Frequently Asked Questions About
Starting an Idaho LLC

When it comes to forming a business in Idaho, there are a few different options. From a legal perspective, there are three main types of Idaho for-profit business entities: LLCs, S Corporations or C Corporations. For many entrepreneurs, we believe an LLC provides the right mix of liability protection and ease of administration.

In order to form an LLC in the state of Idaho, there are some minimum requirements you must meet. These are a completed set of forms for your Certificate of Organization, a business name and a fee you pay to the Idaho Secretary of State. We recommend taking some other steps before formally starting your LLC:

• Research your target market to make sure there’s a demand for the products and services you provide.
• Read industry guides to give you a starting point in your niche.
• Create a comprehensive business plan that defines the most important aspects of your Idaho business.
• Write an Operating Agreement that covers how you will run your LLC.

After you’ve created your Idaho LLC, you will also need to review your business license requirements, understand ongoing filing needs, set up a separate business bank account and get an accountant.

In Idaho, you register a business by completing and filing your Certificate of Organization with the Idaho Secretary of State. You will need to gather information about your business, fill out the form online via the business portal and submit it to the Secretary of State along with your filing fee. This will officially create your LLC in Idaho.

You can file your Certificate of Organization via the portal or Incfile can guide you through every step of the process by getting details from you and filing the form on your behalf — for free! There’s no additional charge for our basic LLC filing service, so all you need to do is pay the Idaho state filing fee.

At the time of writing the fee charged by the Idaho Secretary of State is $100. You can always check the latest Idaho filing fees here. You can also pay an additional $40 or $100 for expedited filing through Incfile, which will create your LLC faster. The amount of the expedited fee is dependent on how quickly you want your filing processed. Some LLC filing services do charge you extra to prepare and submit your filing documents, but at Incfile, we do this for free — so you only pay the state fee.

Once you’ve gathered all of your information together and filed your Certificate of Organization (or had Incfile do it for you), it can take between 7 and 10 days for the Idaho Secretary of State to legally create your LLC. If you pay an additional $40 or $100 expedited fee, your LLC can be formed in as little as a few days or the same day.

The name of your Idaho LLC needs to be unique, so you’ll need to check if it’s already being used by another business. You can do that via the Idaho Secretary of State business portal, or by using our fast and simple Business Name Search tool.

There are a few ways to register your Idaho LLC name. 

• If you’re creating a new business in Idaho and your business name is unique and meets all the state naming rules, you simply include it in your Certificate of Organization.
• If you want to change the legal name of your business, file an amendment via the online business portal with the Secretary of State.
• If you just want to do business under a different name, file a Certificate of Assumed Business Name with the Idaho Secretary of State, or we can do that on your behalf.

If you want to prevent people from using your business name across the U.S., you can file a trademark for the name. We can help.

In other states, the formal documents that you file to form a corporation or LLC might be known as Articles of Incorporation. In Idaho, this document is called your Certificate of Organization, and it performs the same functions as the Articles of Incorporation.

No, the State of Idaho does not offer the opportunity of forming a Series LLC. A Series LLC is a special type of LLC where you create one “overall” business and then have individual, series LLCs within it, each counted as separate legal entities.

Yes, In Idaho all legal business entities, including LLCs, must have a Registered Agent at all times. Here at Incfile, we provide a free Idaho Registered Agent service for the first year if you file through us.

If you wish to change your Idaho Registered Agent you can do so by updating your registered agent information via the online business portal with the Secretary of State. Here at Incfile, we provide a free Idaho Registered Agent service for the first year if you file through us. If you’ve been using a different Registered Agent and want to switch to us, we’ll file the update on your behalf.

If you need to know the Registered Agent of a specific Idaho business, you can perform an Idaho Registered Agent search within the state's online business portal.

As an LLC, any business profits you earn will be reported on your personal 1040 filing and reported and taxed as “pass-through” income. You will typically need to pay:

• Self-employment or payroll tax on all business profits
• Federal income tax on profits after you meet your tax-free allowance
• Sales tax for selling taxable products and services

Idaho charges a 6 percent state sales and use tax on all retail sales, leases and rentals of most goods. You will also need to pay sales tax if you provide a taxable service. You can find a full list of Idaho sales tax rules here.

You will need to register as a sales tax seller with the Idaho State Tax Commission. You can complete this process online.

The base rate for Idaho sales tax is 6 percent, and there may be additional sales tax depending on your region, county or city. Once you know your overall sales tax amount, calculate the value of all your taxable products and services. Then, multiply that by your sales tax rate to understand how much you will need to pay.

Once your LLC’s sales tax application is approved, you will receive a letter with instructions on how often you must file a sales tax return and pay sales taxes. Returns and payments may be due monthly, quarterly or annually, but regardless taxes are always due on the 20th of the month following the reporting period.

Some businesses will need to pay a corporate franchise tax in Idaho, however it does not apply to LLCs unless your LLC is treated as a C Corporation for tax purposes.

The types of business licenses you need will vary depending on your type of business, industry, location and various other factors. We can research the types of business licenses you might need for you.