Illinois compliance
How to file an Illinois annual report
Every Illinois LLC and corporation files one report a year to stay in good standing. It is short, it is due on a schedule tied to your own formation date, and missing it is the single most common way a company slips out of good standing.
What the annual report is
The annual report is a yearly filing with the Illinois Secretary of State that confirms your company still exists and keeps its public record current: the entity name, the principal office, the registered agent and address, and the managers or officers. It is not a tax return and it is not a financial statement — it is a confirmation filing.
Every LLC and every corporation on the Illinois register files one, every year, for as long as the entity is active. There is no version for dormant companies; if the entity is on file, the report is due.
When it is due
Illinois ties the deadline to your own calendar, not to a single date for everyone. The report is due before the first day of your anniversary month — the month your LLC was organized or your corporation was incorporated. A company formed on 14 March files before 1 March every year after.
There is no reminder you can rely on. The State may send a notice to the registered agent, but the obligation stands whether or not it arrives, which is why a registered agent who actually receives and forwards state mail matters here.
What it costs
The Secretary of State charges a flat filing fee of $75 for the annual report, the same for an LLC and a corporation.
A corporation owes one thing an LLC does not: franchise tax, computed from its paid-in capital on form BCA 14.05. That figure is specific to the company, so a corporation cannot be quoted a single all-in number the way an LLC can. The State publishes the current fees, and that page is the only figure worth trusting if you are filing yourself.
- LLC: $75 to the State, a knowable flat fee.
- Corporation: $75 filing fee plus franchise tax based on paid-in capital.
- Neither figure includes any late penalty, which is separate and avoidable.
How to file it
You have two honest options. File it yourself through the Illinois Secretary of State: most LLCs can file and pay online in a few minutes, and the confirmation is issued the same day. Or have it filed for you, which is the point of a service — you confirm the details, the report is filed, and you get the confirmation without tracking the deadline yourself.
Be wary of a third thing that is neither: official-looking mail offering to "renew" your report for a blended fee well above the State’s $75. Fake annual-report notices are a prosecuted scam category in Illinois. A legitimate filer always shows the State’s fee as its own line, separate from any service charge.
What happens if you miss it
Nothing dramatic on day one, which is exactly why it is easy to let slide. Then it compounds.
- The State adds a penalty on top of the filing fee once the report is late.
- The entity stops being in good standing, so it cannot get a certificate of good standing — the document banks, lenders and other states ask for.
- Left unfiled long enough, the Secretary of State administratively dissolves the company. It no longer legally exists, and contracts signed while dissolved can be challenged.
- Reinstatement is a separate filing with its own fee, on top of the reports and penalties owed. It is always cheaper to file on time than to come back.
Want your annual report filed for you?
USTAXX files Illinois annual reports for LLCs online, with the State’s $75 shown as its own line and never blended into ours. Corporations are quoted first, because the franchise tax has to be computed.
Questions people ask
When is my Illinois annual report due?
Before the first day of your anniversary month — the month your LLC was organized or your corporation was incorporated. It falls on the same schedule every year.
How much does the Illinois annual report cost?
The State charges a flat $75 filing fee for both LLCs and corporations. A corporation also owes franchise tax computed from its paid-in capital, so its total depends on the company.
Do LLCs have to file an annual report in Illinois?
Yes. Every Illinois LLC files one every year to stay in good standing, regardless of whether the business had any activity that year.
What happens if I file late or not at all?
The State adds a penalty, the entity loses good standing, and if it stays unfiled long enough the Secretary of State administratively dissolves the company. Bringing it back takes a separate reinstatement filing.
Is the annual report the same as a tax return?
No. The annual report is a confirmation filing with the Secretary of State about the entity’s record. Your federal and state tax returns are separate and go to the IRS and the Illinois Department of Revenue.
Where these rules come from
General information, current when written, not advice about your situation. Fees and forms change; the official pages above are the authority.