Michigan Articles of Organization: Contents, Fee and How to File Online With LARA

The Articles of Organization is the filing that creates a Michigan limited liability company (LLC). Until the Corporations Division of the Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs (LARA) accepts it, you do not have an LLC, regardless of what you call your business or how many people agree to run it together. This guide covers what the form asks for, what it costs, how to file it online through LARA’s MiBusiness Registry, and what you need to handle after approval.

This article is informational content, not legal or tax advice. An LLC affects your personal liability, your tax return, and how you can bring in partners or investors. Talk with a Michigan business attorney or a CPA before you file, especially if you have co-owners, outside investors, or a mix of personal and business assets to separate.

What the Articles of Organization Does

Form CSCL/CD-700 is Michigan’s Articles of Organization. LARA’s Corporations Division reviews and files it, and that filing is what forms the LLC. It plays the same role that Articles of Incorporation play for a corporation, which uses Form CSCL/CD-500.

Michigan has no general statewide business license, and this filing does not change that. LARA states that its Corporations Division does not license businesses. Its role is to receive, review and file the documents that form and maintain a business entity. Registering an LLC through MiBusiness Registry is a filing, not a license. Whether you need a license depends on your trade or activity, which is covered later in this guide.

The Fee and Optional Costs

The filing fee for Articles of Organization is $50. It is nonrefundable, so check your LLC name, purpose and resident agent details before you submit.

Two optional costs may apply:

• Name reservation (Form CSCL/CD-540): $25. It holds your name for six months following the month of filing. Use it if you need time to finish your paperwork, not as a substitute for filing.
• Expedited review: an added fee on top of the $50 filing fee, requested on Form CSCL/CD-272, Expedited Service Request.

The expedited options for formation documents are:

Expedited option	Added fee	Deadline or timing
24-hour review	$50	Review within 24 hours
Same-day review	$100	Same business day
Two-hour review	$500	Must be received by 3 p.m.
One-hour review	$1,000	Must be received by 4 p.m.

LARA does not publish a guaranteed standard review time for routine filings. If you need the LLC active before you sign a lease, open a bank account, or sign a contract, check current timing with LARA first, then decide whether an expedite is worth the added fee.

Required Contents of the Form

The Articles identify your LLC and tell LARA who receives legal papers on its behalf. The required contents include:

1. The LLC name, which must meet Michigan’s naming rules.
2. The purpose of the LLC.
3. A Michigan resident agent.
4. A registered office, which must be a street address.

Confirm the full field list against the current Form CSCL/CD-700 instructions before you file. LARA sets the form, and LARA’s instructions control if they differ from this summary.

Naming rules

The name of a Michigan LLC must include one of the following: “Limited Liability Company,” “L.L.C.” or “L.C.” The periods are optional. The name may not use “corporation,” “incorporated,” “Corp.” or “Inc.” Those words signal a corporation, and the state will not accept them on an LLC.

Check availability on the MiBusiness Registry business search at mibusinessregistry.lara.state.mi.us/search/business before you commit to a name. Search close variations too, such as spelling changes and punctuation differences, because an existing entity with a near-identical name can cause a rejection or a dispute later.

If you need to hold the name while you finish the paperwork, file Form CSCL/CD-540 for the $25 reservation.

The resident agent and registered office

Michigan calls this role a resident agent. The Articles must name one, along with a registered office. The resident agent must be one of the following: a Michigan resident, a Michigan corporation, a foreign corporation with a certificate of authority to transact business in Michigan, a Michigan LLC, or a foreign LLC authorized to transact business in Michigan.

The registered office is the physical location of the resident agent. It can match your place of business, but it does not have to. A P.O. box alone is not sufficient. Use a street address where the agent can actually be reached and where legal papers can be delivered during business hours. If you act as your own resident agent, you must meet the Michigan residency requirement and use your real street address.

Your resident agent is the person or company the state and courts use to reach your LLC. If that contact goes stale, you may miss a lawsuit or a notice. Changes after filing go on Form CSCL/CD-520.

How to File Online With LARA

The online route runs through the MiBusiness Registry Portal (MiBRP). LARA links to it from michigan.gov/fileonline, and the portal itself is at mibusinessregistry.lara.state.mi.us. Follow this order:

1. Search the name. Run it on the business search and note any close matches.
2. Reserve if needed. If you cannot file the same day, file Form CSCL/CD-540 for $25 to hold the name for six months.
3. Gather your details. Have the exact LLC name, the purpose you plan to state, the resident agent’s name, and the Michigan street address for the registered office ready to enter.
4. Enter the Articles of Organization. Sign in to the portal or create the account it asks for, select the Articles of Organization (Form CSCL/CD-700), complete each field, and pay the $50 filing fee. Add an expedited option only if you need the faster timing.
5. Verify the result. Save the filed copy and the confirmation. Then search your LLC on the business search to confirm LARA has it on record with the correct name and resident agent.

