Ohio LLC, Corporation, and Nonprofit Formation Service

How do you form an LLC in Ohio?

An Ohio LLC exists once the Secretary of State files its Articles of Organization. There is no separate state license to apply for first and no annual report to file afterward. The work is in getting the articles right the first time. In order, it goes like this:

1. Pick a name that meets Ohio's naming rules and is distinguishable from names already on the state record.
2. Choose a statutory agent with an Ohio street address. The agent signs a written acceptance, and the state will not file the articles without it.
3. Prepare the Articles of Organization. The Secretary of State's current forms list shows this as Form 610, which replaced the older Form 533A.
4. File online with the Ohio Secretary of State and pay the $99 filing fee set by ORC 111.16(F).
5. Wait for the state to process the filing. Standard processing takes several business days, and expedited processing is available for an added state fee.

Our Ohio LLC formation service does all five steps. You give us the name, the owners, and the addresses. We check the name, prepare the articles with us named as your agent, file them, and upload the filed articles and the state receipt to your portal.

What goes into Ohio Articles of Organization

The articles are a short public filing. They are not the place for profit splits, voting rules, or what happens when a member leaves; those belong in the operating agreement, which you keep privately. What the state does care about:

• The LLC's name, ending in "limited liability company," "LLC," "L.L.C.," "limited," or "ltd." as ORC 1706.07(A) requires.
• The appointment of a statutory agent at an Ohio address, signed for the company, plus the agent's signed acceptance (ORC 1706.09(B)).
• The other entries the state form asks for, such as the organizer's name and address and the principal office address you give us.

Everything on the articles is public. The agent's name and address show on the Secretary of State's business search. If you name yourself as agent, ORC 1706.09(C) requires the street address of your primary residence in Ohio. Naming us puts our Litchfield office address there instead.

Read the articles before they are filed. Changing a filed name takes an amendment and a $50 state fee. Spell the name exactly as you want it to appear on bank accounts, contracts, and licenses, and double-check every address you give us.

Ohio business name rules before you file

Under ORC 1706.07(B), the Secretary of State will not accept articles for an LLC whose name is not distinguishable on its records from names already in use. That list includes other LLCs, corporations, limited partnerships, limited liability partnerships, and registered trade names that carry an exclusive right. A registered trade name can block your LLC name, so the check covers more than other LLCs.

There is one exception. ORC 1706.07(C) lets you use a name that is not distinguishable if the holder of the existing name gives written, signed consent. That is uncommon, but it happens between related businesses. If the name you want is taken and no consent is coming, you can still form under a different legal name and register the name you want to use publicly as a trade name, if it is available for that filing.

If you have a name and are not ready to file, you can reserve it. A reservation gives you the exclusive right to the name for 180 days (ORC 1706.07(E)) for a $39 state fee. If you are filing within a few days, skip the reservation and file the articles. We check availability on Ohio Business Central before we prepare anything.

How to start a corporation in Ohio

A for-profit corporation is formed by filing Articles of Incorporation, Form 532A, with the Secretary of State. The structure is different from an LLC: shareholders own it, directors oversee it, officers run it, and the bylaws govern it internally. The articles themselves stay short.

The filing fee depends on the number of authorized shares. Under ORC 111.16(A), the fee is ten cents per share for the first thousand shares, with a minimum of $99. That means a corporation authorizing 990 shares or fewer pays the $99 minimum, and more shares cost more. How many shares to authorize is a decision for you and your accountant or attorney. We file whatever number you approve and confirm the state fee with you first.

As with an LLC, the state will not accept the articles without a written appointment of a statutory agent and the agent's signed acceptance. For a corporation, the incorporators, or a majority of them, sign the appointment (ORC 1701.07(B)).

One common mix-up: an S corporation is not a kind of Ohio entity. It is a federal tax status that an eligible corporation or LLC elects with the IRS on Form 2553. You form the Ohio corporation or LLC first, then your accountant decides whether the election makes sense. If it does, we can file the election as a separate service.

