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New York state guide · Formation

How to form a
New York LLC

Forming a New York LLC is a filing, not a ceremony. Here is the actual process — what gets submitted to the NY Division of Corporations, how long approval takes, and what arrives in your inbox when it's done.

Filing agencyNY Division of Corporations
State filing fee$200
Typical approval5–7 business days
Publication2 newspapers, 6 weeks

The filing, in plain English

A New York LLC is created when the New York Department of State, Division of Corporations accepts your Articles of Organization and issues a certificate. Everything else — the EIN, the operating agreement, the bank account — happens around that central act. Our $299 flat service walks through all of it; you pay the New York filing fee of $200 separately, directly to the state.

Most founders forming a single-member New York LLC are done in 5–7 business days of standard processing time. Multi-member filings take about the same; the additional complexity lives in the operating agreement, not at the state.

New York note

New York has a publication requirement: within 120 days of formation, your LLC must publish a notice in two newspapers — one daily, one weekly — designated by the county clerk, for six consecutive weeks. After publication you file a Certificate of Publication with the Department of State. Costs vary by county and are steepest in Manhattan, where total publication expense routinely exceeds $1,500.

The six steps we take

  1. I.

    Confirm your name is available

    We check your chosen LLC name against the NY Division of Corporations database before anything is submitted. If the first choice is taken, we call before filing — we do not submit a filing you did not authorize.

  2. II.

    Draft the Articles of Organization

    A formation specialist prepares the Articles to New York's exact format, with your members, agent for service of process, principal office address, and effective date.

  3. III.

    Submit electronically

    Filed through the NY Division of Corporations's online system. Your New York agent for service of process of record is our Albany office for the first year.

  4. IV.

    New York approves the LLC

    Approval typically arrives in 5–7 business days. We watch the queue daily and forward the stamped certificate the moment it clears.

  5. V.

    We obtain the EIN

    Once the LLC is approved, we file SS-4 with the IRS to get your Employer Identification Number — the federal tax ID you need to open a business bank account.

  6. VI.

    We deliver the bank-ready packet

    Stamped certificate, EIN letter, custom operating agreement drafted to your ownership structure, and your agent for service of process confirmation. You sign the operating agreement and open the account.

What you need to have ready

Before we file, we need a handful of decisions from you. None of them are heavy, but we have to confirm each one on the reservation call:

  • A New York LLC name — ending in "LLC," "L.L.C.," or "Limited Liability Company," distinguishable from other New York entities.
  • A principal office address — home, commercial, or mail-forwarding. Becomes part of the public record.
  • Members — the individuals or entities that own the LLC. New York allows single-member LLCs.
  • Management structure — member-managed (most common) or manager-managed. We draft the operating agreement to match.
  • An effective date — either immediately on approval, or a future date if you want a January 1 start for tax reasons.

What's included in the $299 flat fee

State filingArticles of Organization, by a formation specialist
EIN includedFederal tax ID, issued by the IRS after approval
Operating agreementDrafted to your ownership structure — not a template
Agent for service of processOne year included in New York, Albany on file

The $299 is a flat service fee for everything on our side. New York's state filing fee of $200 is paid directly to the NY Division of Corporations and is the same whether you file with us or on your own. There are no upsells — no basic, plus, or premium tiers. One price, four things.

Ready to form in New York?

$299 flat, plus New York's $200 state fee.

Reservation takes three minutes. A formation specialist in Albany handles the rest.

Start your New York filing