Every Michigan LLC must file a LARA annual statement by February 15 each year to stay in good standing, confirming the company’s resident agent and the street address of its registered office and paying a $25 fee. Miss the deadline and a $50 late penalty attaches immediately. Miss two years in a row and the LLC loses its good standing, freeing its name for anyone else to claim.
What the Annual Statement Asks For
The filing itself is short. You confirm two things: the name of your resident agent, and the street address of your registered office in Michigan.1Michigan Legislature. Michigan Compiled Laws 450.4207 If nothing has changed since last year, you are essentially telling the state “same as before” and paying the fee.
Your resident agent is the person or entity designated to accept legal documents on your LLC’s behalf, including lawsuits, subpoenas, and official government notices. The agent must be either a Michigan resident whose home or business address matches the registered office, or a business entity with a Michigan office at that same address.1Michigan Legislature. Michigan Compiled Laws 450.4207 The registered office must be a physical street address in Michigan, not a P.O. Box, so that legal papers can actually be delivered by hand.
Deadline, Fee, and the First-Year Exception
The deadline is February 15 every year, and the filing fee is $25.2Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs. Annual Reports and Annual Statements
New LLCs get a break. An LLC formed after September 30 does not need to file the following February 15.1Michigan Legislature. Michigan Compiled Laws 450.4207 Its first statement is due the February 15 after that.
What Happens If You File Late
File after February 15 and you owe a flat $50 late penalty on top of the $25 filing fee.3Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs. Limited Liability Company Filing Information That penalty applies whether you’re a day late or several months late.
The larger risk kicks in at two consecutive missed years. At that point the state sends a formal notice warning that your LLC will lose its good standing if you don’t catch up within 60 days.4Michigan Legislature. Michigan Compiled Laws 450.4207a
Losing good standing doesn’t dissolve your LLC. It continues to exist and can still do business. But the practical consequences are real:
- The state won’t issue you a certificate of good standing, which most banks, lenders, and commercial landlords require.
- Your business name becomes available for any other entity to claim.4Michigan Legislature. Michigan Compiled Laws 450.4207a
- The state will refuse to accept any other filing from your LLC, including amendments and name changes, until you restore your standing.
How to File Through the MiBusiness Registry Portal
Michigan retired the old Corporations Online Filing System (COFS) and replaced it with the MiBusiness Registry Portal. If you had a Customer ID and PIN from the old system, those credentials did not carry over.5Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs. MiBusiness Registry Portal You now need a MiLogin for Business account, which is separate from a MiLogin for Public account. The user ID for MiLogin for Business is not your email address; it’s a username you create during registration.
Once your account is set up:
- Search for your entity on the portal’s main page.
- Request access by selecting that option at the bottom of the entity details panel and answering two verification questions.
- Open your entity from the My Records tab.
- Select “File Annual Report/Statement” from the icons that appear. That option only shows up when an annual filing is due.5Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs. MiBusiness Registry Portal
If you prefer paper, you can download the form from the LARA website and mail it to the Corporations Division in Lansing with a check or money order.
Restoring Good Standing After a Lapse
An LLC that has lost its good standing can restore it by filing a Certificate of Restoration of Good Standing. You need to file every missing annual statement, pay $25 for each delinquent year, and pay a $50 restoration fee. If you’re filing on or after February 15, the current year’s statement and its $25 fee are also required.6Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs. Restore my LLC
Professional limited liability companies pay more: $125 per delinquent year instead of $25, plus the same $50 restoration fee.6Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs. Restore my LLC
Restoration is filed through the MiBusiness Registry Portal by selecting “File Subsequent Document” and choosing the Certificate of Restoration form. You acknowledge each missing year individually, and the portal collects the total fee in a single transaction.
Corporations File Something Different
If your business is a corporation rather than an LLC, you don’t file an annual statement. Corporations file an annual report by May 15 each year, with different content requirements, a tiered late-penalty schedule, and its own restoration process under a separate statute.7Michigan Legislature. Michigan Compiled Laws 450.1911 The MiBusiness Registry Portal handles both, but the deadlines and rules described above apply only to LLCs.