How to Start an LLC in Connecticut, and What the Public Record Will Show
One online filing is enough to start an LLC in Connecticut: a $120 Certificate of Organization with the Connecticut Secretary of the State, through a CT.GOV account. The certificate also puts at least one member’s or manager’s home address on the public record.
Connecticut LLC at a glance
State fees checked October 2026
- Certificate
- $120
- Online, after a CT.GOV login
- Annual report
- $80
- Jan 1 to Mar 31, from next year
- NAICS code
- 6 digits
- Required on the form
File it yourself
$120state fee
A CT.GOV login comes first, and the form asks for a 6-digit NAICS code.
Northwest files it Partner
$39+ $120 state fee
Agent service for the first year, then $125 a year. No member lists a home on item 4. The item 5 limit
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Connecticut LLC requirements: the Certificate of Organization, item by item
The state’s own checklist names five things to have ready: the business name, a street address, an email, a NAICS code and a point of contact. These are the eight numbered items, plus the filing party, on the state’s fillable Certificate of Organization (revised December 2025), which “can be filed online at business.ct.gov.”
| Item | What to enter |
|---|---|
| 1. Name | With "Limited Liability Company," "LLC," "L.L.C.," "Limited Liability Co.," "Ltd. Liability Company" or "Ltd. Liability Co." |
| 2. Principal office | A full street address, no P.O. box |
| 3. Mailing address | Can be a P.O. box |
| 4. Registered (statutory) agent | An individual who lives in Connecticut, or a business registered with a Connecticut address, who signs to accept |
| 5. Member or manager | Name, title, business address and residence address (no P.O. box) |
| 6. Entity email | Required: annual report reminders go there |
| 7. NAICS code | Six digits for the main activity |
| 8. Organizer's signature | Signs under penalty of false statement; can't be the LLC itself |
| Filing party (no number) | Where the confirmation goes |
Connecticut ignores the entity type when comparing names: “ABC LLC” conflicts with “ABC Inc.” (C.G.S. 34-243k(d)) unless the other business consents in writing. Check yours in the state’s Search Business Records tool or a Connecticut business search; an Application for Reservation of Name ($60) holds it for 120 days.
“The Limited Liability Company may not be its own agent.” A member or manager who lives in Connecticut can be. For the NAICS item, pick the NAICS code for an LLC before logging in.
Trade names go to a town clerk
A trade name (DBA) is filed with one town clerk: for a Connecticut LLC, the clerk of the town of its business address on file, even if it works in several towns. The fee is $20.
Trade name certificates filed on or after October 1, 2026 use new notarized forms, signed by hand before the town clerk or another notary.
How to start an LLC in Connecticut without a lawyer
Nothing in the filing calls for a lawyer: “You can complete the entire process online through your Business.CT.gov dashboard,” the state says.
Create the CT.GOV account
Name, email, mobile number, username and password, then a verification code.
Choose the Certificate of Organization
The online system walks through the items above.
Decide on expedited service
A $50 option appears before payment. The state also says "most filings made on Business.CT.gov are automatically accepted, so expedited service is unnecessary."
Pay the $120 state filing fee
Cards are added inside the payment screen and stored in "My Wallet."
Since January 2025, each filing “must be reviewed, and either accepted or rejected by SOTS, before you can submit the next one.” Connecticut publishes no processing time for a new LLC.
Payment screen spinning? Payments run through payments.blackthorn.io, which a firewall can block. The state’s payment help page suggests a private browser window, then clearing cookies; Business Services answers at 860-509-6003 and bsd@ct.gov.
Paper filing is “strongly discouraged as it is the slowest option.” It takes a check or money order, can’t be expedited, and goes to P.O. Box 150470, Hartford, CT 06115-0470.
Whose home address a Connecticut LLC’s record shows
“The content of all documents submitted to our office is public record.” The record displays up to three members or managers; the rest are in copies of the original filing, and the state’s open data portal publishes business principals too.
Example values; highlighted lines are home addresses.
For an address that would be dangerous to publish, the Secretary of the State asks for a letter with the filing: “If you think it would be dangerous for you if we made your business address public, please submit a letter explaining why when you register your business.”
The certificate has no item for an operating agreement, and the fee schedule lists no filing for one: a Connecticut LLC operating agreement is kept by the members.
$80 every January 1 to March 31, from the year after formation
Connecticut’s LLC annual report isn’t tied to the formation date. Connecticut LLCs file it online between January 1 and March 31, starting the year after formation, so an LLC formed in late December files about three months later.
A missing report brings no late fee, but the state won’t issue a Certificate of Legal Existence until it’s filed. Closing the LLC later costs nothing: the Certificate of Dissolution is $0.
Letters selling a “required” certificate aren’t from the state: “A certificate of Legal Existence is not required to start a business,” and the Secretary of the State charges $50 for one. Its real emails come from @ct.gov addresses.
Which Connecticut LLCs file Form CT‑1065/CT‑1120SI
- Taxed as a partnership, or an S corporation by IRS election: Form CT‑1065/CT‑1120SI every year with the Connecticut Department of Revenue Services, filed electronically, due March 15 for a calendar year.
- Single member, disregarded federally: the LLC “is disregarded for Connecticut income tax purposes” and files no CT‑1065/CT‑1120SI; the owner reports the income.
- The pass-through entity tax is optional: 6.99% for 2025, elected on the CT‑1065/CT‑1120SI, and irrevocable.
Selling taxable goods or services takes a $100 sales and use tax permit through myconneCT, under “New Business/Need a CT Registration Number?” Selling without one carries a $250 penalty for the first day.
An LLC that hires gets its employer identification number (EIN) from the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), free, and reports each new hire within 20 days. Licenses depend on the trade: Business.CT.gov points to the eLicense system and each regulating agency.
Cost, timing and other Connecticut filings
What does a Connecticut LLC cost each year?
$120 to file the certificate, then $80 for each annual report from the next year. Optional: $60 to reserve the name, $50 for expedited review, $20 for a trade name at the town clerk, and $100 for a sales tax permit if the LLC sells taxable goods or services.
How long does it take to get an LLC in Connecticut?
The state publishes no processing time. It says most online filings are accepted automatically, though each filing is reviewed before the next can be submitted.
Can a Connecticut member be the registered agent?
Yes, if you live in Connecticut; your residence address then goes in item 4, and you sign to accept.
What if the LLC was formed in another state?
It registers in Connecticut with a Foreign Registration Statement, $120, plus a DRS registration if it makes taxable sales.
Is an S corp a separate filing in Connecticut?
No. The LLC elects S corporation status with the IRS on Form 2553; Connecticut then expects Form CT‑1065/CT‑1120SI every year, due March 15.
How do you start a corporation in Connecticut instead?
With a Certificate of Incorporation, $250, instead of the $120 Certificate of Organization.
