To form an LLC in Arizona, you file Articles of Organization with the Arizona Corporation Commission (ACC) for a $50 fee, name a statutory agent who accepts the role in writing, and — if your agent isn’t in Maricopa or Pima County — publish a notice of formation in an approved newspaper within 60 days of approval. From name check to approval, the process usually takes two to four weeks. Arizona keeps ongoing compliance light: no annual report, no annual fee.
Choose a Compliant Business Name
Your LLC’s name has to be distinguishable from every other business entity already registered with the ACC, and it must include one of the accepted designators: “Limited Liability Company,” “Limited Company,” “LLC,” “L.L.C.,” “LC,” or “L.C.”1Arizona Corporation Commission. Instructions for Articles of Organization
A few words are off-limits or restricted. You can’t use “corporation,” “incorporated,” or “association” (or their abbreviations) in an LLC name. Banking and financial terms like “bank,” “trust,” “credit union,” “deposit,” and “savings” require prior written approval from the Arizona Department of Financial Institutions before the ACC will accept the filing.1Arizona Corporation Commission. Instructions for Articles of Organization
When the ACC checks distinguishability, it ignores entity-type identifiers like “LLC” or “Inc.” So “Phoenix Design LLC” and “Phoenix Design Inc.” are treated as the same name.2Arizona Corporation Commission. Determining Distinguishability of Entity Names Search the ACC’s online business entity database before you settle on a name.
Appoint a Statutory Agent
Every Arizona LLC must designate a statutory agent to receive legal documents, including lawsuit papers, on the LLC’s behalf. The agent must be either an individual who permanently resides in Arizona or a business entity authorized to operate in the state.3Arizona Legislature. Arizona Code 29-3115 – Statutory Agent
The agent needs a permanent physical street address in Arizona. A P.O. Box doesn’t satisfy the street-address requirement, though a separate P.O. Box can be listed as a mailing address.1Arizona Corporation Commission. Instructions for Articles of Organization You can act as your own agent if you live in the state, or hire a commercial service, which typically costs $50 to $200 a year.
Your agent has to sign an acceptance form (Form M002), which you submit with your Articles of Organization. Without it, the filing gets rejected.4Arizona Corporation Commission. Articles of Organization L010
File Your Articles of Organization
The Articles of Organization (Form L010) is the document that officially creates your LLC. You can file online through the ACC’s Arizona Business Center portal, which replaced the former eCorp system on January 12, 2026,5Arizona Corporation Commission. Arizona Business Center – ACC’s New Online Business Filing Portal to Debut January 12, 2026 or submit paper filings by mail or in person at the Phoenix or Tucson offices.
The form asks for the LLC’s name, statutory agent details, principal address, and management structure. You’ll pick one of two structures:
- Member-managed, where all owners share authority over day-to-day decisions. This is Arizona’s default and the common choice for small LLCs.
- Manager-managed, where one or more designated managers run the business while other members stay passive.
Whichever structure you choose, attach the matching form: Form L041 for member-managed or Form L040 for manager-managed. Skip the attachment and the ACC rejects the filing.4Arizona Corporation Commission. Articles of Organization L010
Fees and Processing Time
Standard filing costs $50. Expedited processing costs $85.6Arizona Corporation Commission. Fee Schedule – LLCs As of late 2025, standard processing for new LLCs ran about 9 to 11 business days, with expedited filings coming back in 2 to 4 business days.7Arizona Corporation Commission. Document Processing Times Timelines shift, so check the ACC’s posted schedule before you file.
Publish Notice of Formation
After the ACC approves your Articles, you have 60 days to publish a notice of formation in an approved newspaper in the county where your statutory agent is located. The notice runs three consecutive times and includes the LLC’s name, the agent’s name and address, and the LLC’s principal place of business.
If your statutory agent is in Maricopa or Pima County, the ACC handles publication for you. For every other county, you contact an approved newspaper directly and arrange it yourself. Costs generally run $60 to $300 depending on the paper, and many offer flat-rate LLC publication packages.
Get an EIN and Register for Arizona Taxes
Once the ACC approves the LLC, apply for a federal Employer Identification Number from the IRS. You need it to file taxes, open a business bank account, and hire employees. The IRS recommends forming your entity with the state before applying, because applying too early can delay the process.8Internal Revenue Service. Get an Employer Identification Number The online application at irs.gov is free and issues the number immediately.
If your LLC sells products or provides taxable services, you’ll need a Transaction Privilege Tax (TPT) license from the Arizona Department of Revenue. The state license fee is $12 per location, and you apply using the Arizona Joint Tax Application (Form JT-1/UC-001). A TPT license is required from the day you begin operations, including for home-based businesses and special-event vendors.9Arizona Department of Revenue. TPT License
If you plan to hire, the same joint application registers you with the Arizona Department of Economic Security for state unemployment insurance. You submit the form to the Department of Revenue, which forwards a copy to DES.10Arizona Department of Economic Security. Applying for an Unemployment Insurance Tax Account Number
Arizona doesn’t impose a separate entity-level tax on LLCs. A single-member LLC is treated as a disregarded entity, so income flows onto the owner’s personal Arizona return. Multi-member LLCs file as partnerships, and each member reports their share on their own return.
Write an Operating Agreement
Arizona doesn’t require an operating agreement, and you don’t file it with the state even if you write one.1Arizona Corporation Commission. Instructions for Articles of Organization Skipping it is still one of the more common mistakes new owners make.
The agreement spells out who owns what percentage, how profits and losses are split, what happens when a member leaves or a new one joins, and how major decisions get made. Without one, Arizona’s default LLC rules under Title 29 fill the gaps, and those defaults rarely match what the owners actually intended.11Arizona Legislature. Arizona Code 29-3105 – Operating Agreement Scope, Function and Limitations Single-member LLCs benefit too: a written agreement reinforces the legal separation between you and the business, which is the whole reason to form the LLC in the first place.
What You Owe the State After Formation
Arizona has some of the lightest ongoing LLC requirements in the country. No annual report. No annual fee.12Arizona Corporation Commission. Business Services FAQs
A few things still need attention. Open a dedicated business bank account in the LLC’s name, using your EIN; mixing personal and business money is the fastest way to lose the liability protection the LLC provides. If your statutory agent or principal address changes, file a Statement of Change (Form L020) with the ACC.13Arizona Corporation Commission. Instructions for LLC Statement of Change of Principal Address or Statutory Agent There’s no late-filing penalty, but stale information means legal notices can go to the wrong place.
If your LLC has employees, Arizona law requires workers’ compensation insurance. The requirement extends to working LLC members who own less than 50% of the company; they’re treated as employees for workers’ comp purposes. Members who own 50% or more can generally exclude themselves.14Industrial Commission of Arizona. Workers’ Compensation Insurance Employers’ Frequently Asked Questions If you have no employees and own at least half the company, the requirement doesn’t apply.
One boundary worth flagging: the federal Beneficial Ownership Information report under the Corporate Transparency Act. As of March 2025, FinCEN exempted all entities formed in the United States from BOI reporting. Only foreign companies registered to do business in a U.S. state currently have to file.15FinCEN.gov. Beneficial Ownership Information Reporting An LLC formed in Arizona does not need to submit a BOI report.