formation of an llc in texas [Expert Advice]

Last updated : Aug 21, 2022

How is an LLC formed in Texas?

Limited Liability Company: A Texas limited liability company is created by filing a certificate of formation with the Texas Secretary of State. The Secretary of State provides a form that meets minimum state law requirements. Online filing of a certificate of formation is provided through SOSDirect.

How much does it cost to form an LLC in Texas?

The basic total cost of forming an LLC in Texas is $300. The basic total cost of registering a foreign LLC in Texas is $750. The optional costs of a certified copy of the filing document, a certificate of status, and hiring an outside registered agent could raise this total by between $85 and $535.

Do I need a lawyer to form an LLC in Texas?

Although a business lawyer is not required, setting up an LLC without one may result in complex legal issues that may end up costing your LLC a significant expense. There are many reasons why it's beneficial to hire an experienced small business attorney in forming your LLC in Texas.

How long does it take for an LLC to be approved in Texas?

The office normally processes non-expedited documents within 5-7 business days. Expedited service is available for an additional $25 per document and expedited documents are generally processed by close of business the first business day following the date of receipt.

Does an LLC have to file a tax return in Texas?

Unlike many other states, Texas doesn't require LLCs to file annual reports. Texas imposes a franchise tax on most LLCs, which is payable to the Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts. Franchise tax is based on the LLC's “net surplus,” which is the net assets minus member contributions.

Do I need a DBA for my LLC in Texas?

When Do You Need a DBA? In Texas, all corporations, limited liability companies (LLCs), limited partnerships (LPs), limited liability partnerships (LLPs), or out of state companies that regularly conduct business in Texas under a name other than its legal name, must file a DBA with the Secretary of State.

What are the benefits of a LLC in Texas?

• Limited Liability Protection.
• Pass-through taxation.
• Tax options.
• Simplicity.
• Ownership flexibility.
• Increased credibility.
• Name registration.

Does an LLC expire in Texas?

In Texas, does an LLC have an expiration date? A limited liability company's articles of organization may allow its members to designate the duration of the company. An LLC's expiration date can be specified but if no expiration date is specified, the LLC might continue indefinitely.

What is better a DBA or LLC?

Registering a DBA does not typically give you exclusive rights to use your business name. Forming an LLC gives you more protection, because it ensures that another business entity can't be created in your state with the same name as your business.

Can I be my own registered agent in Texas?

Although an officer, owner, or employee may serve as an entity's registered agent, an entity may not serve as its own registered agent. An entity may contract for the provision of registered agent services from another business entity, such as a service company.

Can I be my own registered agent?

You can act as your own Registered Agent for a corporation or LLC as long as you have a physical street address in the state where your corporation or LLC is formed. The actual corporation or LLC being formed, however, cannot name itself as its own Registered Agent.

What type of attorney do I need to form an LLC?

A business lawyer if you need to change your business structure to a single-member LLC, S-corporation, or another type of business, or need help with another business-related legal matter. It can also be helpful to have a lawyer review necessary business contracts before signing.

What are the benefits of having an LLC?

A Limited liability company (LLC) is a business structure that offers limited liability protection and pass-through taxation. As with corporations, the LLC legally exists as a separate entity from its owners. Therefore, owners cannot typically be held personally responsible for the business debts and liabilities.

What is a certificate of formation in Texas?

A Certificate of Formation is a legal document that is filed in Texas with the secretary of state to create a corporation, limited liability company, and similar entities. Certificates of formation will contain the entity's basic information (name, registered agent, office address, share structure, etc.).

What is a sole proprietorship vs LLC?

An LLC exists separately from its owners—known as members. However, members are not personally responsible for business debts and liabilities. Instead, the LLC is responsible. A sole proprietorship is an unincorporated business owned and run by one person.

How much tax does an LLC pay in Texas?

Texas Taxes As mentioned above, Texas charges most local businesses the franchise tax, which is usually about 1% of some portion of the income of the company. This tax is leveled against LLCs, C Corporations, and S Corporations. Sole proprietorships and partnerships are immune to the tax.

How much tax does an LLC pay?

LLC self-employment taxes You'll pay these taxes directly to the IRS in the form of self-employment taxes. The total self-employment tax is 15.3%, and it's broken down into several parts: 12.4% social security tax on earnings up to $137,700. 2.9% Medicare tax on all earnings.

How are LLC taxes paid in Texas?

These taxes are handled through the Texas Workforce Commission (TWC). You can register for these taxes online or using TWC Form C-1 (Status Report). Then, each quarter, use TWC Forms C-3 and C-4 to report on wages and pay the UI taxes.

Can I run multiple businesses under one LLC?

The answer is yes--it is possible and permissible to operate multiple businesses under one LLC. Many entrepreneurs who opt to do this use what is called a "Fictitious Name Statement" or a "DBA" (also known as a "Doing Business As") to operate an additional business under a different name.

Do I need a separate bank account for a DBA?

You do not need to have separate bank accounts unless you also have separate DBAs. Many banks do not even charge you to have separate bank accounts and doing so can make the accounting and tax process much easier.

