Form an LLC in Kentucky
Kentucky filing is cheap at $40, but two steps trip people up – CountSure records your Articles with the county, tracks the June 30 report, and budgets the $175 LLET from day one. $40 to file – plus a county recording step and the $175 LLET.
Requirements, costs & steps for an Kentucky LLC
Kentucky has one of the lowest filing fees in the country at $40, and a $15 annual report to match. But two Kentucky details catch people out. First, you have to record a copy of your Articles with the county clerk, a step most states do not have. Second, nearly every Kentucky business owes the Limited Liability Entity Tax, a minimum of $175 a year even if you make no profit. This guide covers the real costs, the filing order, and both of those items in plain terms. Want it handled for you? Our Kentucky LLC formation service files everything, records with the county, and tracks your June 30 deadline.
What you need to know?
Low filing fee:
$40 for Articles of Organization, one of the cheapest in the country, the same online or by mail. Veteran-owned entities can have it waived.
County-clerk recording:
Kentucky also requires recording a file-stamped copy of your Articles with the county clerk where your registered office sits, $33 for five pages or fewer.
Annual report, due June 30:
$15 each year between January 1 and June 30, starting the year after formation. There is no monetary late fee, but missing it risks administrative dissolution.
LLET, the tax people miss:
The Limited Liability Entity Tax applies to almost every Kentucky LLC, with a $175 minimum per year even at zero profit.
Registered agent required:
You must maintain a registered agent with a physical Kentucky street address, not a PO box.
Kentucky LLC at a glance
The essentials for forming and maintaining a Kentucky LLC.
Requirement |
Detail (2026) |
|---|---|
Formation document
|
Articles of Organization (Form KLC)
|
Filing agency
|
Kentucky Secretary of State (Business One Stop / FastTrack)
|
State filing fee
|
$40 (same online or by mail); veteran-owned may be waived
|
County recording
|
File-stamped copy recorded with county clerk ($33, up to 5 pages)
|
Typical processing time
|
~1 business day online; ~5 business days by mail
|
Registered agent
|
Required; physical Kentucky address (no PO box)
|
Annual report
|
$15, due between January 1 and June 30
|
First report
|
The year after formation
|
LLET (entity tax)
|
$175 minimum per year (KRS 141.0401)
|
Income tax
|
Flat 3.5% individual (2026); profits pass through
|
How to form an Kentucky LLC, Step by Step
Eight steps from name check through the LLET and your June 30 annual report.
Choose and check your LLC name
Your name must include “Limited Liability Company,” “Limited Company,” “LLC,” “LC,” “L.L.C.,” or “L.C.,” and be distinguishable from existing Kentucky entities. Search the Secretary of State’s business database. You can reserve a name for 120 days for $15 if desired.
Appoint a registered agent
Kentucky requires a registered agent with a physical Kentucky street address (no PO box), available during business hours. You can serve as your own if you have a Kentucky address, or CountSure can act as your agent.
File Articles of Organization
File through the Kentucky Business One Stop portal for $40 (same fee by mail). You provide the LLC name, registered agent and office, principal office, and management structure. Online filings are usually approved in about one business day.
Record a copy with the county clerk
This is the Kentucky step most people miss: take a file-stamped copy of your approved Articles and record it with the county clerk in the county where your registered office is located. Recording a document of five pages or fewer costs $33 under KRS 64.012, plus $3 for each additional page.
Create an operating agreement
Not filed with the state, but strongly recommended. It sets ownership, profit splits, and management, and reinforces your liability protection.
Get an EIN from the IRS
Free, and needed for banking, hiring, and to register for Kentucky taxes.
Register for Kentucky taxes, including the LLET
Register through the Department of Revenue for the LLET (minimum $175), sales and use tax if you sell taxable goods or services, and withholding if you have employees. Check for local occupational license taxes in cities such as Louisville and Lexington.
Calendar your June 30 annual report
File the $15 report between January 1 and June 30, starting the year after formation, and every year after. Miss June 30 and the Secretary of State can mail a 60-day notice; if you still do not file, the LLC is administratively dissolved.
Naming & Member Requirements
A compliant name and a clear management structure keep your filing moving. Here’s what Kentucky requires.
- Required ending: “Limited Liability Company,” “Limited Company,” “LLC,” “LC,” “L.L.C.,” or “L.C.”
- Restricted words: Terms implying banking, insurance, or regulated activity generally need approval.
- Optional reservation: Reserve an available name for 120 days for $15 before filing.
- Assumed name (DBA): To operate under a different name, file a Certificate of Assumed Name for $20.
- Members & management: One member minimum - Kentucky allows single-member LLCs, with no residency or age requirement. Member-managed or manager-managed, indicated on the Articles and confirmed on each annual report.
Ongoing Kentucky LLC Compliance & Taxes
Annual report, due June 30
Every Kentucky LLC files an annual report with the Secretary of State between January 1 and June 30 each year, for $15. The first report is due the year after formation, so an LLC approved in May 2026 files its first report between January 1 and June 30, 2027. Reports are filed through the Business One Stop portal, not recorded with the county clerk. Kentucky charges no separate monetary late fee, but missing June 30 puts the LLC out of good standing and lets the Secretary of State mail a 60-day notice; if you still have not filed within 60 days of that notice, the LLC is administratively dissolved. Reinstatement costs a $100 penalty plus the delinquent $15 report fees, and the state obtains good-standing letters from the Department of Revenue and the Division of Unemployment Insurance before reinstating.
