Updated August 10, 2026. Quick answer. Forming an LLC in Kentucky costs $40 to file, and an ongoing report requirement ($15). Five-year total: $990 over five years, every component verified.
What it actually costs
| Item | Amount |
|---|---|
| Formation filing fee | $40 |
| Annual/biennial report | $15 |
| Franchise / minimum tax | $175 minimum Limited Liability Entity Tax (LLET) per year |
| Publication requirement | No newspaper publication requirement was found. |
Five-year cost of ownership: $990 over five years, every component verified. Publication cost is excluded from this figure — it’s county-driven where it applies, not state-driven, so a single number would be wrong for most filers.
The trap worth knowing before you file
Filing fees from the Secretary of State’s own fee schedule; due date, filing window and administrative-dissolution consequence from https://www.sos.ky.gov/bus/business-filings/Pages/Annual-Reports.aspx ; LLET from the Department of Revenue at https://revenue.ky.gov/Business/Corporation-Income-and-Limited-Liability-Entity-Tax/Pages/default.aspx . The statutory fee provision (KRS 14A.2-060) was not separately opened; no disagreement was observed between the SOS schedule and the statutory citations printed on it.
Source
KRS 275 (LLC act) via the SOS fee schedule; KRS 141.0401 (LLET) via the Department of Revenue. Read 2026-08-06 from official. Formation-service sites were not used as a source for this figure.
Once the LLC exists, an operating agreement is what actually runs it
This is free to browse and there is no obligation to buy anything — LawDepot builds a state-specific LLC operating agreement through a question-and-answer form.
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If the LLC already exists somewhere else
Everything above prices forming a new Kentucky LLC. A company that already exists in another state cannot become a Kentucky one: Kentucky is one of the eight jurisdictions with no jurisdiction-change route in either direction, and there is no section to cite, because nothing in the code read permits it. The substitute is a merger — form a Kentucky LLC, then merge the older company into it, under KRS 275.345 to 275.365. A merger produces a surviving entity rather than a continuation, so it is genuinely not the same thing as domestication, but it keeps far more alive than dissolving and re-forming does.
How to Move an LLC to Another State · LLC Domestication by State: All 51 Jurisdictions, With the Statute
What letting it lapse costs in Kentucky. The catch-up bill is only half the story — in Kentucky the section most search results still cite was repealed in 2011; the rules now live in the general filing act, and one step there closes the door permanently. The figures, and the statute they come from, are on reinstating a Kentucky LLC.
Kentucky LLC Annual Report: $15 Filing and $100 Reinstatement Penalty
Use these official filing checkpoints when reconciling the recurring-cost estimate on this page.
- Kentucky lists the annual report at $15.
- An amended annual report is also $15.
- The schedule lists a $100 reinstatement penalty after administrative dissolution.
Match the entity’s formation or registration record, filing mode, and current status to the controlling rule before submitting; use the official filing authority for the current interface.
Compare LLC reporting systems across all jurisdictions, then verify this state’s rule in the official source.
Moving an LLC you already own is a different question from what it costs to form a new one here: Kentucky has no statute that lets an out-of-state LLC become a Kentucky LLC while staying the same entity, and the route that works is a merger. See why you cannot move an LLC to Kentucky, and the merger route.
Looking for the annual-report due date and fee instead? See Kentucky LLC annual report.
Related: Kentucky’s registered agent requirements, including who can serve and what happens if you don’t have one.
Related: Kentucky’s LLC Certificate of Good Standing cost, including who issues it and how fast you can get one.