Domestic LLC Formation Filing Requirements in Arizona

At a glance

Requirements one by one

Governing law and filing record

Arizona forms an ordinary domestic LLC through Articles of Organization delivered to the Arizona Corporation Commission under A.R.S. § 29-3201. The Commission's filing of the articles conclusively proves that the organizers satisfied the conditions precedent to formation.

Organizer and signature

One or more persons may act as organizers. Under § 29-3203(A)(2), at least one organizer signs, and the organizer may—but need not—be a member or manager. Section 29-3203(B)-(C) also permits an authorized agent to sign and treats that signature as an affirmation of authority.

Required entity and purpose terms

The articles state a name complying with § 29-3112. It must include an LLC or LC designator, be distinguishable in the Commission's records, and avoid the listed corporation, association, banking, credit-union, and trust wording unless the statutory conditions are met.

Section 29-3201(B)'s complete list does not require an ordinary LLC to state a purpose or duration in the articles.

Addresses and service fields

Section 29-3201(B)(2)-(3) requires a principal address and the statutory agent's name plus Arizona street and mailing addresses. The ACC's paper package also requires the agent's signed acceptance on Form M002.

Management and owner disclosure

The filing must choose manager-management or member-management. A manager-managed LLC lists every manager and every member who owns at least 20% of the company's capital or profits. A member-managed LLC lists every member. The name and address of each listed person become part of the public filing.

Optional and restricted provisions

Section 29-3201(C) permits other statements in the articles, but not provisions that vary § 29-3105(C)-(D) inconsistently. Among the protected matters are the statutory-agent rules and the requirements and procedures for records delivered to the Commission.

Filing method, fee, and attachments

The current base fee is $50. Formation documents may be submitted online through Arizona Business Center or on paper by fax, mail, or walk-in delivery. The paper submission package consists of a cover sheet, the articles, payment, Form M002, and exactly one management attachment: Form L040 for a manager-managed LLC or Form L041 for a member-managed LLC.

The ACC currently lists optional $35 expedited, $100 next-day, $200 same-day, and $400 two-hour service. Those charges buy examination speed, not approval, and can change without amendment of § 29-3213.

Formation and effective date

The LLC is formed when the articles become effective. Under § 29-3207, that is normally the date and time of delivery to the Commission. The articles may instead state a later time or a delayed effective date and time no more than 90 days after delivery. A date without a time takes effect at 12:01 a.m. Mountain Standard Time.

If the Commission cannot initially determine conformity, curing the identified defect within 30 days after notice can preserve the original delivery time.

Publication and initial follow-up

Within 60 days after the Commission files the articles, § 29-3201(G) requires one of two routes. The LLC publishes the required article information in a newspaper of general circulation in the county of the statutory agent's street address for three consecutive publications, or the Commission posts the approval information in its database when that county has a population over 800,000.

An affidavit of newspaper publication may be filed; the statute does not make that proof filing mandatory. Section 29-3201 and the current ACC formation packet list no separate initial report for an ordinary Arizona LLC.

What trips people up

The management choice changes the mandatory attachment and public names. A manager-managed filing uses L040 and still discloses every 20%-or-greater member. A member-managed filing uses L041 and discloses every member. The ACC form says the articles will be rejected if the selected structure attachment is missing.

Publication starts after filing approval. The 60-day clock runs after the Commission files the articles. The governing route depends on the population of the statutory agent's address county, not the organizer's or principal office's location.

A delayed filing can be withdrawn before it takes effect. Under § 29-3208, the withdrawal statement is signed by everyone who signed the original record unless those signers agreed otherwise. Filing the withdrawal prevents the original articles from taking effect.

Common questions

Does the organizer have to own the LLC? No. An organizer may be a member or manager, but § 29-3203 does not require either status.

Can I skip the statutory-agent acceptance if the agent is named in the articles? No. The current filing package separately requires signed Form M002; naming the agent in the articles does not itself supply the acceptance.

Does Arizona require an annual report immediately after formation? No separate initial report appears in the ordinary LLC formation statute or ACC packet. The publication duty is the immediate post-filing requirement covered here.

Statutes and sources

• A.R.S. §§ 29-3112, 29-3201, and 29-3203 — name rules, required article fields, management and owner disclosure, organizer signature, formation, and publication. https://www.azleg.gov/ars/29/03201.htm (accessed 2026-07-29)
• A.R.S. §§ 29-3105(C), 29-3207, and 29-3208 — limits on optional clauses, effective time, delayed dates, 30-day conformity cure, and pre-effective withdrawal. https://www.azleg.gov/ars/29/03207.htm (accessed 2026-07-29)
• A.R.S. § 29-3213 — $50 statutory filing fee and authorization for accelerated services. https://www.azleg.gov/ars/29/03213.htm (accessed 2026-07-29)
• Arizona Corporation Commission, Form L010 and Instructions L010i — current paper fields, cover sheet, attachments, filing routes, regular fee, and accelerated-service charges. https://azcc.gov/docs/default-source/corps-files/instructions/l010i-instructions-articles-of-organization.pdf (accessed 2026-07-29)
• Arizona Corporation Commission, 10 Steps to Starting a Business — ABC online formation and fax/mail alternatives. http://azcc.gov/corporations/10-steps-to-starting-a-business-in-arizona (accessed 2026-07-29)