Alabama Annual Report Repealed in 2024: What Businesses File Now
There is no Alabama annual report to file: Act 2024‑213 repealed the corporation report on October 1, 2024, a report LLCs were never required to file. What remains is a yearly Business Privilege Tax return for the Department of Revenue, due only when the tax passes $100.
Alabama Business Privilege Tax checkThe form, the due date and an estimate for one business
How the business files its federal income tax return decides the form.
An LLC or corporation formed or registered in Alabama usually is.
Annual report
None to file Repealed October 1, 2024
Business Privilege Tax return
Choose the business type to see its form and due date.
Estimate the tax
Last tax year. A minus sign for a loss.
Leave empty if all of it is in Alabama.
Add the net worth and the income to see whether a return is due.
What Became of the Alabama Annual Report
- Through 2023Corporations attached Schedule AL‑CAR to the privilege tax return, with a $10 fee for the Secretary of State.
- January 1, 2024The report moved to the Secretary of State’s Business Services Division, still $10, still for corporations only.
- October 1, 2024Act 2024‑213 (HB 230), signed May 7, 2024, repealed Code of Alabama § 10A‑2A‑16.11, the section requiring it.
The 2023 instructions for Form PPT already told limited liability entities they were “not required to complete Schedule AL‑CAR,” so Alabama LLCs had no annual report to file even before the repeal.
The Secretary of State’s business entities page now reads: “Corporations authorized to transact business in Alabama are no longer required by law to file an annual report with the Secretary of State.” No entity type has an annual report requirement left, and an Alabama LLC has no yearly renewal.
A registered agent or registered office change goes on a statement of change sent to the Secretary of State (§ 10A‑1‑5.32); an entity registered from another state that leaves it unfiled for 60 days after the change can have its registration revoked (§ 10A‑1‑7.12).
Four official pages still describe the old report
- The Department of Revenue FAQ “Where do I file and pay the Alabama Secretary of State Corporation Annual Report (AL‑CAR)?” still answers with a link to the Secretary of State portal.
- The Department of Revenue’s general Business Privilege Tax page still lists a $100 minimum plus the $10 annual report fee.
- The Secretary of State fee schedule, last revised August 23, 2023, still prices a domestic annual report at $10.
- The forms catalog still calls Form PPT a “Return and Annual Report”, while the 2025 and 2026 PDFs say Business Privilege Tax Return only.
Which Privilege Tax Return, and When It Is Due
The Alabama return rides on the federal income tax return: same accounting year, and the due date of the federal return for the year that just ended, under Code of Alabama § 40‑14A‑25. A due date on a weekend or an Alabama state holiday moves to the next business day, as the check above applies.
| Business | Alabama return | Federal return it follows | Next due date (calendar year) |
|---|---|---|---|
| LLC with 2+ members, LP, LLP | Form PPT | Form 1065 | March 15, 2027 |
| S corporation, LLC taxed as one | Form PPT | Form 1120‑S | March 15, 2027 |
| Single-member LLC owned by a person | Form PPT | The owner's Form 1040 | April 15, 2027 |
| C corporation, LLC taxed as one | Form CPT | Form 1120 | April 15, 2027 |
| Any of these, first year in Alabama | Form BPT‑IN | No federal return | About 2.5 months after the start |
| Nonprofit 501(a), homeowners association | None, exempt (§ 40‑14A‑43) | Not applicable | No date |
The automatic extension gives six more months to file, in line with the federal one, but never more time to pay. The Form PPT instructions say the law has no provision for extending payment, so the tax goes in by the original date, online or with Form BPT‑V marked as an extension payment.
Single-member LLCs follow their owner
Owned by a person
Files its own Form PPT with Worksheet BPT‑NWI, where net worth is assets minus liabilities. It is due with the owner's 1040 and uses the LLC's own EIN, or its privilege tax account number if it has none, never the owner's Social Security number.
Owned by a company that pays the Alabama tax
Exempt from the privilege tax and from the return, under the Department of Revenue's 2026 quick reference. Only the owner files.
Owned by a company that doesn't
An out-of-state company not registered or doing business here, or a general partnership. The LLC files Form PPT with Worksheet BPT‑NW, a statement explaining why the owner isn't taxed, and proof of its assets and liabilities.
What the Alabama Business Privilege Tax Costs
Alabama charges no flat annual fee to an LLC or a corporation; the yearly cost is this tax, net worth times a rate. Net worth is read from the balance sheet that closed the previous tax year: capital accounts for a multi-member LLC, assets minus liabilities for a single-member LLC, capital and retained earnings for a corporation.
The $100 line works as a cliff
Starting with tax years that open on January 1, 2024 or later, Act 2022‑252 turned the old minimum into a full exemption at $100 or less. The minimum had been $100, then $50 for 2023. Form PPT now says it at line 19: “If $100 or less, STOP. You do not have a filing requirement.”
