Domestic LLC Formation Filing Requirements in Louisiana

At a glance

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

The Secretary of State's filing guidance, last checked July 29, 2026, listed GeauxBIZ online filing, regular mail, express mail, and fax. It said available business documents must be filed online in 14 named parishes. The formation packet includes the articles, Initial Report, and each agent's notarized acceptance.

Under 2026 Act 921, effective October 1, 2026, the base formation fee is $125. Credit-card convenience and optional expedite charges are separate. The online § 49:222 compilation still displays the former $100 amount.

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 $30 under Act 921, effective October 1, 2026.

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 $125 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 October 2, 2026).
• La. R.S. 49:222(B)(1) — online compilation of the former $100 articles and $25 supplemental-report fees. https://www.legis.la.gov/Legis/Law.aspx?d=103670 (accessed October 2, 2026).
• 2026 La. Acts No. 921 — $125 articles and $30 supplemental-report fees effective October 1, 2026. https://www.legis.la.gov/Legis/ViewDocument.aspx?d=1481829 (accessed October 2, 2026).
• Louisiana Secretary of State — Form 365 and Initial Report Form 973, forms and fees, and filing methods (accessed July 29, 2026); fee schedule effective October 1 (accessed October 2, 2026).