How to Start an LLC in Washington (2026): Step-by-Step Guide

Published: June 2026 · Updated for the 2026 tax year

Starting an LLC in Washington is mostly a clean, online process — until you read "no state income tax" and assume that means "no business tax." It doesn't. Washington runs a Business & Occupation (B&O) tax on your gross receipts, with no deduction for expenses, plus an Initial Report due within 120 days and a state business license before you operate. This guide walks through every step, what a Washington LLC actually costs year by year, how to form one from outside the US, and the deadlines that quietly knock LLCs out of good standing.

Form your Washington LLC for free with Jupid. We prepare and file your Certificate of Formation — you pay only the state's filing fee, with no service markup. Start your Washington LLC →

A note from Slava

I'm Slava, co-founder and CEO of Jupid. Before this I co-founded and scaled an AI-powered accounting platform to around $30M in revenue and more than 100,000 business users — the kind of company that ends up filing a lot of paperwork in a lot of states and watching customers trip over the same potholes again and again.

Washington's pothole is the one hiding behind good news. "No income tax" is real and genuinely valuable — your LLC's profits don't get a second state-level haircut. But almost every "how to start an LLC in Washington" article stops there and lets you believe Washington is a tax-free state for business. It isn't. The B&O tax applies to gross revenue, not profit, which means you can owe it in a year you actually lose money. Most guides bury that, skip the Initial Report that's due inside 120 days, and forget to mention the state business license you need before you open the doors.

So this guide does the things the others skip: it explains the B&O tax honestly, it adds up the real cost over time, it spells out the non-resident path, and it hands you a dated checklist for your first 90 days so the Initial Report doesn't catch you. Everything here is current for 2026, with links to the official sources so you can verify before you file.

Washington LLC at a glance

Sources: Washington Secretary of State — LLC/PLLC filing resource page, Washington Secretary of State — fee schedule, Washington Department of Revenue — B&O tax.

Should you actually form your LLC in Washington?

If you live in Washington and run your business from Washington, you should almost certainly form your LLC in Washington. The popular advice to "form in Wyoming or Delaware instead" doesn't help you here: an out-of-state LLC that does business in Washington has to register as a foreign LLC with the Secretary of State, get the same Washington business license, and pay the same B&O tax on its Washington revenue anyway — plus a second set of fees and a registered agent in the other state. You end up paying more for more paperwork.

Forming elsewhere makes sense in a narrower set of cases: you genuinely don't operate in Washington (no office, employees, or significant activity here), you're a non-resident with no US footprint at all, or you have a specific reason — outside-investor expectations, for instance — that points to Delaware. If you're a location-independent non-resident shopping for low fees, Wyoming is usually the cheaper pick (about $100 to file, $60 a year, and no gross-receipts tax). Our best state to form an LLC tool walks through the trade-offs side by side.

For everyone who actually does business in Washington: Washington it is. Here's how.

How to start an LLC in Washington, step by step

1. Choose and check your LLC name

Your name has to include "Limited Liability Company," "LLC," or "L.L.C." ("Limited" can be shortened to "Ltd." and "Company" to "Co."), and it has to be distinguishable from every other entity on the Secretary of State's records. Search the Corporations and Charities Filing System before you get attached to anything, and if you want ideas or want to test a few options at once, our Washington business name generator is built for exactly that. If you want to lock a name in before you're ready to file, a name reservation holds it for 180 days for $30.

2. Appoint a Washington registered agent

Every Washington LLC needs a registered agent who can accept legal papers and official notices on its behalf. That agent is either an individual who actually lives in Washington with a physical street address — a P.O. box won't do — or a registered agent entity authorized in Washington, and the agent has to consent to the appointment. You can serve as your own agent if you're a Washington resident; the agent's name and address become public record, which is one reason people who'd rather not publish a home address (and everyone who lives out of state) hire a commercial registered agent for roughly $100–$150 a year.

3. File the Certificate of Formation

This is the step that creates your LLC. File the Certificate of Formation online through the Corporations and Charities Filing System for the $180 state fee — figure about $200 once the online card surcharge is added. You'll list the LLC name, the registered agent, the principal office address, and the management structure. Standard online processing is usually about two to three business days; mail filings run two to three weeks. If you're in a hurry, expedited service is $100 and same-day is $150. Once it's approved, download the stamped copy — your bank will ask for it.

