To get an LLC in Arizona, you file Articles of Organization with the Arizona Corporation Commission (ACC), pay a $50 filing fee, appoint a statutory agent with an Arizona street address, and — unless your agent sits in Maricopa or Pima County — publish a formation notice in a local newspaper within 60 days of approval. Online filings typically process in about 14 to 16 days, and the whole setup can be done in a few weeks if you stay ahead of each deadline.
Pick and Clear a Name
Your LLC name must include “Limited Liability Company,” “Limited Company,” or an abbreviation such as “LLC,” “L.L.C.,” “LC,” or “L.C.” It also has to be distinguishable from every other entity already on file with the ACC or the Secretary of State, including active corporations, partnerships, reserved names, and registered trademarks.1Arizona Legislature. Arizona Revised Statutes 29-3112 – Permitted Names
Before you file anything, search the ACC’s online database to confirm your preferred name is available.2Arizona Corporation Commission. eCorp Search Submitting Articles of Organization with a name that’s already taken is one of the most common reasons filings get rejected.
If you want to lock in a name before you’re ready to file, you can reserve it for 120 days by submitting an Application to Reserve Limited Liability Company Name with a $10 fee.3Arizona Corporation Commission. Application to Reserve Limited Liability Company Name
One boundary worth knowing: registering a business name with the ACC only protects it within Arizona’s entity database. It is not a federal trademark, so another company could still hold trademark rights to the same or a similar name.4United States Patent and Trademark Office. How Trademarks and Trade Names Differ
Appoint a Statutory Agent
Every Arizona LLC must have a statutory agent, meaning a person or business designated to receive legal documents such as lawsuits and government notices on the company’s behalf. The agent must be an Arizona resident or a business authorized to operate in the state, with a physical street address here (not a P.O. Box).5Arizona Legislature. Arizona Code 29-3115 – Statutory Agent
The appointment isn’t final until the agent signs a document accepting the role and that acceptance is delivered to the ACC.5Arizona Legislature. Arizona Code 29-3115 – Statutory Agent Many owners name themselves to save money. That works fine if you’re comfortable with your address on public record and you’re reliably available at that address during business hours. Commercial statutory agent services typically charge $50 to $300 per year.
Keeping a current, reachable agent on file matters more than it sounds. If an agent moves, resigns, or has a bad address on file, you can miss notice of a lawsuit. Courts can enter a default judgment against an LLC that fails to respond, which means losing a case without knowing it existed.
File the Articles of Organization
The Articles of Organization (Form L010) is the document that officially creates your LLC. You’ll need:
- Your LLC name, formatted according to the naming rules above.
- A known place of business — a physical Arizona address where the company operates.
- Your statutory agent’s name and street address, plus their signed acceptance.
- Your management structure: member-managed or manager-managed.
- Duration, which is perpetual unless you choose a specific dissolution date.
The management choice deserves thought. In a member-managed LLC, all owners share authority over daily operations and can sign contracts on the company’s behalf. In a manager-managed LLC, one or more designated managers (who may or may not be owners) run the business while the remaining members stay passive. The choice is public and tells anyone doing business with your LLC who actually has authority to bind it.6Arizona Legislature. Arizona Revised Statutes 29-3201 – Formation of Limited Liability Company; Articles of Organization
Filing Options and Fees
You can submit online through the ACC’s Arizona Business Center (ABC) portal, which replaced the former eCorp system in January 2026, or by mail to the ACC’s Phoenix office.7Arizona Corporation Commission. Arizona Business Center – ACC’s New Online Business Filing Portal The filing fee is $50 for regular processing.8Arizona Corporation Commission. Schedule of Fees – LLCs
If you don’t want to wait, the ACC offers faster options:
- Expedited for $35 extra, typically 3 to 5 business days
- Next day for $100 extra
- Same day for $200 extra
- Two-hour for $400 extra
Regular processing currently runs about 14 to 16 days.9Arizona Corporation Commission. Business Services FAQs Factor that into your timeline, because the 60-day publication clock starts the day the ACC approves your filing, not the day you submit it.
Publish the Formation Notice
Arizona is one of a handful of states that requires newly formed LLCs to publish a formation notice in a local newspaper. Within 60 days after the ACC files your Articles of Organization, you must run the notice for three consecutive publications in a newspaper of general circulation in the county where your statutory agent’s street address is located.6Arizona Legislature. Arizona Revised Statutes 29-3201 – Formation of Limited Liability Company; Articles of Organization
There’s one major exception. If your statutory agent’s address sits in a county with more than 800,000 residents, the ACC handles the notification by posting it to its online database instead.6Arizona Legislature. Arizona Revised Statutes 29-3201 – Formation of Limited Liability Company; Articles of Organization Right now, that covers Maricopa County and Pima County. Agents in either county, no newspaper step.
