Ready to file in Alabama?
The certificate of formation prepared and filed for you, the state fee shown on its own line before you pay, and the approved copy emailed.
File your Alabama LLCat america-llc-filing.com, or start on Standard Filings
What registering an LLC in Alabama means
Alabama keeps the register of companies formed under its law. Your LLC is on it the moment the Alabama Secretary of State files a Certificate of Formation. From that day the company can open a bank account, sign contracts and be sued in its own name rather than yours. The registration does not include a federal tax number, an Alabama tax account or a local business license; those come after and are separate registrations with other offices.
People use "register", "form" and "file" for the same act. In Alabama the act is one document, a Certificate of Formation, and one fee, $200. The step-by-step for everything around it, from the operating agreement to the bank account, is in how to start an LLC in Alabama; this page is about the registration itself.
- Alabama
- Certificate of Formation
- Alabama
- The Alabama Secretary of State (sos.alabama.gov)
- Alabama
- $200
- Alabama
- $28
- Alabama
- Required; Alabama street address
- Alabama
- Online filings are usually approved almost immediately.
- Alabama
- None offered
- Alabama
- None for LLCs
What it costs to register an LLC in Alabama
The filing fee is set by Alabama and is the same whether you file it yourself or a service files it for you. Alabama charges $200 plus a mandatory $28 state name reservation for the Certificate of Formation. The state name reservation ($28) is mandatory and is charged at the same time.
- Amount
- $200
- Notes
- Paid once, to the state
- Amount
- $28
- Notes
- Mandatory, charged with the filing
- Amount
- None offered
- Amount
- None for LLCs
State fees verified October 2026 and set by the state, not by us. Online filing prices. Yearly costs, the five-year total and how Alabama compares are in Alabama LLC cost.
Step 1: Confirm Alabama is the state to register in
Register where the company will actually operate. An LLC that does business in Alabama but registers elsewhere has to register in Alabama anyway, as a foreign LLC, and pay two states.
Wyoming, Delaware and Nevada come up because of privacy, case law or taxes. They make sense for a holding company or a business with no fixed location. A company that operates in Alabama and registers somewhere else ends up registered in both. The comparison is in cheapest states to form an LLC.
Step 2: Clear the name with Alabama
Alabama requires a name distinguishable from every company on its records, with an LLC designator. Alabama also requires a name reservation before the filing; the state charges $28 for it online. Search the state's business records at sos.alabama.gov before you file.
Rules on designators, restricted words and the distinguishability test are in LLC name rules. A rejection for a name conflict costs days and, in some states, a second fee.
Step 3: Name an Alabama registered agent
Alabama requires a registered agent with an Alabama street address, available in business hours. On the filing: No registered agent signature field on the Certificate of Formation.
Who may serve, whether the agent signs, and what becomes public: Alabama registered agent requirements.
Step 4: Prepare a Certificate of Formation
The Alabama form asks for the company name with its LLC designator, the registered agent and its Alabama street address, the principal or mailing address, and the organizer who signs. Signed 'as required by 10A-5A-2.04' by an organizer or attorney-in-fact. A filing service can sign as organizer and list itself as preparer. The rules on entity organizers are not stated on the form; a signer acting for an entity is an individual typing a name and title. Everything on it becomes a public record; what Alabama shows is listed below.
The document itself, and what every state's version asks for, is explained in articles of organization.
Step 5: File a Certificate of Formation and pay the $200 fee
Filed with the Alabama Secretary of State (sos.alabama.gov). The state fee is $200 plus a mandatory $28 state name reservation, paid once. Alabama publishes this guidance on processing: Online filings are usually approved almost immediately.
Alabama takes the filing from the public at sos.alabama.gov. Ready to file? The Certificate of Formation prepared and filed for you, with the state fee on its own line: form your Alabama LLC at america-llc-filing.com.
Step 6: Complete the Alabama registrations that follow
3 registrations follow in Alabama: (1) Alabama Business Privilege Tax initial return (Form BPT-IN); (2) Annual business privilege tax return (Form PPT); (3) Business license from the county probate judge or license commissioner. Then the federal tax number and the operating agreement.
The order and the deadlines are in what to do after forming an LLC. The recurring state report is the one owners forget.
What becomes public when you register in Alabama
Everything on a Certificate of Formation is a public record once Alabama files it; anyone can pull it from the state's business search. On the Alabama filing: No members or managers. Only the organizer or attorney-in-fact (signature, typed name, title) and the preparer's name and full address.
