Forming an LLC is generally a good idea if you’re starting a business. If your business is based in Tennessee, then you have to file your LLC with the Tennessee state government. That way, you’re legal to operate and you avoid unnecessary fines and penalties.
However, if it’s your first time to form an LLC, then you need to know that it will involve quite a bit of paperwork. And that paperwork doesn’t end once you’ve formally established your LLC. To maintain the good standing of your Limited Liability Corporation, you have to periodically send in more paperwork.
These paper works include filing your LLC Annual Reports. Tennessee law requires all LLCs based in Tennessee to file an Annual Report with the Secretary of the State of Tennessee.
What is an LLC Annual Report?
An LLC Annual Report is a report you file every year, and it’s meant to furnish the state government with the crucial details regarding your LLC. This report should include any updated info or changes that may have happened since the last filing period. As the annual report contains crucial data, it’s also sometimes referred to as a statement of information.
Every LLC in most states has to submit its annual reports. The required information may change a bit depending on the state, but usually, the report will contain the following information:
The name of the LLC
- The main business address of the LLC
- The names of each LLC member (owner), and their addresses
- All the crucial ID numbers for the LLC, such as the state entity number
- The main purpose of the LLC
- A list of authorized signatories
- Information regarding your registered agent
Filing Options
In the State of Tennessee, the annual report can be filed online, through the mail, or in person.
Submission through the mail or in-person is similar to the online filing which will be discussed in detail below. However, the form would be printed before the online payment is made. The printed form will then be mailed or hand-delivered along with the required payment to the address:
Department of State
Corporate Filings
312 Rosa L. Parks Avenue 6th Floor
William R. Snodgrass Tower
Nashville, TN 37243
The cost of the Annual Report in the State of Tennessee is 300 USD or more. If your LLC has a total of 6 members or less, you’ll have to pay 300 USD only. Meanwhile, if your LLC has more than 6 members, you’ll have to pay a sum of 50 USD for each extra member in addition to the 300 USD. This may cost more if you fail to file the report on time as it can result in the dissolution of your LLC. You’ll then have to spend money, time, and effort to reestablish the LLC.
Filing the Annual Report helps to make sure that your LLC is compliant with all state regulations. That should keep your LLC in good standing with the Tennessee state government, ensuring that your business enjoys all the LLC benefits and protections.
Deadlines
If you’re a member (owner) of a Tennessee LLC, you have to ensure that you send in these Annual Reports on time. The absolute deadline to file your LLC annual report in Tennessee is the 1st day of the fourth month after the Fiscal year of your LLC. Most LLCs choose their fiscal year from the 1st of January to the 31st of December. If you have done the same, then your Tennessee LLC Annual report must be filed on or before the 1st of April of every year.
To keep you from forgetting, the state helpfully sends out mail reminders to the address of your LLC at the end of your Fiscal year. This reminder will have the control number of your LLC as well as the due date. This is a great step by the State of Tennessee, however, it is advised that you set your own reminder to ensure that you do not forget to file your LLC annual report.
Required Steps
It’s easy since you only have to go online. Here are the detailed steps you need to take to file your Tennessee LLC Annual report:
- Go to the Tennessee Online Business Services webpage.
- Click on the File an Annual Report option.
- On the next page, choose the Start Now option.
- Enter the control number of your LLC and choose the name of your LLC from the list.
- Make all the necessary changes to your details as required
- You’ll be required to make a payment of the filing fee as appropriate depending on the number of members you have in your LLC.
- The next page will confirm that you’ve submitted your Annual Report for Filing and have made the payment.
Note that the State of Tennessee provides a step-by-step video to explain the filing process of your Annual Report in the State. The video is available here.
Again, just make sure you do all this on or before the due date of your LLC Annual report. Your annual report will be processed immediately after submission.
Who Should Do This Task?
Basically, the right person to do the task is the person with access to the necessary information that must be included in the Annual Report. This can be a member or LLC officer. It can be someone that the LLC authorizes to file on its behalf.
Professional Assistance
It’s very possible that you can foist this task to professionals, such as the online service provider that helped you with the LLC formation procedure and provided you with its registered agent services. This may be part of a package (usually the medium or premium package), though it may be available as an extra service for a fee with the basic formation package.
This does save you a lot of time and tedium. Plus, you can concentrate on your business while the service deals with all the necessary report filing.
In addition, the service provider can maintain your privacy, as it will take care to submit only the absolutely required information. The privacy benefits may include the following:
- The service provider can list their contact information, so that you won’t have to file your residential address and personal smartphone number.
- The service provider will also list only their IP address. This limits the connection between your smartphone, personal PC, and LLC work computers. That way, advertisers can’t track you online.
- In case that the report asks for bank and credit card information (when the filing suddenly comes with a fee), then the service providers also furnish their own bank and credit card information. You still protect your own bank and credit card info.
An online service provider charges much more reasonable rates, compared to what a lawyer might charge. A reputable service provider can also file the Annual Report as soon as possible, so you can be sure that it won’t be late and your LLC won’t suffer any fines and penalties (such as dissolution). You can check our top brands such as ZenBusiness or Northwest Registered Agent.
There’s no uniform fee as to what a service provider will charge for filing the Tennessee LLC Annual Report. The best brands in the business usually charge $100 or so.
Conclusion
If you’re the sole owner of the LLC and you have the time to spare, then it’s really no trouble doing this yourself. The main risk is that you may make a mistake, by entering the wrong information or by pressing the wrong keys. A professional with extensive experience with this task will be very unlikely to make those mistakes.
Still, it’s all up to you. Just make sure you get the Annual Report filing done for the year!
