Georgia: Domestic LLC Formation Filing Requirements
The short answer
A Georgia LLC forms when its articles of organization become effective. The articles themselves need only the compliant LLC name, but the formation submission also supplies every organizer's name and address, the registered office street address and county, registered agent, and principal-office mailing address; an organizer, member, qualifying manager, or attorney-in-fact signs and states capacity, without notarization. The statutory base fee is $100, a delayed effective date may be up to 90 days later, no publication is required, and the first Annual Registration is due January 1 through April 1 of the next calendar year.
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This is the general rule in Georgia. Ezel applies current Georgia law to your specific facts and answers with citations to the statutes.
| Governing law and filing record | Georgia Limited Liability Company Act; Secretary of State Articles of Organization (O.C.G.A. §§ 14-11-203–14-11-204) |
|---|---|
| Organizer and signature | One or more organizers; organizer need not be a member. Organizer, member, qualifying manager, or attorney-in-fact signs, states name/capacity; no notary (§§ 14-11-203, 14-11-205; SOS) |
| Required entity and purpose terms | Articles state compliant LLC name only; no purpose or duration term required. Default purpose is any lawful activity (§§ 14-11-201, 14-11-204, 14-11-207) |
| Addresses and service fields | Supply each organizer's name/address, registered-office street address + county, initial agent name, and principal-office mailing address (§ 14-11-203(a)) |
| Management and owner disclosure | Manager-management statement optional; no manager, member, or owner name/percentage required in articles (§ 14-11-204) |
| Optional and restricted provisions | Articles may state manager-management and any other provision not inconsistent with law (§ 14-11-204(b)) |
| Filing method, fee, and attachments | Online, mail, or in person; $100 statutory base. Paper uses CD 030 + mandatory CD 231 and currently totals $110 (§ 14-11-1101; Georgia.gov, June 2026) |
| Formation and effective date | Formed when articles become effective: filing date/time or specified delayed date/time ≤90 days. Timely 30-day cure preserves delivery time (§§ 14-11-203(c), 14-11-206(d)-(f)) |
| Publication and initial follow-up | No formation publication/proof or immediate report; first Annual Registration due Jan. 1–Apr. 1 of next calendar year (§ 14-11-1103(c)) |
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Requirements one by one
Governing law and filing record
Georgia forms an ordinary domestic LLC through Articles of Organization
filed with the Secretary of State under O.C.G.A. §§ 14-11-203–14-11-204. The
articles are the constitutive record, but Georgia separates their minimum text
from additional information supplied with the formation submission.
Organizer and signature
Under § 14-11-203(a), one or more persons may organize the LLC, and an organizer
need not become a member. Current Secretary of State instructions permit an
organizer, a member, a manager when management is vested in managers, or an
attorney-in-fact to sign the articles.
O.C.G.A. § 14-11-205 requires the signer's name and capacity beside the
signature and permits an attorney-in-fact without filing the power of attorney.
The Secretary's filing procedure says the signature does not need notarization.
Required entity and purpose terms
The articles themselves must state the LLC's name. Under § 14-11-207(a), the
name uses an allowed limited-liability-company or limited-company term or
abbreviation, is distinguishable on the Secretary's records, and stays within
80 characters.
O.C.G.A. § 14-11-204 requires no purpose or duration term. Section 14-11-201
instead supplies the default purpose of any lawful activity unless a narrower
purpose appears in the articles or a written operating agreement.
Addresses and service fields
The name-only minimum for the articles is not the whole filing package.
O.C.G.A. § 14-11-203(a) separately requires the filer to supply every
organizer's name and address, the initial registered office's street address and
county, the initial registered agent's name, and the principal place of
business's mailing address.
The current Georgia.gov checklist also collects the filer's name and address
and a valid email address. Agent eligibility and later changes belong in the
registered-agent survey.
Management and owner disclosure
Section 14-11-204(b) allows, but does not require, the articles to state that
management is vested in one or more managers. The formation provisions do not
require the articles or supplemental submission to name a manager, member, or
owner or disclose an ownership percentage merely because of that role.
Optional and restricted provisions
Under § 14-11-204(b), the articles may state manager-management and any other
provision not inconsistent with law. A narrower purpose may also be placed in
the articles under § 14-11-201(b).
