Forming an LLC in California comes with a bill most new owners don't see coming: the $800 annual franchise tax. It's owed every single year your LLC exists — whether you made a million dollars, made nothing, or never even opened for business. Add the Statement of Information (a $20 filing that carries a $250 penalty when forgotten) and a second fee that kicks in above $250,000 of gross receipts, and California LLC compliance trips up more Bay Area small business owners than almost any other rule we see.
This guide covers what you owe, when you owe it, the timing mistake that costs new LLCs $1,600 in their first four months, and how to stop the meter properly if you're done with the business.
Every California LLC owes $800 to the Franchise Tax Board every year, income or no income, from formation until the LLC is formally cancelled with the Secretary of State. Separately, LLCs must file a Statement of Information within 90 days of formation and every two years after — a $20 filing with a $250 penalty for missing it.
What the $800 Franchise Tax Is — and Who Owes It
The $800 is California's minimum price of admission for the liability protection an LLC provides. It's paid to the Franchise Tax Board (FTB) — not the IRS, and not the Secretary of State — and it applies to:
- Every LLC organized in California,
- Every out-of-state LLC registered to do business in California, and
- Out-of-state LLCs that are doing business in California even without registering — a standard California interprets aggressively.
Single-member LLCs don't escape it. Even though a single-member LLC is "disregarded" for federal income tax, California still requires it to file Form 568 and pay the $800 every year.
When the $800 Is Due — First Year and Every Year After
The first payment is due by the 15th day of the 4th month after your LLC is formed — so an LLC formed in early January owes its first $800 by roughly April 15 of the same year. Every year after that, the $800 is due by April 15 (for calendar-year LLCs), paid with Form FTB 3522.
A note on the first-year waiver you may have read about: California temporarily waived the first-year $800 for LLCs formed in 2021 through 2023. That waiver has expired. LLCs formed today owe the $800 starting in year one. (Corporations play by a different rule — they're exempt from the $800 minimum in their first year, which is one of several reasons entity choice deserves a real conversation.)
The December Trap: How New LLCs Pay $1,600 in Four Months
Here's the mistake we see every winter. An owner gets motivated in November, files LLC paperwork the first week of December, and starts operating January 2. The result:
The LLC exists in tax year 2026, so it owes $800 for 2026 (due mid-March 2027, four months after formation).
It also owes the full $800 for tax year 2027, due April 15, 2027.
Total: $1,600 in franchise tax within roughly four months — for one month of "existence" in 2026 in which the business probably earned nothing.
The escape hatch is the 15-day rule: if your LLC is formed within the last 15 days of December and conducts no business before January 1, that stub year doesn't count — no return, no $800 for it. But the far cleaner play is simply this: if it's November or December and you can wait, form your LLC in January. One filing date pushes the entire compliance calendar into the new year and saves $800.
The Zero-Income Myth
The single most expensive misunderstanding about California LLCs: "The business didn't make anything this year, so I don't owe anything." False — the $800 is not an income tax. It's a fee for the LLC's existence, and it accrues every year until you formally dissolve, along with penalties and interest on every year you skip. We regularly meet owners whose "dormant" LLC has quietly built up several thousand dollars in back franchise tax, penalties, and interest — and an FTB suspension on top.
A suspended LLC loses the very things you formed it for: it can't enforce its contracts in court, it can lose the exclusive right to its name, and the liability shield you're paying $800 a year for is put at risk.
Over $250K in Gross Receipts? There’s a Second Fee
Once your LLC's total California revenue (gross receipts, not profit) reaches $250,000, an additional LLC fee applies on top of the $800, estimated and paid with Form FTB 3536 by June 15:
| California Gross Receipts | Annual LLC Fee (in addition to the $800) |
|---|---|
| $250,000 – $499,999 | $900 |
| $500,000 – $999,999 | $2,500 |
| $1,000,000 – $4,999,999 | $6,000 |
| $5,000,000 or more | $11,790 |
Because this fee is based on gross receipts rather than profit, a high-revenue, thin-margin business (contractors and retailers, take note) can owe thousands even in a break-even year. This is also a major reason growing LLCs eventually revisit S-corporation election — the S-corp pays a 1.5% net-income tax instead of the gross-receipts fee schedule, and above certain revenue and profit levels the difference is real money.
The Statement of Information: A $20 Filing With a $250 Penalty
Separate from everything above — different agency, different deadline — is the Statement of Information (Form LLC-12), filed with the California Secretary of State. It's a simple update of your LLC's address, management, and agent for service of process. The rules:
- First filing: within 90 days of forming the LLC.
- After that: every two years, during the six-month window ending with your formation anniversary month.
- Cost: $20. That's not a typo.
- Penalty for missing it: $250, plus eventual suspension by the Secretary of State.
The 12.5-to-1 ratio between the penalty and the fee makes this the worst value in California compliance — and it's missed constantly, because the two-year cycle is easy to forget and the notices go to whatever address you listed years ago. Corporations file the equivalent (Form SI-550, $25) every year, not every two.
✅ $800 franchise tax — Form 3522 to the FTB by April 15 every year (first year: 15th day of the 4th month after formation). ✅ LLC fee estimate if receipts will top $250K — Form 3536 by June 15. ✅ Form 568 with your tax return every year, even with zero activity. ✅ Statement of Information — within 90 days of formation, then every 2 years.
How to Stop Owing the $800 — Dissolving Properly
Walking away from an LLC doesn't end it. Until you formally cancel with the Secretary of State, the $800 keeps accruing every January 1. Ending it cleanly means:
- Filing a final Form 568 with the FTB (marked "final") and paying any balance due,
- Filing a Certificate of Cancellation (Form LLC-4/7) with the Secretary of State — or the short-form LLC-4/8 if the LLC qualifies (generally: cancelled within 12 months of formation with no business conducted and no debts), and
- Keeping the confirmation. The cancellation date determines the last year you owe.
If you have an old LLC gathering dust — or several years of unfiled 568s behind it — this is fixable, and it's far cheaper to fix deliberately than to let the FTB keep the meter running. Our unfiled tax returns service and catch-up accounting process handle exactly this cleanup.
Forming an LLC? Get the Calendar Handled for You
B&H sets up new Bay Area LLCs on a flat-rate plan that covers the franchise tax calendar, Form 568, the Statement of Information cycle, and your bookkeeping — so nothing accrues a penalty while you build the business. One call, and compliance is off your plate.
📞 Call Bill: 408-256-0339Related reading: Do I need an accountant for my LLC? · Startup accounting & R&D tax credits · The QBI deduction for pass-through owners