Everything you need to register a foreign LLC in Delaware.
State filing fee$200one-time
Registered agent$125/yearbased on Northwest RA
Total, all in$1,775
Delaware data last reviewed Aug 25, 2026 · corp.delaware.govTotals include the $200 filing fee once, Northwest RA at $125/year, and Delaware recurring state costs over the selected period.
Foreign Qualification
Filing fee
$200
Form
Certificate of Registration of Foreign LLC
Annual obligation
$400/year entity tax
Processing time
Delaware publishes no standard turnaround and says so plainly: the Division of Corporations states that processing time for regular, non-expedited work varies with the volume of items received. The only durations it publishes are the four paid tiers, from next day at $50 to one hour at $1,000.
Expedite
Priced per document and stacked on the filing fee. Next day is $50 to $100, same day is $100 to $200 and must be received by 2pm, two hour service is $500 with a 7pm cut-off, and one hour service is $1,000 with a 9pm cut-off.
Activities that do NOT require registration in Delaware
The following activities are explicitly carved out by statute. On their own, they do not require a foreign LLC to register in Delaware.
Bringing, defending, or settling a lawsuit or other legal proceeding
Holding meetings of members or managers, or handling internal company affairs
Maintaining bank accounts
Running an office or agent for transferring or registering your own securities, or keeping trustees or depositories for them
Selling through independent contractors
Taking or soliciting orders, by mail or through staff or agents, if the order has to be accepted outside Delaware to become a contract
Selling machinery, plants, or equipment under a contract signed outside Delaware and sending in your own technical engineers or skilled workers only to supervise the installation you agreed to in that contract
Borrowing or lending money, or acquiring debt, with or without a mortgage or security interest in property
Collecting debts or foreclosing on mortgages or other security interests, and holding and maintaining property you get that way
Doing a one-off transaction that is not part of a series of similar transactions
Doing business in interstate commerce
Doing business in Delaware as an insurance company
Under 6 Del. C. Section 18-912, all 12 items. Delaware puts NO time limit on the isolated-transaction carve-out, unlike the 30 days used by most states. Delaware also has NO standalone safe harbor for simply owning property. Unique items: an equipment-installation carve-out and an insurance-company carve-out. Subsection (b) protects a person who is merely a member or manager. Subsection (c) disclaims service of process, taxation and regulation under other Delaware law.
This page provides general information based on publicly available state requirements. It is not legal advice. Verify with the Delaware SOS before filing.