4. File the Initial Report within 120 days

Here's the step most guides skip. Washington requires an Initial Report within 120 days of formation, and it costs $10. When you file online, you can submit the Initial Report at the same time as the Certificate of Formation, which is the easiest way to be done with it. If you filed by mail, the Initial Report is a separate filing — don't forget it. It lists your governors (members or managers) and confirms your registered agent and addresses. Miss the 120-day window and your LLC starts sliding out of good standing.

5. Get your EIN and write an operating agreement

An EIN is your LLC's federal tax ID, and you need it to open a bank account, hire anyone, and file taxes. It's free. Apply at irs.gov — if you have an SSN or ITIN, the online application takes a few minutes. If you don't (common for non-resident owners), file Form SS-4 by fax or mail; see the non-resident section below. Never pay a third party for the EIN itself.

Washington doesn't legally require an operating agreement, but you should have one anyway. Your bank will ask for it, and it's part of how you keep personal and business liability separate. Cover ownership percentages, profit splits, decision-making, and what happens if a member leaves. Single-member LLCs need one too — it reinforces the liability shield. You keep it with your records; you don't file it with the state.

6. Get your state business license and register for B&O tax

Forming the LLC doesn't register you to do business. Apply for a Washington State Business License through the Department of Revenue's Business Licensing Service — the new-application processing fee is $50 (city endorsements add their own fees). You generally need the license once your gross income reaches $12,000 a year, you collect sales tax, you hire, or you otherwise owe the DOR. Applying for the license is also how you register for the B&O tax on gross receipts and for sales tax if you sell taxable goods or services. The DOR will assign you a filing frequency (monthly, quarterly, or annual). More on what the B&O tax actually costs below. And any professional or industry license you'd need as a sole proprietor — contractor, food service, liquor, real estate — you still need as an LLC.

7. Calendar your annual report

Every year you file the Annual Report with the Secretary of State by the end of your formation anniversary month — it's $70. It's an anniversary deadline, not a fixed calendar date, which trips people up. Filing it late adds a $25 penalty, and leaving it unfiled long enough leads to administrative dissolution, which freezes your ability to do business. Set a reminder about 45 days out.

What a Washington LLC really costs, year by year

Most guides quote "$200 plus $60" and stop — and even those numbers are a little off now. Here's the fuller picture.

Year one

Every following year

The part the "no income tax" headline hides: the B&O tax. Washington has no income tax, but it taxes gross receipts through the Business & Occupation tax, and there is no deduction for expenses — not payroll, not rent, not cost of goods. You owe it on revenue, which means you can owe B&O in a year you lose money. The rate depends on your activity. In 2026, retailing is 0.471% and wholesaling and manufacturing are 0.484% (all scheduled to rise to 0.5% on January 1, 2027). Service and other activities are tiered by your prior-year Washington gross income: 1.5% under $1 million, 1.75% from $1 million to about $5 million, and 2.1% above $5 million. A consultant who bills $120,000 a year, for example, sits in the service category and owes roughly $1,800 in B&O before any credit. The good news for the smallest businesses: a Small Business B&O Credit reduces or eliminates the tax for low-revenue filers, and the DOR system calculates it automatically — but you still have to register and file the return even when the tax comes out to zero.

DIY versus a formation service versus Jupid. Doing it yourself costs the state fees and your time. A formation service charges $0–$300 on top of the state fees (the "$0" packages still pass through the $180 + $10 + $50 and then upsell you a registered agent and a "compliance" subscription). Jupid forms your Washington LLC for free — you pay only the state filing fee — and then handles the bookkeeping, the B&O filings, and your tax return afterward, which is where most of the ongoing cost and hassle actually lives. To model the annual numbers for your situation, use our Washington LLC annual cost calculator.

Forming a Washington LLC as a non-resident or foreign founder

You can own a Washington LLC without being a US citizen or resident — Washington imposes no residency requirement on members or managers. The practical hurdles are a Washington agent, an EIN, a US bank account, and your US tax filings.

Registered agent. If no member or manager lives in Washington with a real street address, you must use a commercial registered agent here. Budget around $100–$150 a year. P.O. boxes and mailbox-store addresses don't qualify.

Getting an EIN without an SSN. The IRS online EIN tool requires the responsible party to have an SSN or ITIN, so foreign founders generally can't use it. Instead, file Form SS-4: where it asks for the responsible party's SSN/ITIN/EIN, write "Foreign" — don't invent a number. Submit it by fax or mail, or call the IRS international EIN line (it's not toll-free), where someone outside the US can get the number over the phone. Check the current Form SS-4 instructions for the right fax number, since the IRS changes them. By fax or mail it usually takes about four business days to several weeks. The EIN is free.