For everyone else: contact a newspaper of general circulation in the correct county shortly after approval. Most newspapers that handle legal notices are familiar with LLC publications and will format the notice for you. Costs typically range from $60 to $300 depending on the county and newspaper. Once the three-week run finishes, the newspaper provides an Affidavit of Publication. You can file that affidavit with the ACC as proof of compliance, and you should keep a copy with your company records.
Watch the county detail. The statute ties publication to the county of the statutory agent’s street address, not necessarily where your business physically operates. If those are different, publish in the agent’s county.
Missing the 60-day window can lead to the ACC administratively dissolving your LLC. That’s fixable through reinstatement, but it creates a gap in your legal existence that can complicate contracts, bank accounts, and liability protection.
Get an EIN from the IRS
Once your LLC is formed with the state, apply for a federal Employer Identification Number (EIN). It’s the business equivalent of a Social Security number, and you need it to open a business bank account, hire employees, and file federal tax returns.
The fastest route is the online application at IRS.gov. It’s free, and the number issues immediately at the end. You can also fax Form SS-4 (about four business days for a response) or mail it (about four weeks). The application asks you to identify a “responsible party” by name and Social Security number or individual taxpayer ID.10Internal Revenue Service. Employer Identification Number The IRS allows only one EIN application per responsible party per day, regardless of method.
Write an Operating Agreement
Arizona doesn’t require LLCs to file an operating agreement, and many single-member owners skip it. That’s a mistake. Under Arizona law, the operating agreement governs the internal relationships among members, the rights of managers, and how the company conducts its business.11Arizona Legislature. Arizona Revised Statutes 29-3105 – Operating Agreement; Scope, Function and Limitations Without one, Arizona’s default LLC rules fill in the blanks, and those defaults may not match what you actually want.
For multi-member LLCs, the agreement sets profit-sharing percentages, voting rights, exit terms, and dispute resolution. Without it, disagreements turn into expensive litigation where a judge applies statutory defaults that neither side anticipated. For single-member LLCs, a written agreement reinforces the separation between you and the business, which helps preserve limited liability if it’s ever challenged in court.
The agreement can be written, oral, or implied, and it overrides Arizona’s default LLC statutes on most topics.11Arizona Legislature. Arizona Revised Statutes 29-3105 – Operating Agreement; Scope, Function and Limitations The statute does draw some lines. You can’t eliminate the duty of good faith and fair dealing, and you can’t override provisions about statutory agents or required ACC filings. Within those guardrails, it’s the most powerful document your LLC has.
Choose a Federal Tax Classification
The IRS doesn’t have a tax category called “LLC.” It treats your LLC as one of the following depending on member count and whether you file an election:
- Single-member LLC default: disregarded entity. All income and expenses flow onto your personal return via Schedule C.
- Multi-member LLC default: partnership. The LLC files an informational return on Form 1065 and each member reports their share on their personal return.
- Corporation election: any LLC can elect C-corp or S-corp taxation by filing Form 8832 (or Form 2553 for S-corp status) with the IRS.
Most new LLCs stick with the default, which avoids double taxation and keeps filing simple.12Internal Revenue Service. Limited Liability Company (LLC) The S-corp election becomes worth exploring once the LLC’s net income is high enough that self-employment tax savings on distributions outweigh the cost of running payroll for owner-employees. Talk through that math with a tax professional once your LLC is generating consistent profit.
Stay Compliant After Formation
Arizona is one of the easier states for ongoing LLC maintenance. There are no annual reports and no annual franchise tax.9Arizona Corporation Commission. Business Services FAQs
What you do need to maintain is accurate information on file with the ACC. If your statutory agent, principal address, or management structure changes, file the appropriate update form promptly. A lapsed or unreachable statutory agent is the most common way Arizona LLCs fall out of compliance.
If your LLC sells products or taxable services in Arizona, register for a Transaction Privilege Tax (TPT) license through the Arizona Department of Revenue. You can apply online at AZTaxes.gov or through the Arizona Business One Stop portal.13Arizona Department of Revenue. Applying for a TPT License The TPT is Arizona’s version of a sales tax, and operating without a license when you need one can trigger back taxes and penalties.