California Form 568: Filing Requirements, Fees, and Due Dates

California Form 568, the Limited Liability Company Return of Income, is the annual state return every LLC doing business in California or registered with the Secretary of State must file with the Franchise Tax Board. It reports the LLC’s income, settles the $800 annual tax, and calculates any additional fee owed on California-source income. The due date and the paperwork around it shift depending on how your LLC is classified, and the penalties for missing a step stack on top of each other.

Who Has to File

Every LLC that is doing business in California or registered with the California Secretary of State must file Form 568 each year.¹ That covers domestic LLCs organized here and foreign LLCs registered to transact business in the state. “Doing business” is read broadly: any transaction for financial gain inside California is enough.

The requirement does not depend on income. If your articles of organization or certificate of registration are on file with the Secretary of State, you file. A single-member LLC that the IRS treats as a disregarded entity still files Form 568 at the state level, separately from the owner’s personal return. Multi-member LLCs file whether they’re taxed as partnerships or have elected corporate treatment. California looks at the legal structure, not the federal tax box.

The $800 Annual Tax

Every California LLC owes an annual tax of $800 under Revenue and Taxation Code Section 17941.² It is owed whether or not the LLC earned a dollar. A dormant LLC that did nothing for twelve months still owes $800.

Payment is due on the 15th day of the 4th month of the taxable year. For calendar-year filers that’s April 15, and it is a separate deadline from the return. Pay it with FTB Form 3522, the LLC Tax Voucher, or through the Franchise Tax Board’s online payment system.

The brief first-year waiver that applied to LLCs formed between January 1, 2021 and December 31, 2023 has expired.¹ LLCs organized in 2024 or later owe the $800 in their first year.

The Graduated LLC Fee

On top of the $800, an LLC owes an additional fee tied to its total California income. Revenue and Taxation Code Section 17942 sets the brackets:³

$250,000 to $499,999: $900
$500,000 to $999,999: $2,500
$1,000,000 to $4,999,999: $6,000
$5,000,000 or more: $11,790

LLCs with California income under $250,000 owe no additional fee.

The definition of “total income” is where owners get surprised. California defines it as gross income plus the cost of goods sold connected to the trade or business in the state.⁴ That tracks gross receipts, not profit. An LLC that grosses $600,000 and nets $50,000 still lands in the $2,500 bracket. Income passed through from another LLC that already paid its own fee is excluded, so the same dollars aren’t counted twice.³

The June 15 Estimated Fee

The graduated fee has its own prepayment deadline that trips many filers. You must estimate the current year’s fee and pay it by the 15th day of the 6th month of the current tax year, which is June 15 for calendar-year filers.⁵ You’re paying forward on the year you’re in, not the year the return will cover.

Use FTB Form 3536 to send the estimate by mail, or pay through the FTB’s Web Pay portal. Paying online or by credit card means you don’t need to mail the form. The prior year’s Schedule IW (LLC Income Worksheet), filled in with projected current-year figures, is the standard way to estimate.⁵ If the LLC’s tax year ends before the 15th day of the 6th month, no estimate is due and the full fee is paid with the return.

Return Due Dates and Extensions

When Form 568 itself is due depends on the LLC’s structure:⁶

Multi-member LLCs taxed as partnerships: 15th day of the 3rd month after the close of the tax year. Calendar-year filers, March 15.
Single-member LLCs owned by an individual or non-pass-through entity: 15th day of the 4th month. Calendar-year filers, April 15.
Single-member LLCs owned by an S corporation, partnership, or entity treated as a partnership: 15th day of the 3rd month. Calendar-year filers, March 15.

California grants an automatic extension in most cases with no separate form. Partnership-classified LLCs get seven months. Single-member LLCs get six months, except those owned by a partnership or entity treated as a partnership, which get seven.⁷ The extension pushes only the filing deadline. Interest on unpaid tax or fees keeps running from the original due date.

If the LLC owes nonconsenting nonresident members’ tax, send payment with FTB Form 3537 by the original due date. If nothing is owed, no form is needed for the extension.

What You Need Before You File

Download the current year’s Form 568 and instruction booklet from the Franchise Tax Board website. The administrative sections ask for:

LLC legal name exactly as it appears on your Secretary of State formation documents.
Secretary of State file number: a 12-digit number for older entities, or a 12-character ID beginning with “B” for newer registrations.⁸
Federal Employer Identification Number (FEIN).
Principal business activity code: the six-digit NAICS code for your industry.
Names and addresses of all managing members or managers.

