Updated August 12, 2026. Quick answer. To dissolve an LLC in Pennsylvania you file the Certificate of Termination – Domestic Limited Liability Company, and it can be filed online or on paper. Fee: $70. Pennsylvania attaches a state tax-clearance step before you file. Until that filing is accepted the LLC still legally exists — and whatever Pennsylvania charges an LLC each year keeps accruing against it.
What you file in Pennsylvania, and what it costs
| Item | Detail |
|---|---|
| Filing | Certificate of Termination – Domestic Limited Liability Company, Form DSCB:15-8872(f), filed with the Department of State, Bureau of Corporations and Charitable Organizations |
| Fee | $70 |
| How you can file | both — The form itself states: ‘This form may be submitted online at https://www.corporations.pa.gov/’ (Business Filing Services); paper filings mail to the Bureau at P.O. Box 8722, Harrisburg, PA 17105-8722. The PA Business One-Stop Shop closing page confirms online submission through Business Filing Services. |
| Tax clearance | required |
| Statute | 15 Pa.C.S. §§ 8871–8878 (LLC dissolution, winding up and termination; § 8872(f) certificate of termination); 15 Pa.C.S. § 139 (tax clearance) |
Verified from the official form PDF (rev. 2/2017, still current on pa.gov). PA treats this as the filing that ends existence: ‘Upon the filing of a Certificate of Termination, the existence of the limited liability company shall cease.’ An earlier, optional Certificate of Dissolution, Form DSCB:15-8872(b)(2)(i) ($70), may be filed when dissolution is approved, making it a two-step process in form, but the Certificate of Termination is the required terminal filing. An LLC that never transacted business and holds no assets may instead use DSCB:15-8878 (voluntary termination by members/organizers). Filed by mail to P.O. Box 8722, Harrisburg, PA 17105-8722 or online.
On the fee. ‘Fee: $70’ on the face of DSCB:15-8872(f); instructions: ‘The nonrefundable filing fee for this form is $70.’ Same fee online (corporations.pa.gov) or paper. The optional Certificate of Dissolution is a separate $70 if used.
Tax clearance in Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania is one of the six states that attach a tax-clearance step to closing an LLC, and it applies before you file: the Certificate of Termination may not be filed unless it is accompanied by the tax clearance certificates required by 15 Pa.C.S. §139.
Required by 15 Pa.C.S. § 139 (tax clearance of certain fundamental transactions). Form instructions (quoted): ‘A domestic limited liability company may not file a Certificate of Termination unless the document is accompanied by tax clearance certificates from the Department of Revenue and the Department of Labor and Industry evidencing the payment by the association of all taxes and charges due the Commonwealth.’ Obtain both via Form REV-181 (Application for Tax Clearance Certificate) submitted to BOTH agencies. No official lead time stated on the form; secondaries report roughly 2–3 months total including clearance wait (unofficial).
Do not just walk away
Closing the business is not closing the entity. Administrative dissolution for failure to file the annual report — enforcement begins with reports due in 2027, six months after the missed due date; until then the delinquency accrues on the record
PA’s new annual report (15 Pa.C.S. § 146, Act 122 of 2022): LLCs file annually Jan 1–Sept 30, $7 fee. DOS annual reports page (quoted): ‘Failure to file the annual report will subject the association to (i) administrative dissolution if it is a domestic filing entity’ and ‘Beginning with Annual Reports due in 2027, associations that fail to file annual reports in the 2027 calendar year will be subject to administrative dissolution/termination/cancellation six months after the due date.’ An administratively dissolved LLC continues only to wind up and its name becomes available; taxes owed the Commonwealth continue to accrue until proper termination (clearance is required to terminate).
Closing the tax accounts
File REV-181 with both the Department of Revenue and the Department of Labor & Industry to obtain the two clearance certificates; cancel tax licenses/accounts with DOR; file final returns
PA Business One-Stop Shop ‘Closing Documents & Forms’ page lists for a domestic LLC: ‘Cancellation of Licenses, Accounts, and Certifications (DOR)’, ‘Tax Clearance Certificate (DOR)’, ‘Tax Clearance Certificate (DLI)’, and ‘Certificate of Termination – Domestic Limited Liability Company (DOS)’. REV-181 instructions are at revenue.pa.gov (REV-181-I).
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 Pennsylvania — 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
15 Pa.C.S. §§ 8871–8878 (LLC dissolution, winding up and termination; § 8872(f) certificate of termination); 15 Pa.C.S. § 139 (tax clearance). Fee, form and procedure read 2026-08-10 from the official source. The fee and the tax-clearance position were re-checked against the face and instructions of Form DSCB:15-8872(f), re-read 2026-08-12 ($70 and the 15 Pa.C.S. §139 tax-clearance requirement quoted verbatim).
Research note. pa.gov DOS ‘close a business’ HTML page returned 404 on 2026-08-10; row built from the official form PDF + instructions, the PA Business One-Stop Shop closing-documents page (business.pa.gov), and the DOS Annual Reports page. PA is the strictest tax-clearance state in this batch — the SOS filing is physically blocked without both certificates.
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.