WEBVTT 00:00:00.229 --> 00:00:06.949 To start an LLC in New York, you file Articles of Organization, Form DOS 1336, 00:00:07.029 --> 00:00:11.349 with the New York Department of State and pay the $200 filing fee. 00:00:11.989 --> 00:00:16.069 Is that the end of it? I've heard New York has something unusual. 00:00:16.069 --> 00:00:21.909 It does. After you file, New York makes you publish a notice in two newspapers for 00:00:22.009 --> 00:00:26.549 six weeks, and then you file a certificate proving you did it. 00:00:26.549 --> 00:00:28.629 This is The Business Formation Podcast. 00:00:28.736 --> 00:00:34.629 Today, New York for 2026, in seven steps, with what it all costs and the three best 00:00:34.693 --> 00:00:36.229 ways to have it filed for you. 00:00:36.429 --> 00:00:38.149 Let's start with the first one. 00:00:38.889 --> 00:00:45.769 Your name has to include Limited Liability Company, LLC, or L.L.C., and it has to be 00:00:45.816 --> 00:00:49.289 distinguishable from every name on file with the Department of State. 00:00:49.289 --> 00:00:51.249 Are there words I can't just use? 00:00:51.249 --> 00:00:55.129 Some words need another agency's approval first. 00:00:55.129 --> 00:00:56.729 How do I look for a name? 00:00:56.729 --> 00:01:00.009 The state's business database is free to search. 00:01:00.142 --> 00:01:03.769 If you want an official written name search, that's $5. 00:01:03.869 --> 00:01:08.249 And to hold a name, you can reserve it for 60 days for $20. 00:01:08.997 --> 00:01:12.357 Now the registered agent, which I assume works the same everywhere. 00:01:12.357 --> 00:01:18.277 Not here. In New York, your Articles name the Secretary of State as your LLC's agent 00:01:18.337 --> 00:01:23.557 for service of process. You also give an address where the state mails any legal 00:01:23.626 --> 00:01:25.077 papers it receives for you. 00:01:25.546 --> 00:01:27.397 So the state forwards my lawsuits? 00:01:27.397 --> 00:01:30.037 It mails them to the address you list. 00:01:30.149 --> 00:01:33.317 Keep that address current, or you could miss a lawsuit. 00:01:33.317 --> 00:01:35.717 So do I need a registered agent at all? 00:01:35.717 --> 00:01:41.157 It's optional in New York. Many owners hire one anyway, so legal papers go to a 00:01:41.224 --> 00:01:43.237 staffed address instead of their own. 00:01:43.949 --> 00:01:45.389 Okay. How do I file? 00:01:45.389 --> 00:01:52.309 Submit Form DOS 1336 online with a NY.gov account, or by mail. 00:01:52.379 --> 00:01:54.269 The fee is $200. 00:01:54.269 --> 00:01:56.189 How quickly does it come back? 00:01:56.189 --> 00:02:01.149 Online, you pay by card and your filing receipt arrives by email right away. 00:02:01.309 --> 00:02:04.189 Paper averages about 7 business days. 00:02:04.509 --> 00:02:09.949 A paper filing can be expedited for $25 to $150. 00:02:09.949 --> 00:02:10.909 What's on the form? 00:02:10.909 --> 00:02:15.949 The name, the county of your office, the address for legal papers, and the 00:02:16.013 --> 00:02:17.309 organizer's signature. 00:02:17.309 --> 00:02:18.669 Is the county important? 00:02:18.669 --> 00:02:24.509 Very. Choose it carefully, because the county decides where you publish. 00:02:24.509 --> 00:02:26.909 I'm Maya, by the way, here with Dan. 00:02:26.909 --> 00:02:28.429 Great to have you, Maya. 00:02:29.888 --> 00:02:31.888 Tell me about this publication rule. 00:02:31.888 --> 00:02:37.008 Within 120 days of forming, you publish a notice once a week for six weeks. 