How to Start an LLC in Texas in 7 Steps

The state of Texas has 2.7 million small businesses that employ nearly half of Texas workers, according to the SBA Office of Advocacy, making these businesses very important to the state’s overall economy. Like other states, Texas recognizes limited liability companies, or LLCs, as a type of business entity. Many small business owners choose to structure their companies as LLCs because they offer a combination of flexibility, legal protections and tax advantages.

In order to form an LLC in Texas, you must register your company with the Texas Secretary of State. The Texas Secretary of State implements and enforces the Texas Business Organizations Code, which defines the requirements for forming a new LLC in Texas.

Step 1: Choose a name for your LLC

In Texas, almost anyone with a valid business purpose can form an LLC. Certain regulated professions, such as doctors and veterinarians, have to form a professional entity, such as a professional limited liability company or a professional corporation. The Texas Secretary of State has published a guide of permissible entity types, broken down by profession.

The first step is choosing a business name. Under Texas law, an LLC must have a name that’s sufficiently distinct from other business names in the state so that it doesn’t mislead the public.

Names for Texas LLCs must end with "limited liability company" or "limited company.” Abbreviations of those terms, such as L.L.C., LLC, L.C. or LC, are also appropriate.

Under Texas law, an LLC’s name cannot contain any of the following words: "bank," "bank and trust," "trust," "trust company" or "bail bonds." The name of the LLC also cannot suggest that the company is affiliated with the government. The words "insurance" and "surety" can be problematic as well, unless it’s absolutely clear that the business isn’t an insurance agency or surety agency. The reason is that insurance and surety companies are regulated by the Texas Insurance Code.

If the name of your Texas LLC is so similar to that of another Texas business that it wouldn’t pass muster under the law, there’s a way around it — the other company must consent to your business’s use of a similar name. For example, let’s say you want to name your company Texas Super Bakery LLC, but a company called Texan Super Bakery LLC already exists. The latter would have to provide its consent on a Consent to Use of Similar Name Form (Form 509).

Name availability search and reservation

Once you’ve selected some possible names for your LLC, you can check their availability online at Texas’s SOSDirect website. You can also request a preliminary determination that the name is available by contacting the Secretary of State. You can call 512-463-5555, dial 7-1-1 locally for relay services or email your name inquiry to the Secretary of State.

You can opt to reserve a business name for up to 120 days while you complete other steps for forming your LLC. To reserve a name, you must file an Application for Reservation of an Entity Name (Form 501), along with a $40 filing fee. The form can be filed online, by mail, by fax or by personal delivery.

You don’t have to get name clearance or reserve a name to form your LLC, but doing so can give you some peace of mind that you’ve chosen an appropriate name for your business. Just keep in mind that even if the Secretary of State clears a name or allows you to reserve a name, that’s not a guarantee that the name complies with trademark laws. It’s your responsibility to choose a legal name for your business, so if you have concerns, we suggest consulting a business attorney.

Step 2: Choose a registered agent in Texas

Every LLC that’s authorized to do business in Texas must have a registered agent. This is true whether you’re forming your business under the laws of Texas or are an out-of-state business that will be operating in Texas.

A registered agent is an individual or company that accepts legal and official documents on your business’s behalf. An individual Texas resident or an organization that is authorized to do business in Texas can act as your registered agent.

If you choose an individual, they should be:

• 18 years or older

• A Texas resident with a physical address in Texas (no P.O. boxes)

• Available to accept documents during normal business hours

Registered agents in Texas must provide consent to serve in that capacity, using Form 401-A: Acceptance of Appointment and Consent to Serve as Registered Agent. (You can also draft your own consent form, as long as it contains the information included in the Secretary of State’s form.) This consent form doesn’t get filed with the state, but the business should retain the signed copy with other business documents.

Although a business entity cannot serve as its own registered agent, you or another member of the LLC can serve as registered agent. The problem with this is that a member of the LLC might not always be available to accept business documents. For example, a member might fall sick and temporarily be out of the office. For this reason, many businesses opt to use online legal services, which will act as your registered agent in exchange for a fee.

