how to get llc license in nc [Expert Advice]

Last updated : Sept 22, 2022

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do you want to start and incorporate an llc in north carolina but unsure where to begin 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 important 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 north carolina llcs are cost effective and easy to set up the state of north carolina like other states has several specific llc requirements there are three main ways you can start an llc in north carolina first is the diy or do-it-yourself process where you mostly depend on north carolina 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 1 choose a name for your north carolina llc you will have to think of the llc's legal business name each llc in north carolina 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 north carolina 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 north carolina scroll down a little and you will see some search options which makes 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 car wash express 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 companies rights you can reserve a name for 120 days by filing an application to reserve a business entity name with the north carolina secretary of state the application must be filed by mail the filing fee is thirty dollars step two north carolina 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 who 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 north carolina llc certificate of formation after that you must file the certificate of formation with the north carolina secretary of state's business entities division and the office of the judge of probate to officially incorporate a domestic north carolina limited liability company the north carolina state filing cost for llcs is 125 dollars for both domestic llc's and foreign llcs 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 north carolina 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 5 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 north carolina 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 step six file annual reports with the north carolina secretary of state all north carolina llcs must file an annual report with the north carolina secretary of state llc annual reports are due for the year in which they are filed in other words if you form an llc on or before april 15th you must file your first annual report by the end of the same year you formed the company if you start your llc after april 15th you will not have to file an annual report until april 15th of the next calendar year you can file the annual report online at the secretary of state online annual report editor or by mail the filing fee is two hundred and two dollars and two hundred dollars for mail filings now let's talk about the second option to for

Thanks for your comment Myra Tero, have a nice day.
- Leopoldo Savina, Staff Member

Thanks for this interesting article

Thanks Terrence your participation is very much appreciated
- Leopoldo Savina

About the author

Leopoldo Savina

I've studied human-computer interaction at Tri-State Bible College in South Point and I am an expert in quantum chromodynamics. I usually feel enraged. My previous job was unemployment inspector I held this position for 25 years, I love talking about lacrosse and garage saling. Huge fan of Destiny's Child I practice jai alai and collect military items.