Frequently Asked Questions About Starting a Colorado LLC

There are a few different options when it comes to forming a business in Colorado. From a legal perspective, there are three main types of Colorado for-profit business entities: LLCs, S Corporations or C Corporations. For many entrepreneurs, we believe an LLC provides the right ratio of liability protection and ease of administration.

In order to form an LLC in the state of Colorado, there are some minimum requirements you must meet. These are a completed set of Articles of Organization, a business name and a fee you pay to the Colorado Secretary of State. We recommend taking some other steps before formally starting your LLC:

• Research your target market to make sure there’s a demand for the products and services you provide.
• Read industry guides to give you a starting point in your niche.
• Create a comprehensive business plan that defines the most important aspects of your Colorado business.
• Write an Operating Agreement that covers how you will run your LLC.

After you’ve created your Colorado LLC, you will also need to review your business license requirements, understand ongoing filing needs, set up a separate business bank account and get an accountant.

In Colorado, you register a business by completing and filing your Articles of Organization online with the Colorado Secretary of State. You will need to gather pertinent information about your business, fill out the form and file it with the Secretary of State along with your filing fee. This will formally create your LLC in Colorado.

Your Articles of Organization must be filed online with the Secretary of State's integrated filing system. Alternatively, Bizee can guide you through every step of the process by getting details from you and completing the process on your behalf — for free! There’s no additional charge for our basic LLC filing service, so all you need to do is pay the Colorado state filing fee.

At the time of writing the fee charged by the Colorado Secretary of State is $50. You can always check the latest Colorado filing fees here. Some states allow you to pay an additional fee for expedited filing through Bizee, which will create your LLC faster. The amount of the expedited fee is dependent on how quickly you want your filing processed. Some LLC filing services do charge you extra to prepare and submit your filing documents, but at Bizee, we do this for free — so you only pay the state fee.

Once you’ve gathered all of your information together and filed your Articles of Organization online (or had Bizee do it for you), your filing will be processed in real time by the Colorado Secretary of State, legally creating your LLC. Because of this immediate filing, Colorado does not offer an additional expedited fee option, like many other states.

The name of your Colorado LLC needs to be unique, so you’ll need to confirm that it isn't already being used by another business. You can do that via the Colorado Secretary of State website, or by using our fast and simple Business Name Search tool.

There are a few ways to register your Colorado LLC name.

• If you’re creating a new business and your business name is unique in Colorado and meets state naming rules, you simply include it in your Articles of Organization.
• If you want to change the legal name of your business, file Articles of Amendment with the Secretary of State.
• If you just want to do business under a different name, file a Statement of Trade Name with the Colorado Secretary of State, or we can do that on your behalf.

If you want to prevent people from using your business name across the U.S., you can file a trademark for the name. We can help.

In many other states, the formal documents that you file to form a corporation or LLC might be known as Articles of Incorporation. In Colorado, this document is called your Articles of Organization, and it performs the same functions as the Articles of Incorporation.

No, the State of Colorado does not have a Series LLC offering. A Series LLC is a special type of LLC where you create one “overall” business and then have individual, series LLCs within it, each counted as separate legal entities.

Yes, all legal business entities in Colorado, including LLCs, must have a Registered Agent at all times. Here at Bizee, we provide a free Colorado Registered Agent service for the first year if you file through us.

If you wish to change your Colorado Registered Agent you can do so by filing a Statement of Change with the Secretary of State. Here at Bizee, we provide a free Colorado Registered Agent service for the first year if you file through us. If you’ve been using a different Registered Agent and want to switch to us, we’ll file the Statement of Change on your behalf.

If you need to know the Registered Agent of a specific Colorado business, you can perform a Colorado Registered Agent search within the state's business database.

As an LLC, any business profits you earn will be reported on your personal 1040 filing and reported and taxed as “pass-through” income. You will typically need to pay:

• Self-employment or payroll tax on all business profits
• Federal income tax on profits after you meet your tax-free allowance
• Sales tax for selling taxable products and services

Colorado charges a 2.9% state sales and use tax on all retail sales, leases and rentals of most goods. You will also need to pay sales tax if you provide a taxable service. You can review the sales tax guide for information regarding taxable services.

Once your LLC’s sales tax application is approved, you will receive information regarding how often you must file a sales tax return and pay sales taxes. Returns and payments may be due monthly, quarterly or annually.

Some businesses will need to pay a corporate franchise tax in Colorado, however it does not apply to LLCs unless your LLC is treated as a C Corporation for tax purposes.

If you wish to operate your business within Colorado and remain in compliance with the state, you'll likely need some type of business license to do so. The types of business licenses you need will vary depending on your type of business, industry, location and various other factors. We can research the types of business licenses you might need for you.

We hope you’ve found this Colorado LLC FAQ useful. If you’ve used our services and have a question that isn’t answered here, let us know and we’d be happy to help.

If you're starting a business in Arkansas, you'll likely need a business license of some type to maintain compliance with the state. The types of business licenses you need will vary depending on your type of business, industry, location and various other factors. We can research the types of business licenses you might need for you.