Forming an LLC in Maryland costs $100 to file the Articles of Organization, and then $300 every year to file the combined annual report and personal property tax return. That answers most of the question of how much an LLC costs in Maryland, but your real total depends on whether you pay for expedited processing, hire a resident agent service, register a trade name, or have an attorney draft your operating agreement.
What You Pay to Form the LLC
The one required formation charge is the $100 filing fee for the Articles of Organization, paid to the Maryland State Department of Assessments and Taxation (SDAT). It is nonrefundable, whether SDAT approves your filing or not.1Maryland General Assembly. Maryland Corporations and Associations Code 1-203 – Fees
You can file online through Maryland Business Express, by mail, or in person at SDAT’s Baltimore office. Standard processing can take up to six weeks, though SDAT typically completes it in about four.2Maryland Department of Assessments and Taxation. Charter Legal FAQ
Expedited Processing
If you don’t want to wait, add $50 for expedited service.3Maryland Department of Assessments and Taxation. SDAT Corporate Charter Fee Schedule With expedited processing, online filings take about seven business days, mailed filings about ten, and documents hand-delivered by 4:00 p.m. are completed the same business day. A two-hour guaranteed turnaround is available if you submit by 2:30 p.m., but it adds another $425 on top of the $50 expedited fee and exists mainly for closing a business deal.2Maryland Department of Assessments and Taxation. Charter Legal FAQ
Resident Agent
Every Maryland LLC must name a resident agent to receive legal documents. The agent must be an individual who lives in Maryland, a Maryland corporation, or a Maryland LLC.4Maryland General Assembly. Maryland Corporations and Associations Code 1-101 – Definitions Serving as your own agent costs nothing. A commercial resident agent service typically runs $100 to $300 per year and is worth the money if you’d rather not list your home address publicly or need someone reliably available during business hours.
What You Pay Every Year
The $300 annual report fee is the largest recurring cost. Maryland combines the annual report and the business personal property tax return into a single filing due April 15 every year. You owe the $300 even if your LLC earned nothing, owns no property, and did no business during the prior year, and SDAT will not accept the report without payment.5Maryland Department of Assessments and Taxation. Instructions for Form 1 – Annual Report and Business Personal Property Return
The MarylandSaves Waiver
Enrolling in MarylandSaves can waive the full $300 fee for the following year’s annual report. SDAT publishes a list of approved SDAT IDs so you can check whether your business already qualifies.6Maryland Department of Assessments and Taxation. Businesses in Maryland – SDAT For eligible owners, this zeroes out the biggest ongoing cost of keeping a Maryland LLC alive.
Late Penalties
Missing April 15 triggers a penalty on a sliding scale, with both a minimum and a $500 maximum:
- 1–15 days late: $30 to $500
- 16–30 days late: $40 to $500
- 31 or more days late: $50 to $500
You cannot prepay. SDAT calculates the penalty after you file the late return and sends a bill by mail.5Maryland Department of Assessments and Taxation. Instructions for Form 1 – Annual Report and Business Personal Property Return
Forfeiture and Reinstatement
Keep ignoring the report and your LLC loses its Good Standing status and faces administrative forfeiture, which means it cannot legally operate in Maryland.7Maryland Business Express. Maintain Good Standing Status Reviving a forfeited LLC costs $100 for Articles of Reinstatement, or $150 expedited, plus every overdue annual report fee. If the company reported owning tangible personal property, you’ll also owe back personal property taxes and must obtain a tax clearance certificate from the county or city where the property sat before SDAT will process the reinstatement.8Maryland Department of Assessments & Taxation. Articles or Certificate of Reinstatement Guide
Costs That Should Stay at Zero
A few expenses that look mandatory aren’t. Getting them for free is a matter of knowing where to go.
An Employer Identification Number from the IRS is free, issued immediately through the IRS website.9Internal Revenue Service. Get an Employer Identification Number Third-party services that charge for an EIN are selling you something you can do yourself in a few minutes. Most LLCs need one to open a business bank account or if the business has employees.
An operating agreement is not required by Maryland. The LLC statute says members “may enter into an operating agreement” and that the agreement “need not be in writing” unless the Articles of Organization require it.10Maryland General Assembly. Maryland Code Corporations and Associations 4A-402 You can write one yourself using a template at no cost. An attorney-drafted agreement for a more complex multi-member business typically runs several hundred dollars up to around $1,000.
Federal Beneficial Ownership Information (BOI) reporting under the Corporate Transparency Act no longer applies to Maryland LLCs. As of March 2025, FinCEN exempted all domestic entities through an interim final rule and is not enforcing penalties against them.11FinCEN.gov. Beneficial Ownership Information Reporting If a service tries to charge you to file one, you don’t need it.
Optional SDAT Fees
These filings aren’t required to form or maintain an LLC, but you may want one or two of them depending on how your business operates and what your bank asks for.
- Name reservation: $25 to hold a chosen LLC name for 30 days while you prepare your paperwork.12Maryland Department of Assessments & Taxation. Corporate Name Reservation Application
- Trade name registration: $25 if your LLC operates under a name different from its legal name, with an extra $50 for expedited handling.13Maryland Department of Assessments & Taxation. Trade Name Application
- Certified copies of charter documents: $20 for the first copy, plus $1 per additional page.3Maryland Department of Assessments and Taxation. SDAT Corporate Charter Fee Schedule
- Certificate of Status: $20 by mail, with another $20 to expedite.14Maryland Department of Assessments and Taxation. Certificate of Status
Banks and lenders often ask for a Certificate of Status or a certified copy of the Articles of Organization when you open an account or apply for a loan, so plan on at least one of these early.
Taxes and Banking
Maryland treats single-member and multi-member LLCs as pass-through entities, so the business itself pays no separate Maryland income tax. Income flows to each member’s personal Maryland return. The state’s personal income tax tops out at 5.75 percent on taxable income above $250,000 for single filers or $300,000 for joint filers, and your county may add a local income tax on top.15Maryland Department of Commerce. Business Taxes
A separate business bank account isn’t a state requirement, but keeping business and personal money apart is how you preserve the liability protection the LLC provides. Many banks offer free business checking with no monthly fee. Premium accounts with higher transaction limits can run up to $95 per month, so shopping around keeps this line item at zero if you want it there.