ITIN. An ITIN (Form W-7) is a tax ID for individuals who aren't eligible for an SSN. Your LLC gets an EIN; you as an owner may separately need an ITIN if you have to file a personal US return. ITINs are issued with a tax return attached or through an IRS Certifying Acceptance Agent and can take a couple of months.

The Form 5472 obligation — don't skip this. A single-member LLC owned by a non-US person is a "foreign-owned disregarded entity" that generally must file Form 5472 along with a pro-forma Form 1120 every year, reporting transactions between the LLC and its foreign owner — even with zero US income. The penalty for missing it is $25,000. Almost no Washington LLC guide mentions this; build it into your annual calendar from day one.

US bank account. Most US banks want the owner physically present to open a business account, along with the EIN confirmation letter, the filed Certificate of Formation, the operating agreement, and a passport. Several fintech business-banking platforms onboard non-resident-owned US LLCs remotely — eligibility and policies change, so check current terms before you rely on any of them. A Washington registered agent's street address often helps satisfy "US address" fields.

Washington tax. Washington has no individual income tax, so there's no Washington return on pass-through income. But if your LLC has Washington nexus or activity, it still registers for the state business license and the B&O tax, and it files the B&O return on its Washington gross receipts. Federally, if the LLC is engaged in a US trade or business, the foreign owner has US filing obligations of their own (Form 1040-NR for an individual, plus the Form 5472 filing above), and your overall tax bill follows where you actually earn, not where you incorporate.

Registered agents and the Corporate Transparency Act (BOI)

Your registered agent is the person or company designated to receive lawsuits and official notices for the LLC. It has to be a Washington resident or a registered agent entity with a physical Washington street address, and it has to consent to the role — and because the agent's address is public, plenty of Washington residents hire a commercial agent purely to keep their home address off the record.

On the federal beneficial-ownership side: under the Corporate Transparency Act, LLCs were originally required to file a Beneficial Ownership Information (BOI) report with FinCEN. That changed. FinCEN's interim final rule, published in March 2025, redefined a "reporting company" to mean only entities formed under foreign law that register to do business in a US state. As of early 2026, that means a Washington-formed LLC — even one with foreign owners — has no BOI filing obligation. FinCEN has said it intends to finalize the rule, so this could shift; check fincen.gov/boi before you assume one way or the other. (If you register a foreign-formed entity to do business in Washington, the BOI rules still apply to that entity.)

Your first 30, 60, and 90 days

Days 1–7

• Get your EIN from the IRS (free; online if you have an SSN/ITIN, otherwise by fax, mail, or phone).
• Adopt your operating agreement — kept with your records, not filed.
• Confirm your registered agent's consent is on file.
• Check your BOI status. As of early 2026 a domestic Washington LLC has no FinCEN filing to make; re-verify at fincen.gov/boi.

Days 1–30

• Open a US business bank account (EIN letter, filed Certificate of Formation, operating agreement, ID).
• Apply for your Washington State Business License through the Business Licensing Service — this also registers you for B&O and sales tax. Add city endorsements where you operate.
• Get any professional or industry licenses your work requires.
• Look into business insurance — general liability now, workers' comp once you have employees.

Days 1–60

• Set up bookkeeping that tracks gross receipts by activity, so your B&O classification and rate are clean from the start.
• Confirm the filing frequency the DOR assigned you (monthly, quarterly, or annual) and calendar the B&O return dates.
• If you're a foreign-owned single-member LLC, note the annual Form 5472 + pro-forma 1120 filing.

By day 120 — hard deadline

• File the Initial Report with the Secretary of State, $10. Don't let it slip; it's the deadline most new owners forget.

Every year, by the end of your anniversary month

• File the $70 Annual Report. A $25 penalty and eventual dissolution are the price of forgetting.

Common mistakes with Washington LLCs

Thinking "no income tax" means no business tax. Why it hurts: Washington's B&O tax applies to gross revenue with no deduction for expenses, so you can owe it in a year you actually lose money — and people who budgeted for "tax-free" get a surprise bill. Fix: register for B&O when you get your business license, learn your classification and rate, and set aside a slice of gross revenue from day one.

Missing the 120-day Initial Report. Why it hurts: it's a separate filing from the Annual Report, it's easy to forget, and skipping it starts pushing your LLC out of good standing. Fix: file the Initial Report the same week you file your Certificate of Formation — online, you can do both in one sitting.

