Updated August 12, 2026. Quick answer. To dissolve an LLC in Alabama you file the Domestic Limited Liability Company (LLC) Articles of Dissolution, and it can be filed online or on paper. Fee: $100 processing fee. Alabama requires no tax-clearance certificate to accept the filing. Until that filing is accepted the LLC still legally exists — and whatever Alabama charges an LLC each year keeps accruing against it.
What you file in Alabama, and what it costs
| Item | Detail |
|---|---|
| Filing | Domestic Limited Liability Company (LLC) Articles of Dissolution (no form number; rev. 1/2022), filed with the Alabama Secretary of State, Business Services |
| Fee | $100 processing fee |
| How you can file | both — The official form says ‘The request is only accepted via mail or courier and will not be accepted via email’ but also states ‘You may file the dissolution online in the time it takes to type this request’ — i.e., mail/courier for the paper form, with online filing offered through SOS online services. |
| Tax clearance | not required |
| Statute | Ala. Code § 10A-5A-7.01–7.04 (LLC dissolution/winding up); Articles of Dissolution filed under § 10A-5A-7.02(b); signature per § 10A-5A-2.04 |
Official SOS form (sos.alabama.gov/node/1412, PDF DomesticLLCDissolution.pdf) states it is filed ‘under Section 10A-5A-7.02(b) of the Code of Alabama 1975’ directly with the Secretary of State (P.O. Box 5616, Montgomery, AL 36103). Mail 2 typed copies + self-addressed stamped envelope; not accepted by email. Single-step filing — no separate termination certificate. (Older pre-2021 county Judge of Probate routing no longer applies; the current form routes directly to SOS.)
On the fee. Per the official form: ‘Include a check, money order, or credit card payment for the $100.00 processing fee.’ Credit-card payments via the payment slip carry a convenience fee of 3% + $2.00. Dishonored check adds $30.
Tax clearance in Alabama
No tax-clearance certificate is required to file in Alabama. That is not the same as owing nothing — it means the state will accept the filing without a revenue-agency sign-off first.
Neither the SOS form nor ADOR’s dissolution FAQ (revenue.alabama.gov/faqs/how-do-i-withdraw-or-dissolve-my-business/) requires a tax clearance for a DOMESTIC LLC dissolution — ADOR’s instruction for domestic entities is simply to complete the Articles of Dissolution. The ADOR Certificate of Compliance step applies to FOREIGN entity withdrawals (Certificate of Withdrawal must include it).
Do not just walk away
Closing the business is not closing the entity. The LLC stays in legal existence and remains liable for business privilege tax every year until formally dissolved with the SOS (‘due every registered year until the entity is legally dissolved/withdrawn… regardless of whether or not such entity is actively doing business’). ADOR issues BPT delinquent notices and can assess. Practical exposure is muted for small LLCs because BPT of $100 or less is exempt for tax years after 2023, and Alabama LLCs no longer file SOS annual reports.
Sources: ADOR BPT FAQ pages (revenue.alabama.gov/faq-categories/business-privilege-tax/) and the 2024 BPT changes notice. Alabama’s own sources do not state personal-liability consequences for members, so none are asserted. No Alabama administrative-dissolution-for-nonpayment mechanism was identified in official sources for LLCs.
Closing the tax accounts
Business privilege tax runs until the entity is dissolved with the SOS; ADOR says BPT has no ‘final’ return — dissolve/withdraw with the SOS to close the account. For tax years after 12/31/2023, BPT computed at $100 or less is fully exempt from both payment and filing (most single-member LLCs owe nothing). Close any sales/use, withholding, and other My Alabama Taxes accounts.
ADOR BPT FAQs: ‘Business entities are liable for the Alabama business privilege tax for each taxable year during which the entity is in legal existence – regardless of the level of business activity,’ and BPT ‘does not have a final return’ — the account closes only on SOS dissolution. The $100-or-less full exemption is from ADOR’s ‘Important Changes to the 2024 Business Privilege Tax Filing Requirements’ notice;
Before you file
- The order the steps go in — internal decision, creditors and distributions, the state filing, the final returns, then the registrations you are still paying for.
- What an LLC costs to keep alive in Alabama — the bill that keeps running until this filing lands.
- What dissolution costs in all 51 jurisdictions — the fee, the filing route and the tax-clearance flag, side by side.
- What happens if you simply stop filing — administrative dissolution is the walk-away trap happening to you rather than by you.
We do not form or dissolve LLCs, sell filing services, or take a commission from anyone who does. No advertising appears on this page and we earn nothing from it.
Sources and limits
Ala. Code § 10A-5A-7.01–7.04 (LLC dissolution/winding up); Articles of Dissolution filed under § 10A-5A-7.02(b); signature per § 10A-5A-2.04. Fee, form and procedure read 2026-08-10 from the official source.
Research note. sos.alabama.gov was unreachable via the automated fetcher (TLS ‘unable to verify the first certificate’) but was retrieved successfully via direct HTTPS; form PDF read in full. Row built from the SOS form/page plus ADOR FAQ and notice pages.
Honest gap. This page covers the state filing that ends the entity, its fee and its tax-clearance condition. It does not cover creditor claims against a dissolved LLC, disputes between members, the tax treatment of a final distribution, reinstatement after an administrative dissolution, or withdrawal from any other state you registered in — each of those has its own rules. General information, not legal or tax advice. See methodology and corrections.