You can also file on paper, either by mail or in person at LARA in Lansing. Check the current submission address, accepted payment methods and processing notes on LARA’s corporations page at michigan.gov/lara/bureau-list/cscl/corps before you send anything. Paper filings take longer than online filings in most cases, so plan around that if timing matters.

Veteran-Owned LLCs

Michigan waives the initial fee for a veteran-majority LLC. Before you file, check with LARA how eligibility is documented and how the waiver is claimed, because this guide does not set out those steps. Do not assume the waiver applies automatically to your filing.

What Michigan Does Not Require

Michigan does not require a newspaper publication for a Michigan LLC. Some states require you to publish a notice after formation, which adds cost and a deadline. Michigan does not, so the filing fee and the Annual Statement are the main state charges you need to plan for.

After Filing: Annual Statement and Taxes

The Articles are a one-time filing, but the LLC has a recurring obligation:

• Annual Statement (Form CSCL/CD-2700): $25, due February 15 each year, beginning the year after formation. An LLC formed or qualified after September 30 does not owe a statement on the February 15 immediately following.
• Professional LLCs: $75, and a $50 late fee applies if the statement is filed after February 15.

Michigan imposes no franchise tax, and the Department of Treasury does not list one among business taxes. A standard LLC is a pass-through entity, so its members report the income on the Michigan individual income tax at the flat 4.25% rate for the 2026 tax year. An LLC that elects federal C corporation treatment is subject to the 6% Michigan Corporate Income Tax. Michigan also offers an elective Flow-Through Entity Tax. Which treatment fits your situation is a question for a CPA, and you can check the current rules at michigan.gov/taxes.

If you sell taxable goods, register with Treasury for a sales tax license. The state sales tax rate is 6%. Registration is free and can arrive in as little as 7 business days. Register online at michigan.gov/taxes/business-taxes/new-biz/online-business-registration.

Operating Under a Different Name

If your LLC will operate under a name other than its legal name, file a Certificate of Assumed Name (Form CSCL/CD-541) with LARA. The fee for an LLC is $25. The certificate is effective through December 31 of the fifth full calendar year after the year it was filed, and you can renew it with Form CSCL/CD-542.

Sole proprietorships and general partnerships follow a different route. They file an assumed name certificate with the county clerk of each county where they do business, under MCL 445.1. County fees for those filings are set by statute and by each county clerk, so confirm the amount with the clerk before you file.

Licenses and Permits Are Separate From Formation

Because the Articles are a filing and not a license, you still need to determine whether your trade or activity requires one. LARA directs new owners to its State License Search to check. Licensing in Michigan is handled by profession or activity, through agencies that include:

• LARA Bureau of Professional Licensing
• LARA Bureau of Construction Codes
• Michigan Department of Agriculture and Rural Development (MDARD)
• Michigan Liquor Control Commission (MLCC)
• Cannabis Regulatory Agency
• LARA child care licensing

Local requirements are a separate layer. Depending on where you operate, you may need zoning approval, a certificate of occupancy, or health approvals. Michigan has 83 counties, about 275 to 280 cities, about 255 to 258 villages and 1,240 townships, and each can set its own rules. Only 24 cities levy a city income tax, so check with your city clerk or treasurer whether yours is one of them, and confirm local permit requirements with the same office before you open.

Common Filing Mistakes

• Using a P.O. box as the registered office. A street address is required.
• Choosing a name with “Corporation,” “Inc.” or “Corp.” in it, which Michigan does not allow on an LLC.
• Assuming the name is available because a domain or social media handle is open. Only the business search and LARA’s acceptance determine the name.
• Filing the Articles and then forgetting the February 15 Annual Statement.
• Treating the LLC as a license to operate. Trade licenses, sales tax registration and local approvals are separate steps.

Next Steps

For most single-owner businesses, the path is straightforward: search the name, file the Articles of Organization online for $50, name a Michigan resident agent with a real street address, and then calendar the February 15 Annual Statement. Then confirm which licenses, sales tax registration and local approvals your business needs before you start operating.

Once you have filed, verify your LLC’s record on the business search and keep the filed copy with your operating agreement. If your ownership is complicated, if you plan to take on investors, or if you are unsure whether an LLC or another structure fits your tax position, speak with a Michigan attorney or CPA before you file. This article is informational content, not legal or tax advice, and the official LARA and Treasury pages control on any detail that has changed since publication.