New Jersey LLC filing: two registrations, not one

Forming a New Jersey LLC is straightforward and inexpensive. The part that catches people is that forming the company and registering it are two different things, handled by two different parts of the state, and finishing the first does not accomplish the second.

A New Jersey LLC is formed by one filing and registered for tax by another, and people routinely do only the first.

Naming the company

A New Jersey LLC’s name must include “limited liability company” or an accepted abbreviation such as “LLC” or “L.L.C.,” and it must be distinguishable in the records of the filing office from other registered names and reserved names. You can check availability and reserve a name before filing.

Forming the LLC

Formation is the Certificate of Formation, filed with the Division of Revenue and Enterprise Services.

The Certificate of Formation costs $125, filed online or by mail.

The filing names the company, gives the registered office address and registered agent, and identifies the organizer. Online filing through the state’s business portal is the fastest route, and the $125 fee applies either way. New Jersey does not require you to state your management structure or list members in the formation document, though the forms request details that many filers include for clarity.

The second registration

Here is the step that separates New Jersey from most states in this project.

Forming the company does not register it for tax; that is a separate filing with the Division of Taxation.

New Jersey requires a business registration for tax purposes, filed separately from the formation certificate. It is what puts the company in the system for employer withholding, sales tax, and the partnership return that carries the per-member minimum tax described on the structure and cost page. A company that forms and never registers can find itself out of compliance from the beginning, and the problem tends to surface when it needs a business registration certificate to contract with a public entity or to satisfy a counterparty’s due diligence.

The registered agent

Every New Jersey LLC must maintain a registered agent with a New Jersey address for service of process.

A New Jersey LLC needs a registered agent with a New Jersey address, and that address is public.

You can serve as your own agent if you have a New Jersey address, which puts the address on the public record, or hire a commercial agent for a separate annual fee.

The annual report

New Jersey’s recurring filing runs on your own calendar rather than a statewide date.

The annual report costs $75 and is due the last day of the month in which the LLC was formed, every year.

Because the deadline is the anniversary month rather than a fixed date like April 15 or May 1, there is no statewide reminder cycle and no shared deadline chatter to prompt you. Set the reminder when you form. Missing annual reports leads eventually to revocation of the company’s standing, and reinstatement requires bringing the filings current and paying the associated fees. Confirm the current reinstatement fee and process with the Division of Revenue and Enterprise Services if you are recovering a lapsed company.

Multi-member filings

A multi-member New Jersey LLC files a state partnership return each year, which carries the per-member minimum tax. That obligation sits with the Division of Taxation rather than with the Division of Revenue’s annual report, so a multi-member LLC has both a $75 annual report and a tax return with a per-member charge. The structure and cost page explains why the ownership chart drives that number.

Foreign registration and other filings

An LLC formed elsewhere that transacts business in New Jersey registers with the Division of Revenue and Enterprise Services and then files the same annual report. Confirm the current foreign registration fee, name reservation fee, expedited service tiers, and reinstatement fee on the Division’s schedule at the time you file, since those lines change and this page does not publish figures it has not verified.

The bottom line

Forming a New Jersey LLC costs $125 through the Division of Revenue and Enterprise Services.

Business registration for tax purposes is a separate filing, and forming the company does not accomplish it.

The annual report costs $75 and is due the last day of your formation month every year, with no statewide deadline to remind you.

A registered agent with a New Jersey address is required, and that address is public.

Multi-member LLCs also file a state partnership return carrying a per-member minimum tax.

Missed annual reports lead to revocation, and recovering standing costs more than keeping it.

What this page does not cover

This page is the mechanics: fees, forms, and deadlines. How creditors reach you in New Jersey is on the protection page. What the statute decides when your operating agreement is silent is on the governance page. The per-member tax, the income tax, and transfer fees are on the structure and cost page.

Last verified July 2026.