Forming a Wisconsin LLC, Step by Step
First thing to know: Wisconsin has no Secretary of State corporations office. If a guide tells you to send LLC paperwork to the Wisconsin Secretary of State, it was written about a different state. Business entities here are handled by the Wisconsin Department of Financial Institutions (DFI), Division of Corporate & Consumer Services, and everything below runs through them.
Your LLC comes into existence when DFI accepts your Articles of Organization, filed as DFI Form 502 (Corp502) under Wis. Stat. § 183.0201. What you pay depends on how you file. Online through DFI's e-filing system it is $130, the statutory fee under § 183.0122(2)(a)1. On paper it is $170, because § 183.0122(2)(c) authorizes a higher charge for paper filings. Same document, forty dollar difference, so unless you have a reason to mail things, file online. Expedited service is available for another $100 either way.
The Six Steps
- Search your name first. Wisconsin wants an LLC designator in the name and enough distance from names already on DFI's records. A few minutes in DFI's records search saves a rejected filing.
- Pick your registered agent. Wis. Stat. § 183.0115 requires a Wisconsin agent whose business office is identical with your registered office, and that office has to be an actual physical location, not solely a PO box or mail service. Two details trip people up: the agent must have an email address, and your LLC cannot appoint itself. More on the registered agent page.
- File Articles of Organization, DFI Form 502 (Corp502). $130 through DFI's online filing system, or $170 if you print the form and mail it. Add $100 for expedited processing if you are in a hurry.
- Put an operating agreement in writing. DFI never sees it, but it is the document that says who owns what and what happens when members disagree. Without one, Chapter 183's default rules answer those questions for you.
- Get your EIN. Straight from the IRS, free, usually issued on the spot. Anyone selling EIN filing as a paid add-on is charging for a free government form.
- Note your annual report quarter. Wisconsin annual reports are due at the end of the calendar quarter containing your formation anniversary, $25 online or $40 on paper. Details on the annual requirements page.
The Fees, In One Place
- Articles of Organization (Form 502): $130 online, $170 paper
- Expedited service: $100, optional
- Annual report: $25 online, $40 paper, every year
- Registered agent change later on: $10 online, $25 paper
If You Would Rather Hand It Off
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Get StartedWe file Wisconsin LLCs for a flat $199, and that includes your first year of registered agent service, renewing at $99 per year after. You cover the state fee, and we take care of Form 502, the agent designation, and the calendar.