00:02:37.115 --> 00:02:42.448 It runs in two newspapers that your county clerk picks, one daily and one weekly. 00:02:42.448 --> 00:02:43.648 What does that cost? 00:02:43.648 --> 00:02:47.408 The papers set their own prices, and they vary by county. 00:02:47.515 --> 00:02:52.768 Afterward, you file a Certificate of Publication with the state, for $50. 00:02:53.404 --> 00:02:54.448 And if I skip it? 00:02:54.448 --> 00:02:59.168 Your LLC's authority to do business is suspended until you comply. 00:02:59.968 --> 00:03:02.048 Is the operating agreement required here? 00:03:02.048 --> 00:03:07.568 Yes, and in writing. You have to adopt it within 90 days after filing. 00:03:07.755 --> 00:03:10.848 It's the law, though you don't file it with the state. 00:03:10.848 --> 00:03:12.288 Even for one owner? 00:03:12.288 --> 00:03:19.168 Even for a single-member LLC. Spell out who owns what, how profits are split, 00:03:19.208 --> 00:03:22.608 who makes decisions, and what happens if a member leaves. 00:03:23.737 --> 00:03:25.257 Then the federal number. 00:03:25.257 --> 00:03:30.297 Apply for it free with the IRS at IRS.gov once the Department of State has filed 00:03:30.313 --> 00:03:31.417 your Articles. 00:03:31.417 --> 00:03:32.617 Is it instant? 00:03:32.617 --> 00:03:36.537 If the online application is approved, the number is issued right away. 00:03:36.649 --> 00:03:41.177 Have the Social Security number or ITIN of the person in charge ready. 00:03:41.177 --> 00:03:43.817 What about the beneficial ownership report? 00:03:43.817 --> 00:03:47.257 Not for U.S. companies. FinCEN dropped that requirement. 00:03:47.357 --> 00:03:53.497 And New York's own LLC Transparency Act only covers LLCs formed outside the U.S. 00:03:54.242 --> 00:03:55.762 What's the ongoing paperwork? 00:03:55.762 --> 00:04:00.082 A biennial statement with the Department of State, every two years, in the month you 00:04:00.139 --> 00:04:02.562 formed. The fee is $9. 00:04:02.562 --> 00:04:03.362 A late fee? 00:04:03.362 --> 00:04:08.002 There isn't one. But a missed statement shows as past due on any certificate of 00:04:08.071 --> 00:04:08.802 status. 00:04:08.802 --> 00:04:10.802 Any other yearly costs? 00:04:10.802 --> 00:04:15.842 If your LLC has New York income, the Tax Department charges a yearly fee, starting 00:04:15.869 --> 00:04:17.282 at $25. 00:04:18.172 --> 00:04:20.012 What is the damage if I handle it all? 00:04:20.012 --> 00:04:26.332 $250 in state fees. That's $200 to file and $50 for the Certificate of 00:04:26.392 --> 00:04:29.292 Publication. Then add the newspapers. 00:04:29.292 --> 00:04:31.532 And after year one? 00:04:31.532 --> 00:04:37.052 $9 every two years, plus that Tax Department fee, if your company has New York 00:04:37.109 --> 00:04:38.412 income. 00:04:38.412 --> 00:04:40.892 So the newspaper bill is the unknown. 00:04:40.892 --> 00:04:43.692 Yes. It depends on your county. 00:04:43.692 --> 00:04:46.652 What's the state total over three years? 00:04:46.652 --> 00:04:53.452 $259 in state fees. That's the $250 up front plus one 00:04:53.516 --> 00:04:58.452 $9 biennial statement, which comes due two years after you form. 00:04:58.539 --> 00:05:00.093 Newspapers are extra. 00:05:00.093 --> 00:05:02.173 Does any of that change with a paid agent? 00:05:02.173 --> 00:05:07.373 Not the state's part. A service fee sits on top of those state fees. 00:05:10.500 --> 00:05:12.339 Can you give me the order of operations? 