:
- Include “Limited Liability Company” or an abbreviation like “LLC”
- Avoid terms reserved for other entity types, like “Corporation,” “Inc.,” or “Limited Partnership”
- Be distinguishable from other active businesses registered in Illinois
Illinois allows you to reserve a business name for up to 90 days. To reserve your business name, you’ll need to submit an Application for Reservation of Name to the Illinois Department of Business Services and pay a $25 filing fee. Need to renew that reserved name? You can do so by filing the same form and paying the fee again.
You can get a DBA (assumed name) in Illinois by filing an Application to Adopt, Change, or Renew an Assumed Name with the IL Secretary of State. An assumed name is any name your business operates under besides the legal business name.
Considering using an assumed business name? Check out our complete guide on How to Get an Illinois DBA.
You can trademark your LLC name for $10 by filing the State of Illinois Trademark or Service Mark Application. You can also go a step further and trademark your business name nationwide with a federal trademark.
You might want to trademark your LLC name to prevent other businesses from using your name. For example, without a trademark, sole proprietors could use your business name as a DBA.
2. Register Your Domain Name
After choosing your LLC’s name, a good next step is locking down a domain name for your business website. A professional domain should be easy to remember—and ideally, match or complement your business name. When you register your domain name early, you’re more likely to get a name that meets those standards.
You’ll need to claim a business domain name through a registrar. When you hire Northwest to form your LLC, domain registry is one of many in-house services we provide, along with a customizable business website, a professional email address, and Brand Protection.
With over 25 years of experience serving business owners, we’ve built our products to grow with your business, so you won’t need to switch providers when your business expands.
3. Appoint a Registered Agent
A registered agent is a person or business who accepts legal mail (called service of process) on behalf of your business. All LLCs in Illinois are required to have a designated registered agent based in the state. You’ll have to include your registered agent’s name and address on your Articles of Organization.
The registered agent you use is also a key part of your business identity. What’s a business identity? It’s the way you present yourself to the world, including potential customers and clients. You start building a business identity as soon as you form a business, and at Northwest, our Registered Agent Service can help strengthen that identity.
See why over 1,000 clients gave Northwest Registered Agent 5-star reviews.
You can serve as your own LLC’s registered agent in Illinois. In fact, any organizer, manager, member, or employee of your company can be its registered agent, as long as they live in Illinois. But here are some things to keep in mind:
- Privacy: Your registered agent’s address will be listed on the public record and easy for anyone to access online.
- Availability: Service of process mailings are no joke. They require proper handling by someone available during regular business hours to accept and notify you of important documents.
- Appearance: It’s never fun being served a lawsuit. It’s even worse (and more damaging to your business reputation) to be served in front of customers and business associates.
Your Illinois registered agent is required to:
- Have an Illinois physical address (not a P.O. Box)
- Hold regular business hours
- Accept legal mail on your business’s behalf and deliver it to you promptly
4. File Articles of Organization
To officially form your LLC, you’ll need to submit two identical Articles of Organization forms to the Illinois Secretary of State. Illinois allows you to file online through the Illinois Secretary of State website or by submitting paper form LLC-5.5 by mail or in person. You’ll need to pay a $150 filing fee.
Standard processing time is around 10 business days. Once your Articles of Organization have been processed, your LLC is officially in business.
You can submit your Articles of Organization online, by mail, or in person.
By mail or in person:
Department of Business Services
Limited Liability Division
501 S. Second St., Rm. 351
Springfield, IL 62756
Online:
The information you’ll need for the Articles of Organization includes:
- LLC name
- Principal place of business
- Effective date
- Illinois registered agent and registered office
- Purpose of business
- Duration (Leave blank unless you plan to dissolve your LLC on a specific date)
- Optional provisions
- Member and manager names and addresses
- Signatures
Note: All information on this form will go on the public record.
