Frequently Asked Questions About
Starting a Missouri LLC

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

In order to form an LLC in the state of Missouri, there are some minimum requirements you must meet. These are a completed set of Articles of Organization, a business name and a fee you pay to the Missouri Secretary of State. We recommend taking some further steps before officially forming 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 Missouri business.
• Write an Operating Agreement that covers how you will run your LLC.

After you’ve created your Missouri 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 Missouri, you register a business by completing and filing your Articles of Organization with the Missouri Secretary of State. You will need to gather pertinent information about your business, fill out the form and send it to the Secretary of State with your filing fee. This will formally create your LLC in Missouri.

You can file your Articles of Organization on the Secretary of State website or mail it in. Alternatively, 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 Missouri state filing fee.

At the time of writing the fee charged by the Missouri Secretary of State is $105 if you file a paper form, or $50 if you complete the process online. You can always check the latest Missouri filing fees here. Some states allow you to pay an additional fee 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 Articles of Organization (or had Incfile do it for you), it can take 4-6 weeks for the Missouri Secretary of State to legally create your LLC if you submitted via mail. As online filing is encouraged, the processing time is much quicker, and you could have your LLC formed in under 24 hours. Since the online process is so quick, the state of Missouri does not offer an expedited filing service like many other states.

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

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

• If you’re starting a new business and your business name is unique in Missouri and meets state naming rules, you simply include it in your Articles of Organization.
• IIf you want to change the legal name of your business, file an Amendment of Articles form with the Secretary of State.
• If you just want to do business under a different name, file a Registration of Fictitious Name form with the Missouri 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 Missouri, this document is called your Articles of Organization, and it performs the same functions as the Articles of Incorporation.

Yes, the State of Missouri allows the formation of Series LLC within the state. 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.

To form a Series LLC, simply fill out the typical Domestic LLC Articles of Organization form, mark the appropriate spot that you are creating a Series LLC, and file it with the Secretary of State. For each separate series, you must also file an Attachment Form LLC 1A. The fee for a Series LLC formation within Missouri is the same as the fee for a Domestic LLC.

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

If you want to change your Missouri Registered Agent you can do so by filing a Statement of Change with the Secretary of State. Here at Incfile, we provide a free Missouri 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 Statement of Change on your behalf.

If you need to know the Registered Agent of a specific Missouri business, you can perform a Missouri Registered Agent search within the state's business database.

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

Missouri charges a 4.225 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. There are many things you'll be required to pay sales tax for. You can find a full list of taxable services here as well as an extensive list of tax exemptions here.

You will need to register for a sales tax license with the Missouri Department of Revenue. You can complete this process online.

The base rate for Missouri sales tax is 4.225 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 registration is complete, you will receive information regarding how often you must file a sales tax return and pay sales taxes. Returns and payments may be due monthly, quarterly or annually.

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

If you're operating a business in Missouri, you'll likely need some type of business license to do so and maintain compliance with the state. 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.