00:05:12.339 --> 00:05:17.220 File the Articles first. Then start the publication within 120 days. 00:05:17.380 --> 00:05:20.580 Adopt your operating agreement within 90 days. 00:05:20.680 --> 00:05:26.660 Get your EIN. And after the last notice runs, file the $50 certificate. 00:05:26.660 --> 00:05:29.540 Which deadline hits first? 00:05:29.540 --> 00:05:31.542 The 90 days for the operating agreement. 00:05:32.437 --> 00:05:34.981 Then the publication window gives you a little extra time. 00:05:34.981 --> 00:05:40.101 A bit more, yes, but the six weeks of notices need to fit inside it. 00:05:40.288 --> 00:05:41.541 So start early. 00:05:43.220 --> 00:05:45.060 What if I'd rather hand all this off? 00:05:45.060 --> 00:05:48.500 Here are the three best ways to file in New York. 00:05:48.649 --> 00:05:55.620 Number one, our pick, is Mainstay Filing, $199 a year plus the state 00:05:55.700 --> 00:06:01.460 fee. With the $200 state fee, checkout comes to $399. 00:06:01.460 --> 00:06:02.740 What does it include? 00:06:02.740 --> 00:06:08.500 Your Articles filed, your EIN application, and an optional registered agent every 00:06:08.580 --> 00:06:12.500 year. It renews at the same $199. 00:06:12.633 --> 00:06:18.260 In New York, it also files your biennial statement every two years, and it flags 00:06:18.276 --> 00:06:20.260 your publication deadline when you form. 00:06:20.260 --> 00:06:22.340 Does it cover the newspapers? 00:06:22.340 --> 00:06:25.700 No. The newspapers bill you directly for the notices. 00:06:25.700 --> 00:06:27.939 Number two? 00:06:27.939 --> 00:06:34.820 NY Registered Agent.org. It prepares and files your Articles for $199 plus 00:06:34.860 --> 00:06:40.580 the state fee, with the first year of its registered agent service free, then $99 a 00:06:40.644 --> 00:06:40.980 year. 00:06:40.980 --> 00:06:43.539 And number three? 00:06:43.539 --> 00:06:50.020 New York Registered Agent.ai. Same offer: $199 plus the state 00:06:50.100 --> 00:06:54.980 fee, a free first year of agent service, and then $99 a year. 00:06:54.980 --> 00:06:56.340 What decides it? 00:06:56.340 --> 00:07:02.140 If you'll file your own biennial statement, two and three cost less from year two, 00:07:02.207 --> 00:07:07.540 at $99 for the agent alone. If you'd rather have the agent and the statement handled 00:07:07.593 --> 00:07:10.260 at one steady price, that's Mainstay. 00:07:10.340 --> 00:07:13.300 And the publication costs are the same with all three. 00:07:14.536 --> 00:07:16.136 Give me a number for three years. 00:07:16.136 --> 00:07:22.696 Mainstay is $199 a year, so $597. 00:07:22.836 --> 00:07:29.816 The other two are $199 in year one, then $99 in each of the next two years, for 00:07:29.856 --> 00:07:32.456 $397. 00:07:32.456 --> 00:07:34.296 So $200 apart. 00:07:34.296 --> 00:07:39.896 Yes. And in New York, the biennial statement is the part that Mainstay does for you. 00:07:40.680 --> 00:07:42.759 One last time, start to finish. 00:07:42.759 --> 00:07:47.800 Choose a name with LLC in it, set up the address for legal papers, file 00:07:47.864 --> 00:07:54.360 Form DOS 1336 for $200, publish for six weeks and file the 00:07:54.427 --> 00:08:01.640 $50 certificate, adopt a written operating agreement, get your free EIN, 00:08:01.740 --> 00:08:05.480 and file the $9 biennial statement every two years. 00:08:05.480 --> 00:08:10.760 The links to all three services and every official source are in the show notes. 00:08:10.817 --> 00:08:14.680 Thanks for listening to The Business Formation Podcast, and good luck with your new 00:08:14.740 --> 00:08:16.200 New York LLC.