Everything you need to register a foreign LLC in California.
State filing fee$70one-time
Registered agent$125/yearbased on Northwest RA
Total, all in$2,885
California data last reviewed Aug 22, 2026 · sos.ca.govTotals include the $70 filing fee once, Northwest RA at $125/year, and California recurring state costs over the selected period. The report fee is biennial and counted per filing due.
Foreign Qualification
Filing fee
$70
Form
Application to Register a Foreign Limited Liability Company (Form LLC-5)
Annual obligation
$20 biennial + $800/year franchise tax
Processing time
California publishes a rolling processed-through date rather than a duration. The Secretary of State posts the receipt date it is currently working on: as of its 21 August 2026 update, LLC formations and registrations stood at 20 August for online filings and 17 August for post. Check that page rather than relying on a stored figure, because it moves.
Expedite
$350 for 24 hour filing, Class C, and $750 for same day, Class B. Those are the two tiers available through bizfileOnline. Class A four hour service is $500 but is drop-off only in Sacramento and requires the document to have been precleared first at a further $500, so it is $1,000 and a trip to Sacramento rather than a faster checkbox.
Estimated year 1 cost
$890
Note: California charges an $800 annual franchise tax on all LLCs, including foreign-qualified ones. This is one of the highest ongoing costs of any state.
California data last reviewed Aug 22, 2026 · sos.ca.gov
Formation in California
Formation fee
$70
Annual cost
$20 biennial + $800/year franchise tax
State income tax
Income tax up to 13.3%. $800 minimum franchise tax for all LLCs.
Privacy
Low
California has the highest state income tax rate in the country. The Statement of Information (Form LLC-12) is due within 90 days of formation, then every 2 years. The $800 annual franchise tax is separate and due every year regardless.
What triggers foreign qualification in California?
Physical presence (store, office, warehouse)
Employees in California
Recurring revenue from California customers
Owning or leasing property in California
Important to know
$800 annual franchise tax applies even if you earn no revenue in California
Franchise Tax Board has its own definition of doing business (Revenue & Taxation Code 23101)
Activities that do NOT require registration in California
The following activities are explicitly carved out by statute. On their own, they do not require a foreign LLC to register in California.
Bringing or defending a lawsuit, administrative proceeding, or arbitration, or settling those claims or disputes
Holding meetings of members or managers, or carrying on internal company affairs
Maintaining bank accounts
Keeping an office or agent to transfer, exchange, and register the company's own securities, or keeping trustees or depositories for them
Selling through independent contractors
Taking orders by mail, online, or through employees or agents, if the orders must be accepted outside California before they become contracts
Creating or acquiring debts, notes, mortgages, liens, or security interests in real or personal property
Collecting debts or enforcing mortgages or security interests, and holding or protecting property acquired that way
Doing a single isolated transaction that is finished within 180 days and is not one of a series of similar transactions
Doing business in interstate commerce
Under Corporations Code Section 17708.03(b), 10 items. California's isolated-transaction window is 180 days, not the usual 30. California has NO standalone safe harbor for simply owning real or personal property. Subsection (c) adds six status-based exclusions (shareholder, limited partner, member or manager of another entity) and subsection (e) states the section does not determine service of process, taxation, or regulation under other California law. Note that Corporations Code Section 191 governs foreign CORPORATIONS and does not reach LLCs, so a citation to it for this list is wrong.
This page provides general information based on publicly available state requirements. It is not legal advice. Verify with the California SOS before filing.