Filing method, fee, and attachments
Georgia accepts online, mailed, and in-person filings. O.C.G.A.
§ 14-11-1101(a) sets a $100 articles fee. The Georgia.gov page last updated
in June 2026 lists $100 online and $110 by mail or in person, reflecting the
$10 paper service charge.
For paper filing, submit the articles or Form CD 030 with the mandatory
Transmittal Information Form CD 231. Section 14-11-206(a) calls for a signed
original and one exact or conformed copy; an electronically transmitted filing
may use the electronic version of the signer's name.
Formation and effective date
The LLC forms when its articles become effective under § 14-11-203(c).
O.C.G.A. § 14-11-206(e)-(f) makes an accepted filing effective at its endorsed
filing date and time unless the articles specify another time that day or a
later date and time. A delayed date cannot be later than the 90th day after
filing; if the date is stated without a time, effectiveness occurs at close of
business on that date.
If the Secretary identifies a filing defect, bringing the filing into
conformance within 30 days after notice preserves the original delivery time,
subject to the delayed-date rules.
Publication and initial follow-up
Georgia's formation statutes and current filing procedure impose no newspaper
or database publication or proof-of-publication filing on an ordinary LLC. No
immediate initial report follows formation.
The first Annual Registration comes in the next calendar year. Under
O.C.G.A. § 14-11-1103(a), (c), it is delivered between January 1 and April 1 of the
year after formation; later registrations use the same annual window.
What trips people up
The articles and the formation submission have different minimums. Section
14-11-204 makes the articles themselves a name-only record, while § 14-11-203
requires organizer, registered-office, agent, and principal-office information
to be supplied to the Secretary as part of forming the LLC.
Paper filing needs a transmittal form. Mailing only signed Form CD 030 omits
CD 231 and the paper service charge. The current official filing page lists the
paper total as $110.
A timely correction can preserve the delivery date. Section 14-11-206(d)
provides a 30-day correction route after notice of nonconformance. The rule does
not turn an incomplete filing into an approved LLC; it determines the filing
time once the Secretary finds the corrected document conforms.
Common questions
Must the articles list every organizer? The articles' statutory minimum is
the LLC name, but § 14-11-203(a) requires every organizer's name and address to
be supplied with the formation submission.
What happens if I choose a delayed date but omit the time? Under
§ 14-11-206(f), the articles take effect at close of business on the stated
date, which must fall within the 90-day limit.
Is the first Annual Registration due immediately? No. Section
14-11-1103(c) places the first filing in the January 1–April 1 window of the
calendar year after formation.
Statutes and sources
- O.C.G.A. §§ 14-11-201 and 14-11-203–14-11-204 — lawful-purpose default,
organizers, supplemental formation information, formation event, and article
contents.
https://raw.githubusercontent.com/unicourt/cic-code-ga/master/transforms/ga/ocga/r86/gov.ga.ocga.title.14.html
(accessed 2026-07-29) - O.C.G.A. §§ 14-11-205–14-11-207 — signer identity and capacity,
attorney-in-fact, filing and correction mechanics, 90-day delayed date, and
LLC name rules.
https://raw.githubusercontent.com/unicourt/cic-code-ga/master/transforms/ga/ocga/r86/gov.ga.ocga.title.14.html
(accessed 2026-07-29) - O.C.G.A. §§ 14-11-1101 and 14-11-1103 — statutory articles fee and first
Annual Registration window.
https://raw.githubusercontent.com/unicourt/cic-code-ga/master/transforms/ga/ocga/r86/gov.ga.ocga.title.14.html
(accessed 2026-07-29) - Georgia Secretary of State, Filing Procedures for Forming a Georgia LLC —
signer choices, capacity, no notarization, paper transmittal, and effective
date.
https://sos.ga.gov/sites/default/files/2025-07/corp-filing_procedure-limited_liability_company.pdf
(accessed 2026-07-29) - Georgia.gov, Register an LLC with Georgia Secretary of State — current
submission checklist, online/mail/in-person routes, fees, and annual filing.
https://georgia.gov/register-llc
(accessed 2026-07-29)
Source links
Every statute quoted above, linked, with the date we checked it.
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