Signed 'as required by 10A-5A-2.04' by an organizer or attorney-in-fact. A filing service can sign as organizer and list itself as preparer. The rules on entity organizers are not stated on the form; a signer acting for an entity is an individual typing a name and title. The operating agreement, the ownership split and the tax election are not filed with Alabama and stay private. Do you need an operating agreement?
How long Alabama takes to register an LLC
Alabama publishes this guidance on processing: Online filings are usually approved almost immediately. Alabama offers no paid expedite for this filing. The figures are the state's own and move with its workload; a rejection for a name conflict or a missing agent consent restarts the clock. Every state's published time is in how long it takes to form an LLC.
Ready to register your Alabama LLC?
Name checked, Certificate of Formation prepared and filed with Alabama, the $200 state fee on its own line, approved copy emailed.
After registration in Alabama
The state registration is the first of several. These are the ones Alabama owners run into, in the order they usually come up.
- Alabama Business Privilege Tax initial return (Form BPT-IN) Due 2.5 months after formation. Cost: Not required if the computed tax is $100 or less, which is exempt for tax years beginning after 12/31/2023 under Act 2022-252. Most new small LLCs fall under this.
- Annual business privilege tax return (Form PPT) Due annually. Cost: only if the tax exceeds $100.
- Business license from the county probate judge or license commissioner. Due before doing business. Cost: varies by county and business type.
- Federal tax number (EIN). Issued by the IRS after the state registration, at no charge; the bank asks for it. How to get one: Alabama EIN number.
- Operating agreement. Not filed with Alabama, but the document that says who owns the company and who can sign for it.
Before you file in Alabama
From Alabama's published forms and filing instructions:
- The name reservation must be obtained and its certificate or number supplied before formation.
Sources
The Alabama facts on this page come from the state's own forms, fee schedules and statutes, read for the October 2026 fee audit. Fees change; the state's page is the final word.
- sos.alabama.gov/business-entities/llcs
- sos.alabama.gov/sites/default/files/2026-03/DomesticLLCFormation.pdf
- sos.alabama.gov/sites/default/files/2022-01/domesticEntityNameReservation.pdf
- sos.alabama.gov/sites/default/files/form-files/FeeSchedule.pdf
- sos.alabama.gov/sites/default/files/2022-01/2021FeeSchedule.pdf
- sos.alabama.gov/newsroom/secretary-state-reduce-online-business-filing-fees
- revenue.alabama.gov/faqs/what-is-an-initial-return-when-is-it-due/
- revenue.alabama.gov/individual-corporate/alabama-business-privilege-tax-and-corporate-share-tax/
Standard Filings is a filing service, not a law firm. This page is general information from Alabama's published filing rules and fee schedules, not legal or tax advice.
Alabama LLC registration FAQ
How much does it cost to register an LLC in Alabama?+
Alabama charges $200 plus a mandatory $28 state name reservation to file the Certificate of Formation, paid once to the state and the same whether you file yourself or use a service. There is no recurring state report for Alabama LLCs. State fees verified October 2026; the full picture is in Alabama LLC cost.
Where do I register an LLC in Alabama?+
With the Alabama Secretary of State (sos.alabama.gov). That is the only office that creates the company. Tax accounts, the registrations listed above and local licenses are registered separately afterwards.
How long does Alabama take to register an LLC?+
Alabama publishes this guidance on processing: Online filings are usually approved almost immediately. Alabama offers no paid expedite for this filing.
Do I need an Alabama registered agent?+
Yes. Alabama requires a registered agent with an Alabama street address, available in business hours. On the filing: No registered agent signature field on the Certificate of Formation. Who may serve and what becomes public is in Alabama registered agent requirements.
Can I register an Alabama LLC from out of state?+
Yes. Alabama takes filings from anyone, but the registered agent must have an Alabama street address, so an out-of-state owner names an Alabama resident or a registered agent company. If the company does business where you live, it registers there too, as a foreign LLC.
What do I file in Alabama every year?+
Alabama has no recurring annual report for LLCs. Alabama LLCs do not file an annual report with the Secretary of State (since Jan 1, 2024 the Secretary of State takes annual reports only from corporations). A Business Privilege Tax return may still apply for larger entities (exempt when the calculated tax is $100 or less). Formation still requires a name reservation; the state's $28 online reservation fee is included in Alabama filing & processing at checkout. Other recurring items: Alabama Business Privilege Tax initial return (Form BPT-IN); Annual business privilege tax return (Form PPT); Business license from the county probate judge or license commissioner.
More on Alabama
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