The financial sections capture gross income, cost of goods sold, deductions, and the LLC fee calculation on Schedule B. Multi-member LLCs also complete and attach California Schedule K-1 (568) for each member with a California address, reporting their share of income using the tax basis method.⁴

How to Submit the Return

You can e-file Form 568 through authorized tax software connected to the FTB’s e-file system, which returns a confirmation number as proof. It’s the fastest route and reduces processing errors.

If you file by mail, the address depends on whether you’re sending payment with it:⁹

With payment: Franchise Tax Board, PO Box 942857, Sacramento CA 94257-0501
Without payment: Franchise Tax Board, PO Box 942857, Sacramento CA 94257-0500

Outstanding tax or fees can also be paid through the FTB’s online portal separately from the return. After filing, you can check status through the FTB website.

Penalties and Interest

California has several penalties for Form 568 noncompliance, and they can run at the same time.

Late Filing

An LLC that doesn’t file by the due date, including any extension, owes 5% of the unpaid tax for each month or partial month the return is late, up to 25%.¹⁰ If you took an extension but still missed the extended date, the FTB voids the extension and runs the penalty from the original due date.

Late Payment

The failure-to-pay penalty starts at 5% and adds 0.5% each month the tax stays unpaid, capping at 25% after 40 months. When late filing and late payment both apply, the combined total still cannot exceed 25% of the unpaid tax.¹⁰

Incomplete Returns

If you file Form 568 but leave out required information, including missing or incomplete Schedule K-1 forms, the penalty is $18 per member per month, for up to twelve months.¹⁰ A ten-member LLC accrues $180 a month and up to $2,160 over a year.

Estimated Fee Underpayment

Underpay the estimated LLC fee due June 15 (for calendar-year filers) and the FTB adds a flat 10% penalty on the shortfall. The shortfall is the actual fee owed for the year minus what you paid by the estimated due date. You avoid the penalty if the amount you paid equals or exceeds the prior year’s total LLC fee.⁵

Interest

Interest runs on any unpaid tax from the original due date regardless of whether an extension was filed. The extension buys time to file, not time to pay.

A Note on Federal Filings

Form 568 is the state obligation. Your federal filings run separately: single-member disregarded LLCs report business income on the owner’s Form 1040 using Schedule C, E, or F,¹¹ and multi-member LLCs taxed as partnerships file federal Form 1065 with a Schedule K-1 for each member.¹² Electing corporate or S corporation treatment at the federal level with Form 8832 or Form 2553 changes those federal returns but does not eliminate the California Form 568 requirement.¹³

Stopping the Yearly Filing Obligation

The $800 tax and the Form 568 filing requirement keep accruing every year the LLC exists on the Secretary of State’s records. If the business is done, formal cancellation is the only way to end it.

File a Certificate of Cancellation (Form LLC-4/7) with the Secretary of State. If the dissolution was not approved by all members, you first file a Certificate of Dissolution (Form LLC-3). Neither form has a filing fee.¹⁴ LLCs formed in the last twelve months that meet certain conditions can use the simplified Short Form Cancellation Certificate (Form LLC-4/8).

On the tax side, file a final Form 568 with the FTB, check the “Final Return” box, and pay any remaining tax and fees through the date of cancellation. Until both the Secretary of State cancellation and the final FTB return are complete, the LLC still owes the $800 each year.

1
Franchise Tax Board. Limited Liability Company
2
Franchise Tax Board. Legal Ruling 2011-03
3
California Legislative Information. California Revenue and Taxation Code 17942
4
Franchise Tax Board. 2025 Instructions for Form 568 Limited Liability Company Tax Booklet
5
Franchise Tax Board. 2026 FTB 3536 Estimated Fee for LLCs
6
Franchise Tax Board. Due Dates Businesses
7
Franchise Tax Board. 2024 California Form 3537 Payment for Automatic Extension for LLCs
8
California Secretary of State. bizfile – Entity Number Update
9
Franchise Tax Board. Mailing Addresses
10
Franchise Tax Board. 2024 Instructions for Form 568 Limited Liability Company Tax Booklet
11
Internal Revenue Service. Single Member Limited Liability Companies
12
Internal Revenue Service. About Form 1065, U.S. Return of Partnership Income
13
Internal Revenue Service. About Form 8832, Entity Classification Election
14
California Secretary of State. LLC Certificate of Dissolution, Certificate of Cancellation, and Short Form Cancellation Certificate