The rate comes from federal taxable income apportioned to Alabama, under § 40‑14A‑22(b). One rate covers the whole taxable net worth: the Form PPT instructions apply $1.25 to $1,000,000 for a business with $250,000 of income, for $1,250 of tax.
| Federal taxable income in Alabama | Rate per $1,000 |
|---|---|
| Under $1 (a loss or zero) | $0.25 |
| $1 to $199,999 | $1.00 |
| $200,000 to $499,999 | $1.25 |
| $500,000 to $2,499,999 | $1.50 |
| $2,500,000 or more | $1.75 |
S corporations, LLCs taxed as partnerships and single-member LLCs first subtract 30% of their Alabama income from net worth (§ 40‑14A‑24(b)(8) and (9)). Form CPT has no such line, so a C corporation, or an LLC taxed as one, pays on its full Alabama net worth.
Single-member LLC, nothing to file
$80,000 of assets, $20,000 of liabilities, $45,000 of profit: ($60,000 − $13,500) × $1.00 per $1,000 = $46.50.
Two-member LLC, Form PPT due
$400,000 in capital accounts, $250,000 of income: ($400,000 − $75,000) × $1.25 per $1,000 = $406.25, due March 15.
A loss year can create a return. Below $1 of income the rate falls to $0.25, but the 30% deduction falls to zero, so an LLC with $500,000 of capital and a loss owes $125 and must file, while $20,000 of profit would have meant $494.
One election lowers the $15,000 cap: a family limited liability entity, at least 80% owned by one family and with 90% of its income passive or 90% of its assets non-operating, can elect each year on Schedule BPT‑E for a $500 ceiling. Single-member LLCs disregarded for federal tax can’t make that election.
New in Alabama: Form BPT‑IN Comes First
A business owes its initial return within two and a half months of forming an Alabama LLC or corporation, or, if formed elsewhere, of registering or starting business here, whichever came first (§ 40‑14A‑29 and the Form BPT‑IN instructions). Form BPT‑IN gets no extension.
That first return ignores income: a flat $0.25 per $1,000 of net worth on the start date, with no 30% deduction, prorated by the days left in the tax year over 365. Over a full year it passes $100 only above $400,000 of Alabama net worth.
A two-member LLC formed on July 1, 2026 with $50,000
$50,000 × $0.25 per $1,000 × 184/365 = about $6.30: no Form BPT‑IN. Its next possible return is Form PPT 2027, due March 15, 2027.
The year on the form is the year paid for, not the year of the numbers: Form PPT 2027 is built on the December 31, 2026 balance sheet.
Filing in My Alabama Taxes, or on Paper Under $750
Find the Online Filing Info letter
The Department of Revenue mails it, normally 4 to 6 weeks after the business registers at the Secretary of State, with a Sign-On ID and an Access Code. A lost letter is replaced on request to businessprivilege.tax@revenue.alabama.gov, giving the current mailing address.
Open the Business Privilege Tax account
On My Alabama Taxes, select Business Privilege Tax, then enter the account number, Sign-On ID and Access Code. Questions about the account number go to (334) 242-1170, option 8.
Attach the federal pages
Form PPT takes pages 1 to 5 of Form 1065 or pages 1 to 4 of Form 1120‑S, as listed in the 2026 Form PPT instructions; a business active in other states adds its apportionment schedule.
Pay by the original due date
A payment of $750 or more must be electronic under § 41‑1‑20, by ACH debit in My Alabama Taxes or by phone. Under $750, a check with Form BPT‑V is accepted, and claiming the Enterprise Zone Credit requires a paper return.
Business Privilege Tax Section
PO Box 327320
Montgomery, AL 36132-7320
Business Privilege Tax Section
PO Box 327431
Montgomery, AL 36132-7431
Penalties and Interest on a Late Alabama Return
Both penalties come from § 40‑2A‑11 and are waived for reasonable cause. The late-return penalty counts from the extended date, and a business whose tax calculates to $100 or less has no return to file late.
$406.25 of tax, return and payment seven months late
Interest runs by the day: the Department of Revenue divides the yearly rate by 365 and multiplies by the days late and the tax. Its rates for 2026 are 7%, 6%, 7% and 7% by quarter.
Unfiled returns also block the Certificate of Compliance, Alabama’s proof of tax good standing, which the Department of Revenue denies until every required return is filed and paid. For an entity registered from another state, tax unpaid 180 days past due lets the Secretary of State start revoking its registration (§ 10A‑1‑7.12).
The Tax Stops Only With a Dissolution or Withdrawal
The privilege tax accrues on January 1 of each year that begins before the business is dissolved or withdrawn (§ 40‑14A‑22(a)), and the Department of Revenue charges it “regardless of whether such entity is actively doing business.” An LLC that closes in November but files its dissolution in January owes the new year as well, if that tax passes $100.
A business from another state files a certificate of withdrawal, after getting its Certificate of Compliance. A domestic LLC or corporation files articles of dissolution with the Secretary of State: $100 in state fees, $104 in total through the online portal.