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do you want to start an llc in texas this year today you will learn about the most common ways to start your business including the correct forms you'll need how to register your llc critical naming requirements and all other vital tips and tricks then as a bonus later on in the video i will reveal to you a trustworthy registered agent who will help set up your llc for free so make sure to stick with me until the end the state of texas like other states has several specific llc requirements there are three main ways you can start an llc in texas first is the diy or do-it-yourself process where you mostly depend on texas state's website the second way is hiring a professional service that practically offers more efficiency and security in the process of creating your llc while the third one is hiring an attorney we will skip the attorney hiring portion because that's expensive and most business owners won't need that service first let's take a look at the steps required for starting an llc on your own step one name your business before anything else you will have to think of the llc's legal business name each llc in texas must have a distinct llc name that is not currently in use you must include the terms limited liability company or an abbreviation such as llc you cannot include phrases such as a corporation which would lead people to believe you are a different business organization knowing if your business name is taken or not is very easy just go to google and type in the words business entity records texas secretary of state and click the first search result i also have the link in the description below for your convenience it will lead you to a landing page of business entity records in texas scroll down a little and you will see some search options which make checking the availability of your business name easier generally you can click the first option entity name and type in your business name for example i am typing a very common business name here laundry mart which will give you a list of existing business names a unique business name will say no matches found just like this random name i typed in keep in mind that the division of revenue doesn't check names for trademark compliance it's ultimately up to you and your business attorney to ensure that your llc's name doesn't infringe on any other company's rights step two texas requires llc to have a registered agent an agent has a physical address a po box is not allowed and is available during business hours this agent will serve as the llc's primary point of contact for receiving key legal papers tax warnings summons subpoenas and so on you can register yourself or someone in your company but i highly recommend getting a professional registered agent as they have more knowledge by protecting your company in cases of possible cracks while i agree that family members or friends are reliable enough to be trusted as your llc's agent you are more comfortable sleeping at night knowing that your agent is professional and trained to manage legal documents to avoid problems concerning court schedules filing reports with the secretary of state etc besides hiring a professional registered agent is not expensive in fact there are companies that offer a free registered agent as part of your package when you form your llc through them inc file is a company i recommend which has this free service inc file offers a free registered agent on your first year of signing up for their service during that free year you can already take advantage of a professional and trained agent to receive legal documents on your behalf a dashboard where you can always access the correspondence that your agent has received as well as email notifications and automatic forwarding whenever your registered agent receives documents step 3 filing the texas llc certificate of formation after that you must file the certificate of formation with the texas secretary of state's business entities division and the office of the judge of probate to officially incorporate a domestic texas limited liability company the texas state filing cost for llcs is two hundred dollars for domestic llcs and 750 dollars for foreign llcs basically a domestic llc means that you are already a resident of texas and you want to build a business in texas foreign llc on the other hand is for people living outside texas but wanting to start a business or a franchise of their business in texas with that said most businesses would be applying for a domestic llc you can file the certificate of formation online or by mailing it to the secretary of state expect the llc certification process to take approximately two weeks this is three to four days for the judge of probate and ten days for the secretary of state step four prepare an operating agreement now an operating agreement is a good idea to have in place with the other members if your llc has more than one member although a limited liability company operating agreement is not necessary for texas your operating agreement should clarify how your company or business will handle big picture issues such as allocating earnings and losses and dissolving the company your operating agreement should also cover the transfer of membership interest profits or losses and distributions initial investments decision making powers voting rights and management and lastly dissolving the business step five of file annual reports unlike most states texas does not require llcs to file annual reports with the secretary of state however llcs must file annual franchise tax reports the details for computing the tax can be complicated for more information check the comptroller of public accounts website and texas llc annual filing requirements step 6 obtain an ein an ein or employer identification number is a federal tax id issued by the irs your ein is used by them to readily identify your firm and tax filings all texas firms pay a business privilege tax and the state requires you to have an ein to file you may also be required to provide your ein when opening a bank account or applying for municipal permits or licenses obtaining an ein is a slightly longer process compared to their previous steps i'm sure you know anything to do with the irs is confusing first you have to have complete knowledge of your llc such as your company information managing member information business address business information company details and even critical information regarding vehicular assets and federal excise taxes this is another reason why getting a professional registered agent is way more convenient as they can do this for you as part of their service now let's talk about the second option to form an llc and that is hiring a professional formation service professional formation services do all the steps you should be doing on your own from filing necessary forms to acting as your registered agent you usually have to allocate a specific budget for this option as i already mentioned earlier inc file is one of the best companies out there to help you form your llc you can click on the link in the description to get access to this

Thanks for your comment Julius Petrilli, have a nice day.
- Stewart Decou, Staff Member

Thanks for this interesting article

Thanks tammy12189 your participation is very much appreciated
- Stewart Decou

About the author

Stewart Decou

I've studied environmental law at University of Wyoming in Laramie and I am an expert in computational finance. I usually feel ashamed. My previous job was art appraiser I held this position for 12 years, I love talking about craft and go-karting. Huge fan of Joel Osteen I practice ice skating and collect military items.