Louisiana: Domestic LLC Formation Filing Requirements

Requirements one by one

Governing law and filing record

Louisiana uses Articles of Organization plus an Initial Report under the
Louisiana Limited Liability Company Law, Title 12, Chapter 22. La. R.S.
12:1304 requires both records to be filed with the Secretary of State to form
the ordinary domestic LLC.

Organizer and signature

One or more persons capable of contracting may form the company. Under La.
R.S. 12:1305, at least one person executes the written English articles and
need not be a member or manager. A signer acknowledges the articles, or the
articles may be executed as an authentic act.

Every person who signed the articles also signs the Initial Report. An agent may
sign that report for a signer only when the agent's authority document is
attached.

Required entity and purpose terms

The articles state the LLC name, either a specific purpose or the statutory
lawful-activity clause, and whether the company is an L3C. This page covers the
ordinary non-L3C choice. La. R.S. 12:1306 requires “limited liability company,”
“L.L.C.,” or “L.C.” and a distinguishable, lawful name.

La. R.S. 12:1303(B) supplies perpetual existence unless the articles state a
limited duration. Current Form 365 nevertheless asks the filer to complete a
duration field, which may say perpetual.

Addresses and service fields

The Initial Report gives the registered office's location and municipal address
and each registered agent's full name and municipal address. A post-office box
alone is not enough. Each agent signs a notarized affidavit acknowledging and
accepting the appointment.

Management and owner disclosure

Current Form 365 asks the filer to choose member-management or
manager-management. If the first managers or members have been selected, the
Initial Report makes their names and municipal addresses public. In a
manager-managed LLC, the report names the first managers; in a member-managed
LLC, it names the first members.

If those people have not yet been selected, La. R.S. 12:1305(E)(4) permits the
initial filing without their names but requires a supplemental report as soon as
selection occurs.

Optional and restricted provisions

Section 12:1305(C) permits authority limitations, a manager-management term,
manager-authority restrictions, a latest dissolution date, a named-certifier
reliance clause, and other provisions not inconsistent with law. La. R.S.
12:1312 also permits managers who are not members.

Filing method, fee, and attachments

GeauxBIZ provides online filing, and the Secretary of State accepts regular
mail, express mail, and fax. Available business documents must be filed online
in the 14 parishes listed on the current forms page. The formation packet
includes the articles, Initial Report, and each agent's notarized acceptance.

The current base fee is $100 through September 30, 2026. Enacted Act 921
raises it to $125 on October 1, 2026. Credit-card convenience and optional
expedite charges are separate.

Formation and effective date

The Secretary of State issues a certificate of organization after finding the
articles and report compliant and paid. Under La. R.S. 12:1304(C), that issuance
completes organization and separate existence ordinarily begins at the filing
time.

The same section contains an unusual relation-back rule: if filing occurs within
five days, excluding legal holidays, after acknowledgment or authentic-act
execution, separate existence begins at that earlier acknowledgment or execution
time. The filing packet may also be delivered in advance for a specified filing
date and time within 30 days after delivery; the current form says the request
must be written and accompany the articles and Initial Report.

What trips people up

The Initial Report is not a later annual report. It is part of the formation
packet, and the Secretary of State's instructions say the articles cannot be
accepted without it. If first managers or members have not been selected, the
later Supplemental Initial Report costs $25 through September 30, 2026 and
$30 beginning October 1.

Louisiana requires no formation newspaper publication. The immediate extra
filing appears only when the initial managers or members were not named; annual
reports after formation belong to the separate annual-report survey.

Common questions

Must I reserve the LLC name first?

No. La. R.S. 12:1307 says a person may reserve an available name for 120
days; the current fee is $25. The formation filing still needs an available,
distinguishable name.

May a nonmember serve as manager?

Yes. La. R.S. 12:1312(A) says managers may, but need not, be members.

Does the $100 fee include expedited handling?

No. The base formation fee excludes optional expedite service and the separate
credit-card convenience fee.

Statutes and sources

• La. R.S. 12:1303–1307 and 12:1312 — duration, formation packet,
  execution, required and optional articles, Initial Report, name rules and
  reservation, management, and public addresses.
  https://legis.la.gov/Legis/LawPrint.aspx?d=76250,
  https://legis.la.gov/Legis/LawPrint.aspx?d=76251,
  https://legis.la.gov/Legis/LawPrint.aspx?d=76252,
  https://legis.la.gov/Legis/LawPrint.aspx?d=76253,
  https://legis.la.gov/Legis/LawPrint.aspx?d=76254, and
  https://legis.la.gov/Legis/LawPrint.aspx?d=76262 (accessed July 29, 2026).
• La. R.S. 49:222(B)(1) — current $100 articles and $25 supplemental-report
  fees. https://www.legis.la.gov/Legis/Law.aspx?d=103670 (accessed July 29,
  2026).
• 2026 La. Acts No. 921 — $125 articles fee effective October 1, 2026.
  https://www.legis.la.gov/Legis/ViewDocument.aspx?d=1481829 (accessed July
  29, 2026).
• Louisiana Secretary of State — Form 365 and Initial Report Form 973,
  current forms and fees,
  filing methods,
  and October 1 fee schedule
  (accessed July 29, 2026).