Limited Liability Entity Tax (LLET), the $175 minimum
This is the Kentucky cost people overlook. Under KRS 141.0401, the Limited Liability Entity Tax applies to every corporation and limited liability pass-through entity doing business in Kentucky, including LLCs, apart from a short list of statutory exemptions. The amount is the lesser of 0.095% of your Kentucky gross receipts or 0.75% of your Kentucky gross profits, with a $175 minimum. If either your gross receipts or your gross profits from all sources are $3 million or less, you pay just the $175 minimum, even in a year with no profit. A sliding scale applies between $3 million and $6 million. LLET above the $175 minimum is credited against the members’ Kentucky income tax on the LLC’s income, so for most small LLCs only the $175 is a true extra cost. The LLET is reported on Form 725 for a single-member LLC owned by an individual, or on Form PTE for a multi-member LLC taxed as a partnership, due April 15 for calendar-year filers.
Income tax
A default LLC does not pay Kentucky income tax at the entity level. Instead, profits pass through to members, who report their share on their Kentucky personal returns at the flat 3.5% individual income tax rate for 2026 (reduced from 4% in 2025). If your LLC elects C-corporation treatment, it also owes Kentucky’s flat 5.0% corporate income tax, with LLET above the $175 minimum credited against it.
Sales tax and local occupational taxes
Kentucky’s sales and use tax is a flat 6% statewide with no local sales tax, which is unusually clean. Recent law expanded the 6% to cover many services, so check whether your service is now taxable. Separately, some cities and counties, including Louisville and Lexington, levy local occupational license taxes on wages and net profits. Get a free EIN from the IRS.
Kentucky LLC Cost Breakdown
What you’ll actually pay to form and run a Kentucky LLC.
Item |
Cost (2026) · paid to |
|---|---|
Articles of Organization
|
$40 · Secretary of State (same online or mail)
|
County-clerk recording
|
$33 (up to 5 pages) · county clerk (registered-office county)
|
Annual report
|
$15 / year · Secretary of State, by June 30
|
LLET (entity tax)
|
$175 minimum / year · Kentucky Dept. of Revenue (Form 725 or Form PTE)
|
Name reservation (optional)
|
$15 · Secretary of State (120-day hold)
|
Assumed name / DBA (optional)
|
$20 · Secretary of State
|
Registered agent (optional service)
|
~$49–$300/yr · third party
|
EIN
|
$0 · IRS (free)
|
Insight From Our Team
“Kentucky looks incredibly cheap on the sticker, forty dollars to file and fifteen a year, and that is real, but it is not the whole picture. Two things trip people up. First, the county-clerk recording step. Your Articles are not truly done until you record a stamped copy with the county where your registered office sits, and a lot of DIY filers skip it. Second, and bigger, is the LLET. Almost every Kentucky entity owes at least a hundred and seventy-five dollars a year in Limited Liability Entity Tax whether or not it turned a profit, and it goes to the Department of Revenue, completely separate from the annual report. We budget the LLET from day one so it is never a surprise in April.”
Parth Shah
CountSure
Related Guides & Services
- All state formation guides
Frequently Asked Questions
The state filing fee is $40 for Articles of Organization, the same online or by mail. Budget $33 more to record a copy with the county clerk, then $15 a year for the annual report and at least $175 a year for the LLET.
The Limited Liability Entity Tax is a Kentucky tax on corporations and limited liability pass-through entities, including LLCs. The minimum is $175 a year even with no profit, and that is the whole tax if either your gross receipts or your gross profits from all sources are $3 million or less. Larger businesses pay the lesser of 0.095% of Kentucky gross receipts or 0.75% of Kentucky gross profits (phased in between $3 million and $6 million), and the amount above $175 is credited against Kentucky income tax.
Yes. Kentucky requires a file-stamped copy of your Articles of Organization to be recorded with the county clerk where your registered office is located, in addition to filing with the Secretary of State. Recording costs $33 for up to five pages.
Between January 1 and June 30 each year, for $15, starting the year after formation. There is no monetary late fee, but missing June 30 leads to loss of good standing and, eventually, administrative dissolution.
Online filings through the Business One Stop portal are usually approved in about one business day. Mailed filings take about five business days.
Kentucky uses a flat individual income tax, 3.5% for 2026, down from 4% in 2025. LLC profits pass through to members at that rate. Remember the separate LLET still applies to the entity itself.
Get Started
Start your Kentucky LLC with CountSure
From Articles of Organization and the county-clerk recording to your registered agent, EIN, the June 30 annual report, and the LLET, CountSure handles your Kentucky LLC end to end, so nothing gets missed.
- Free 30-minute consultation with a CPA
- Fixed-fee, fully transparent pricing
- 100% remote - no travel or visa required
