Every year, LLC company owners are required by the Hawaii State law to file for their LLC annual report with the Business Registration Division of the State of Hawaii.
In this case, filing an LLC annual report is essential for compliance and maintaining a good record with the government. Likewise, another reason for this is to avoid the dissolution of your LLC company.
With that said, this article will guide you through the steps of filing your annual LLC report in Hawaii.
When to File Your LLC’s Annual Report?
The annual report should be filed every year from the time you filed your LLC initial report. The due date of the annual report depends on when your LLC was formed.
If your LLC was formed and approved in the first quarter of the year, your LLC annual report deadline is the 31st of March of every year.
If your LLC was formed and approved in the 2nd quarter of the year, your LLC annual report deadline is the 30th of June of every year.
If your LLC was formed and approved in the 3rd quarter of the year, your LLC annual report deadline is the 30th of September of every year.
Similarly, if your LLC was formed and approved in the 4th quarter of the year, your LLC annual report deadline is the 31st of December of every year.
To avoid forgetting your annual report filing, you must always include it on your calendar of activities.
For example, you can create a reminder on your phone or calendar to help you remember around one to two months before the due date to avoid missing the filing.
On the other hand, if it’s your first year to file for LLC annual reports, it’s due the year after the approval of your LLC application.
If you want to double-check the date when the state approved your LLC, it’s best to check your LLC’s Certificate of Formation. You can also search for your LLC name on the Business document and entity and then look for the date of registration of your LLC.
What Are the Requirements You Need to Prepare?
Before you file, make sure that you have these documents or information prepared. Preparing these documents beforehand can help prevent any delays during the process.
- State-issued LLC entity number
- Date of organization
- Hawaii Business EIN (entity identification number)
- Other important details about your company, such as:
- Your registered agent
- Its registered office address
- Officers/directors or partners updated contact information
- Insurance policy information including your proof of insurance, the insurance company’s name, the insurer’s name, and the policy date.
- Your signature and title if you are the one filing the report.
- 15 USD filing fee.
What Will Happen If I Don’t File My Company’s LLC Annual Report?
Not filing your company’s LLC annual Report in Hawaii will result in the administrative dissolution of your company by the State of Hawaii. However, you’ll be required to pay a penalty of 10 USD late fee for the first year and then a 20 USD late fee for 2 years. You may be required to pay a penalty of up to 100 USD as a late fee. If you fail to pay any of these penalties, the State would eventually dissolve your LLC.
Where to File the LLC Annual Report?
Fortunately, filing your company’s LLC annual Report is now easier. You can file your LLC annual report online on the Hawaii Business Express. The state also allows for the submission through mail, email, fax, and in person. For submission through the mail, you will find the forms on the Department of Commerce and consumer affairs forms web page and choose the annual report form. Complete the form and then mail it along with the check for payment to the address:
Annual Filing – BREG
P.O. Box 40
Honolulu, HI 96810.
You can also choose to drop the documents off by yourself at the address:
335 Merchant Street,
Room 201
Honolulu, HI 96813
Email submission is done by submitting the completed forms to the email address: breg-doci-filing@dcca.hawaii.gov
Similarly, submission through fax is to the Hawaii Department of Commerce and Commercial Affairs through 808-586-2733.
Note that both online and hard copy fillings take between 6 to 8 weeks to be processed. However, you can pay an expedited fee of $25 to have it processed in 1 to 3 working days.
How to File Your LLC annual Report: A Step-by-Step Guide
To help you file your company’s LLC annual Report, this article has outlined the steps of the process. Check them out below.
Step 1: Go to the Hawaii Business Express webpage. Choose the learn more option in the manage box on the page, and select the “start Annual Report filing” option.
Step 2: Follow the instructions on the screen to find your LLC by inputting your LLC Entity number.
Step 3: Make changes if needed to your Information and then submit the form.
You can also take the help of professional services such as ZenBusiness or Legalzoom to help you as your registered agent.
Step 4: Once you’re done, you need to enter your necessary information as required and then click “Continue” to make the payment.
Your annual report will be submitted after you have successfully made the payment and you will see a message congratulating you on filing your annual LLC report in Hawaii after paying.
Important Reminders
The Commerce and Commercial Affairs Department of the State of Hawaii will send a reminder to you about your LLC annual report on the 15th day of the first month in the quarter that your LLC was formed/approved. Although this is a great help from the State, it is advisable that you also set your own reminder so the chances of forgetting are reduced to the minimum.
What Is the Difference Between an LLC annual Report and LLC Partner Tax?
Most company owners mistake LLC annual Report and LLC Partner Tax as being the same. Due to this misconception, they either miss filing one or the other. If you have multi-member LLCs, which means you have two or more owners, you must file for LLC Partner Tax.
Other Transactions You Can Do Under the annual Reports and Change Services
Aside from filing your company’s LLC annual Report, here are the other business documents that can be generated through the annual Reports and Change Services:
- Changing of registered agent/office
- Reinstating a business entity
- Closing a business
There are two possible reasons you might want to change your LLC’s assigned registered agent. First, you are dissatisfied with your existing agent and would like to change services. Second, you are your own agent and would like to get the services of a registered agent.
Regardless of the reason, you’ll need a registered agent for your company. This is because an LLC licensed agent plays a vital role in every company. In this case, your registered agent is the official representative of your company.
For example, suppose the state needs to contact your company for some legal matters. In that case, there should be an authorized representative where they can send legal documents.
- Reinstating a business entity
One reason for filing a reinstatement is that your LLC faced dissolution due to non-filing of the annual Report or paying taxes.
Of course, aside from these, some of the other tasks you can perform in the annual Reports and Change Services:
- File an amendment
- Business name search
- Change tax/Employer registration record
Conclusion
Finally, you now know how to file your company’s LLC annual Report in Hawaii. Making sure you comply with this requirement is essential to avoid penalties or the dissolution of your company.
In this case, to avoid forgetting your annual reporting, it’s best to organize your calendar. In fact, it’s recommended to set a reminder two months before your date of filing.
After all, as a business owner, it’s your responsibility to abide by the government’s ordinance to avoid penalties for your company.