Ohio nonprofit incorporation

An Ohio nonprofit corporation is formed with Articles of Incorporation, Form 532B, for a $99 state fee. It needs a statutory agent under ORC 1702.06, with the same rules: an Ohio resident or an entity with an Ohio business address, no P.O. box, and a signed acceptance filed with the articles.

Two points trip up new nonprofits. First, incorporating with the state does not make the organization tax-exempt. Federal exemption is a separate application to the IRS, and your accountant or attorney can tell you whether and how to apply. Second, Ohio nonprofits have a recurring filing that LLCs and for-profit corporations do not. ORC 1702.59 requires a Statement of Continued Existence within each five years after incorporation or the last corporate filing. If it is not filed, the Secretary of State cancels the articles. A cancelled nonprofit can apply for reinstatement within two years.

We file the articles and serve as the statutory agent. We do not track the five-year filing for you, so put it on your calendar the day the articles come back.

Ohio LLC, corporation, and nonprofit filings side by side

Which one fits your business is a legal and tax question. We file the entity you choose. If you are unsure, talk to your attorney or accountant before you place the order. The tax treatment is a separate question too: an LLC or corporation can elect S-corporation taxation with the IRS, which we can file once your accountant says it makes sense.

Should you file Ohio articles yourself or use a formation service?

You can file Ohio Articles of Organization yourself. The form is online, the fee is the same $99 either way, and our filing guides walk through each entry. If you file on your own, you can still name us as your statutory agent; we sign the acceptance the state requires, and the $49 agent service works the same.

People order the formation service for a few plain reasons:

• They want someone else to run the name check and catch a conflict before the filing is rejected.
• They do not want their home address on the public record as the agent address.
• They are forming more than one entity at once and want the agent appointments set up together.
• They live outside Ohio and want an Ohio office handling the filing and the agent role from the start.

What the service does not include: legal advice about which entity to form, drafting the operating agreement or bylaws, or tax planning. For those, use your attorney and your accountant. We are a filing service and statutory agent, and we stay in that lane.

What our Ohio LLC formation service does

Our fee is $100, plus the $99 state filing fee, which we list separately so you can see what goes to Ohio and what comes to us. The order works the same way for an LLC, a corporation, or a nonprofit:

1. You place the order online or by phone with two or three name choices, the entity type, and the addresses we need.
2. We check the name on Ohio Business Central.
3. We review the order, confirm the state fee, and email you a secure card payment link before we file.
4. We prepare the articles, name ourselves as statutory agent, sign the acceptance, and file with the Secretary of State.
5. The filed articles, the state receipt, and a plain-language checklist of next steps appear in your portal.

What to have ready before you order

The order moves faster when the details are ready up front. Before you place it, gather:

• Two or three name choices, in order of preference, each with the ending you want (LLC, Inc., and so on). If the first is taken, the backup saves a round of email.
• The entity type: LLC, for-profit corporation, or nonprofit corporation.
• The principal office address, and the name and address of the organizer (LLC) or incorporator (corporation). The organizer can be you.
• For a corporation, the number of authorized shares and the purpose clause you want.
• The email and mobile number that should get notices once we are your agent.

Agent service starts the day the entity is formed and is $49 a year, billed through your portal. You will not have to switch agents later because the agent on the articles is already us.

After the state files your articles

A filed entity is a starting point. Most businesses take these steps next, roughly in this order:

• Get an EIN from the IRS. Banks ask for it before they open an account. We offer this as a separate service, and you can also get one yourself from the IRS at no charge.
• Sign an operating agreement (LLC) or adopt bylaws (corporation). We do not draft these; your attorney can.
• Open a business bank account in the entity's exact legal name.
• Register with the Ohio Business Gateway for state tax accounts your business needs. Your accountant can tell you which apply.
• If you will sell or advertise under a name other than the filed one, register a trade name.

Keep the filed articles, the state receipt, and your EIN letter together. Banks, landlords, and licensing offices ask for them in some combination, and keeping all three in one place means you can send them the same day someone asks. What you do not need to add: an annual report. Ohio LLCs and for-profit corporations do not file one. Keep a current statutory agent on record and file changes when something on the record changes.