Step 3: Obtain Texas business permits

Depending on the industry your business is in, you might need a special permit from one of many Texas regulatory agencies. The Texas Business Permit Office has published a guide about the different types of state licenses you need depending on your type of business. Cities and counties might have their own permitting requirements.

Any business in Texas that sells tangible personal property and certain types of services must apply for a sales and use tax permit from the Texas Comptroller. And if you’re doing business under a trade name that’s different from your LLC’s legal name, then you’ll also need to file an Assumed Name Certificate (Form 503), also known as a fictitious business name. The filing fee for an assumed name is $25.

Step 4: File a certificate of formation

The next step to form your LLC is to file a certificate of formation with the state of Texas. This document is equivalent to what other states call the articles of organization. You can file the form online at SOSDirect for faster processing, mail the form, send it by fax or hand deliver it to the Secretary of State’s Austin office.

All of the following will be included on your Texas certificate of formation:

• LLC name.

• Registered agent’s name and address.

• Whether the LLC is member-managed or managed-managed.

• Name and address of each LLC member if the LLC is member-managed.

• Name, address and signature of the organizer who is filling out the form (this usually is, but need not be, a member or manager of the LLC).

• Date that you’d like the LLC registration to be effective.

The filing fee for the certificate of formation is $300. Domestic LLCs — LLCs that are based in and organized under the laws of Texas — should fill out Form 205. Foreign LLCs — those that are formed under the laws of another state but want to do business in Texas — must fill out Form 304. Form 304 has a filing fee of $750.

Once you submit your certificate of formation, the Secretary of State will review and file it, and send you back a stamped copy of the document. This typically takes one to three business days.

If you’ve reached this point, you’re now authorized to do business in Texas as an LLC. But there are still a few more things you need to take care of to ensure that your LLC remains in good standing with the state.

Step 5: Draft an LLC operating agreement

Texas doesn’t require an LLC operating agreement, but members should create one. The operating agreement forms a backbone of your business.

The LLC operating agreement should contain the following types of information:

• The products or services offered by the LLC.

• Each member’s name and address (and the manager’s, if there is one).

• Each member’s financial contributions to the business.

• Each member’s ownership interest in the company and division of profits and losses.

• Procedure for admitting new members.

• Procedure for electing a manager if the LLC is manager-managed.

• Meeting schedule.

• Procedures for voting on important company matters.

• Dissolution procedures.

You won’t file your operating agreement with the state. You should store it along with other important business documents.

Step 6: Pay taxes and file information report

LLCs that operate in Texas must pay a franchise tax to the Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts and fill out a public information report, or PIR, by May 15 of each year. For example, if you started your LLC in December 2021, your first PIR and franchise taxes would be due on May 15, 2022. The form contains information about the LLC’s members and any investors in the company. The purpose of the PIR is to ensure that there’s up-to-date information about your business on file with the secretary of state.

The good news is that the majority of LLCs won’t have to pay the franchise tax. For 2022 and 2023, the tax only applies to businesses that make over $1,230,000 in annual gross revenue. ^[0]

Normally, members of LLCs must pay personal state income taxes on their share of the LLC’s profits. However, Texas is one of nine states that don’t charge state income tax. This is a big bonus for companies that are doing business in the Lone Star State.

Step 7: Follow federal requirements

In addition to Texas state requirements for LLCs, you’ll also need to comply with federal requirements.

LLCs with employees or those that are taxed as corporations at the federal level must apply for an employer identification number, or EIN. An EIN is like a Social Security number for your business, and is used to identify your business when you file federal taxes.

Although there’s no Texas income tax, LLC members should be prepared to pay 15.3% in federal self-employment taxes to cover Social Security and Medicare obligations. If you have employees, you also have to withhold federal Social Security and Medicare taxes from your employees’ wages and pay the employer share of these taxes.