All LLCs formed in Illinois are by default member-managed, unless otherwise outlined in your LLC’s operating agreement. A member-managed LLC is an LLC where all members take part in overseeing business operations. A manger-managed LLC is one where the members of the LLC hire managers for the specific purpose of running the business.
Unsure which structure is best for your LLC in Illinois? Check out our LLC Member Vs Manager page.
A Series LLC allows you to create an LLC that houses other LLCs within it. The businesses within the main LLC have individual liability protection, business purposes, and assets, making them their own entities. Illinois is one of over a dozen states that allow business owners to form Series LLCs.
Series LLCs allow business owners to protect all their separate businesses while grouping them together. These business structures are popular for property rental companies. You can form a Series LLC in Illinois by submitting your Articles of Organization and paying a $400 filing fee.
The Illinois Secretary of State’s Business Services Division takes about 10 business days to process LLC Articles of Organization. It takes the same amount of time whether the filing is received through mail, online, or in-person. You can get your Articles of Organization in 24 hours by paying an extra $250 for expedited processing.
It costs $150 to file LLC Articles of Organization, which officially creates your LLC. You’ll also need to file an annual report each year, which costs $75. Other LLC costs in Illinois include any business license or permit fees required for your industry, and any business insurance you need.
You can amend Illinois Articles of Organization by submitting Articles of Amendment to the IL Secretary of State, along with a $50 filing fee.
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You've Started an LLC in Illinois, What's Next?
Create an Operating Agreement
Now that your LLC has been formed, it should have an operating agreement. Per §805 ILCS 180/1-30, an LLC is not required to write an Illinois operating agreement, but you should still have one for your LLC. If you don’t have an operating agreement, your business will be governed by Illinois’s default LLC statutes. Your operating agreement should plan for every major situation that your LLC is likely to deal with.
You’re free to include almost any rule in your operating agreement as long as it doesn’t contradict the Articles of Organization or Illinois law. Operating agreements are internal documents, so you don’t need to file yours with the Secretary of State.
Here are some common topics operating agreements cover:
- Basic formation information (principal place of business, purpose of the LLC, etc.)
- Members and ownership
- Management structure
- Allocation and distribution of profits and losses among members
- Dissolution events and winding up process
6. Get an EIN
An LLC operating in Illinois—or anywhere else in the USA—will probably need an EIN (Employer Identification Number) to do business as well. An EIN is the number the IRS uses to identify your business on tax forms. It works more or less like a Social Security number, but specifically for your business.
The IRS lets you apply for an EIN for free online and by mail. Or you can skip the paperwork and hire Northwest to file for you.
Learn How to get an EIN for your LLC.
7. File Your Annual Report
Illinois requires all domestic LLCs to file an annual report with the Illinois Secretary of State. This report functions as a way to update the state with updates to your LLC’s current address and member or manager information.
The fee to file the report is $75.
The Illinois Annual Report is due before the first day of your business’s anniversary month (the month the LLC was originally formed). So if your LLC was formed on April 7, your annual report is due by March 31 the following year.
If you don’t file the annual report within 60 days of the due date, you will be charged a $100 late fee. If you still don’t file the report after 60 days, the state can dissolve your LLC.
If your LLC is dissolved, you’ll need to file an Application for Reinstatement and pay a $200 fee (plus all missed annual report fees and late fees), in order to reinstate your LLC in Illinois.
Illinois LLCs are taxed as pass-through entities by default. This means the LLC itself isn’t taxed. Instead, the profits and losses “pass through” the LLC to the owners, who pay individual income tax on their share of the profits. Multi-member LLCs also need to file Form 1065, US Return of Partnership Income.
Learn more about LLC Taxes in Illinois.
*This is informational commentary, not advice. This information is intended strictly for informational purposes and does not constitute legal advice or a substitute for legal counsel. This information is not intended to create, nor does your receipt, viewing, or use of it constitute, an attorney-client relationship. More information is available in our Terms of Service.
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