Skipping the state business license. Why it hurts: forming the LLC with the Secretary of State doesn't register you with the Department of Revenue; operating without the business license once you cross the threshold means unregistered B&O and sales tax exposure. Fix: apply through the Business Licensing Service before you start doing business, and add the city endorsements where you operate.

Treating the Annual Report like a fixed April deadline. Why it hurts: it's tied to your formation anniversary month, not tax season, so a "I'll do it in spring like everyone else" mindset earns a $25 penalty and a path to dissolution. Fix: put the last day of your anniversary month on the calendar with a 45-day warning.

Ignoring Form 5472 as a foreign owner. Why it hurts: a $25,000 penalty for a filing many people don't know exists. Fix: set up the pro-forma 1120 + 5472 filing in year one and keep clean records of any money moving between you and the LLC.

How Jupid helps

Jupid forms your Washington LLC for free — you pay only the state's filing fee, with no service markup and no surprise "compliance" subscription. After that, Jupid is your AI accountant, working in WhatsApp and iMessage the same way you already text. It connects to your business bank account, automatically categorizes your transactions (around 95.9% accuracy), keeps your deductions organized, and prepares your tax filings with CPA review before anything is submitted. For a Washington LLC, that's where the real work lives year after year — the B&O return on your gross receipts, the right activity classification, clean books, and the federal return on top — and that's the work Jupid does for you. Start your Washington LLC free with Jupid →

Frequently asked questions

How much does it cost to start an LLC in Washington in 2026? The state filing fee for the Certificate of Formation is $180 (about $200 online once you add the card surcharge). Add the $10 Initial Report due within 120 days and the $50 state business license, and a typical first-year minimum is roughly $240 in state fees before a registered agent service or any city endorsements. The Annual Report ($70) is due in your anniversary month each year after that.

Does Washington really have no income tax for my LLC? Washington has no individual or corporate state income tax, so a pass-through LLC's owners file no Washington income tax return. But that is not "no business tax." Washington taxes gross receipts through the Business & Occupation (B&O) tax — there is no deduction for expenses, so you can owe B&O even in a year you lose money. A Small Business B&O Credit zeroes it out for very low-revenue filers, but you still register and file.

What is the Washington B&O tax and how is it calculated? The B&O tax is a tax on your gross revenue, classified by activity. In 2026, retailing is 0.471% and wholesaling and manufacturing are 0.484% (all scheduled to rise to 0.5% on January 1, 2027). Service and other activities are tiered: 1.5% if your prior-year Washington gross income was under $1 million, 1.75% from $1 million to about $5 million, and 2.1% above $5 million. There is no deduction for costs — it applies to gross receipts, not profit.

Do I need a registered agent for a Washington LLC? Yes. Every Washington LLC must name a registered agent with a physical Washington street address who has consented to the role — a P.O. box won't work. You can be your own agent if you have a Washington address; out-of-state owners use a commercial registered agent, typically $100–$150 a year.

When is the Washington Annual Report due, and what about the Initial Report? The Initial Report is due within 120 days of formation and costs $10. The Annual Report is due every year by the end of your formation anniversary month and costs $70. Filing the Annual Report late adds a $25 penalty, and leaving it unfiled long enough leads to administrative dissolution.

Can a non-US resident own a Washington LLC? Yes. Washington has no residency or citizenship requirement for members or managers. You'll need a Washington commercial registered agent and an EIN (which you can get without an SSN), and a single-member foreign-owned LLC must file Form 5472 with a pro-forma Form 1120 every year — the penalty for missing it is $25,000.

Official sources

• Washington Secretary of State — LLC/PLLC filing resource page (Certificate of Formation, Initial Report, Annual Report)
• Corporations and Charities Filing System (CCFS) — online filing portal
• Washington Secretary of State — fee schedule and expedited service ($180 filing, $100/$150 expedite, $70 Annual Report, $10 Initial Report, $30 name reservation)
• Washington Secretary of State — annual reports
• Washington Department of Revenue — Business & Occupation tax · B&O tax classifications and rates · Small Business B&O Credit and other credits
• Washington Department of Revenue — apply for a business license · variable business license processing fees
• IRS — get an EIN · About Form SS-4 · About Form W-7 · About Form 5472
• FinCEN — Beneficial Ownership Information
• Related on Jupid: Washington LLC formation · Washington LLC annual cost calculator · Washington business name generator · best state to form an LLC · Wyoming LLC guide · Oregon LLC guide

This guide is general information, not legal or tax advice. Fees, deadlines, and thresholds change — verify with the official sources above before you file.

Last updated: June 2026.