Arkansas Foreign Registration · Delaware LLCs
A Delaware LLC registering in Arkansas
When a Delaware LLC begins doing business in Arkansas it registers on Form FL-01 for $270 online, attaches a Delaware certificate that costs $50, and then pays Arkansas $150 in franchise tax each May 1. Delaware's $400 annual tax, due June 1, continues, so a year of upkeep in the two states comes to $550.
Delaware and Arkansas compared
| Topic | Delaware | Arkansas |
|---|---|---|
| One-time filing | None; the LLC exists there already | Form FL-01, $270 online |
| Proof of existence | Certificate, $50 | a certificate of existence (or document of similar import) authorized by the official having custody of the records where the company was formed |
| Yearly bill | $400, due June 1 | $150, due May 1 |
| Late cost | $200 penalty | $25 plus interest |
| Agent | A Delaware agent | A street address in Arkansas |
Two bills a month apart
Arkansas's franchise tax falls on May 1 and Delaware's annual tax on June 1, so a Delaware LLC with Arkansas work has two payments within weeks of each other each spring. Arkansas allows no extension on its date, and Delaware adds a $200 penalty to a late payment. Putting both in one calendar entry keeps either from slipping, and a company that pays Delaware first stands in good standing when it next needs a certificate.
Certificate of existence from Delaware
Item 8 of Form FL-01 says the application is delivered with a certificate of existence (or document of similar import) authorized by the official having custody of the records where the company was formed. For a Delaware company that is the good standing certificate from the Division of Corporations, $50. Form FL-01 names no age limit for the certificate of existence, so there is no formal staleness test, but the name and the organization date on the certificate must agree with items 1a and 3. Order it once Delaware's tax is paid, and close to the filing date.
Items on the form that come from Delaware
In item 1a the LLC's name goes in as Delaware records it, item 2 names Delaware, and item 3 takes the formation date and any termination date the certificate shows. Item 5 asks for the office the home jurisdiction requires, and since Delaware requires a registered office there, that is where the Delaware agent's address goes; item 6 is the principal office in Arkansas. Item 4 is the Arkansas agent, not the Delaware one, and the street address rule applies to it.
Holding companies and subsidiaries
The registration duty attaches to the entity that does business, not to the parent that owns it. A Delaware parent whose only Arkansas link is its ownership of an operating LLC is not itself doing business, because holding an interest in or helping run such a company is not doing business in its own right (A.C.A. 4-38-905(b)). The operating LLC registers, pays its own franchise tax, and keeps its own agent.
Amending after a Delaware change
If the Delaware LLC changes its name, its jurisdiction or an address in the registration, it amends the Arkansas registration on Form FL-02 for $270 online or $300 on paper (A.C.A. 4-38-904). A new name that does not comply with Arkansas rules must be matched with an alternate name before the company does business here under it.
A first year in both states
For a new Delaware registrant, the first year adds up as follows: $50 for the Delaware certificate, $270 to register online, $150 for the first Arkansas franchise tax report, and Delaware's own $400, $870 in all before our fee, an agent or any home-state penalties. In later years only the two taxes remain, $550 together, one due in the spring and one in June.
Order of work
Clear Delaware's tax so the company is in good order. Request the certificate. Settle the Arkansas agent and the officer. Only then complete the application, so every name and date is copied from the certificate in hand and not from an older record.
Registering a Delaware LLC in Arkansas
Pay Delaware's tax
The $400 annual tax keeps the LLC in good standing.
Order the certificate
$50, shortly before filing.
Choose the Arkansas agent
A street address in Arkansas.
Complete Form FL-01
Delaware name and date, and an officer.
File online
$270 by credit card.
Mark both dates
Arkansas May 1 and Delaware June 1.
Delaware questions
Does Arkansas accept a Delaware certificate printed online?
Form FL-01 asks for a certificate authorized by the official who holds the company's records. We order the certificate from Delaware for your filing.
Does registering in Arkansas change my Delaware tax?
No. Delaware's $400 stays due on June 1.
Do I pay the Arkansas franchise tax in the registration year?
The tax sheet sets the first due date at May 1 of the year after formation, so expect the first payment the next spring.
Our fee and the Arkansas fee
Register in Arkansas
+ $270 Arkansas fee
- Form FL-01, Application for Certificate of Registration of Foreign Limited Liability Company, filed online at the lower fee
- Your home state's certificate of existence, ordered for the filing
- An Arkansas registered agent: ours, or the one you already have
- The filed certificate of registration, sent to you with your first franchise tax date
- Renewal: after the first year, the agent service renews at $149 a year
$199
Arkansas
Start my Arkansas filingWe show our fee and the Arkansas fee as two lines at checkout. The Arkansas fee passes through at cost. $199 plus the state fee, including your first year of registered agent service; after that the agent service renews at $149 a year.
Official pages used
- Arkansas Secretary of State, foreign LLC forms and fees
- Arkansas Form FL-01
- Arkansas LLC franchise tax report and instructions
- Arkansas Secretary of State, foreign corporation forms and fees
- Delaware Division of Corporations fee schedule (PDF)
- Delaware Division of Corporations, LLC/LP/GP annual tax
- Arkansas Act 1041, Uniform LLC Act
Working in Arkansas?
File through us and your company pays the online rate while we handle the certificate, the application and the agent.