California Annual Report Filing: Due Date, Fee, and How to File

Ask the California Secretary of State for an "annual report" and you will be pointed to the Statement of Information instead. That is the filing this page covers, and for LLCs it is biennial, due every two years rather than every year. Corporations run on a different schedule, and every California LLC also owes the Franchise Tax Board a minimum tax of $800 each year, which is a tax rather than a report. Understanding both obligations keeps your business in good standing with two very different agencies.

California Annual Report Due Date

For a California LLC, the Statement of Information is due by the last day of the month in which the LLC was originally registered, once every two years (Cal. Corp. Code § 17702.09). Three details pin down your exact deadline:

The anniversary month rule Your deadline lands on the last day of your registration anniversary month. An LLC registered on March 12 has a deadline of March 31 in each filing year.

The even/odd parity rule LLCs registered in an even numbered year file in even years, and odd year registrations file in odd years. An LLC formed in 2026 files its biennial statements in even years going forward.

The six month filing window You never have to wait for the deadline month. The window opens five months before your anniversary month, which gives you six months in total to file.

Two related schedules are worth knowing: a brand new LLC must file its first Statement of Information within 90 days of registering, and California stock corporations file annually (Form SI-550) while nonprofit corporations file biennially on Form SI-100. The Secretary of State's Statements of Information page publishes the current rules for each entity type.

California Annual Report Fee: $20

The official California filing fee for the LLC Statement of Information (Form LLC-12) is $20, paid to the Secretary of State with each biennial filing. If nothing has changed since your last complete statement, California accepts Form LLC-12NC, the no change version, at no charge. Corporations pay $25 with their annual SI-550.

The Secretary of State also sells expedited handling for business filings, $350 for 24 hour processing and $750 for same day, though few LLCs ever need either for a routine statement.

How to File the California Statement of Information

California accepts the Statement of Information online or on paper, and the online route through the official state portal is the one the Secretary of State steers filers toward. The process:

1. Gather your LLC's details: the exact entity name, the Secretary of State entity number, the principal office address, manager or member names and addresses, and your registered agent's name and California street address.
2. Sign in at bizfileOnline, the Secretary of State's filing portal, and locate your LLC in the business search.
3. Complete Form LLC-12, confirming or updating each item. If every item matches your last complete statement, choose Form LLC-12NC instead and skip the fee.
4. Pay the $20 filing fee (nothing is owed with an LLC-12NC) and submit.
5. Save the confirmation and check that the filing appears on your LLC's record in the state's business search.

We track this deadline for every client and send reminders as the window approaches, so the biennial rhythm never gets a chance to sneak past you.

Late Filing Penalty: $250, Then Suspension

California allows no grace period. An LLC becomes delinquent one day past the anniversary month deadline, and the Franchise Tax Board can assess a $250 late penalty (R&T Code § 19141). Keep ignoring the filing and the consequences escalate: continued failure to file lets the Secretary of State suspend or forfeit the LLC. A suspended LLC loses good standing, cannot maintain a lawsuit in California courts, and must work through both agencies to be reinstated.

The $800 Franchise Tax Is Not the Annual Report

This second obligation confuses more California owners than any filing. Every LLC organized or doing business in California owes the Franchise Tax Board a minimum franchise tax of $800 every year. It is a tax, not a report, it goes to a different agency, and paying it does not satisfy the Statement of Information (or the reverse).

How it is paid The $800 is remitted with Form FTB 3522, the LLC Tax Voucher, due by the 15th day of the fourth month of the taxable year. For calendar year LLCs, that means April 15.

The gross receipts fee LLCs with total California source income of $250,000 or more owe an additional tiered fee, estimated on Form FTB 3536: $900 for income up to $499,999, $2,500 up to $999,999, $6,000 up to $4,999,999, and $11,790 at $5,000,000 or more.

The annual return Form 568, the LLC Return of Income, reconciles the $800 tax and the gross receipts fee each year.

No first year exemption The AB 85 waiver that excused the first year's $800 applied only to LLCs registered between January 1, 2021 and December 31, 2023. It has expired, so an LLC formed in 2026 owes the $800 from year one.

How We Help You Stay Compliant

Compliance monitoring comes standard with our $99/year registered agent service (California's statutes call the role the agent for service of process):

Deadline tracking We calculate your biennial Statement of Information window and remind you before it opens and again before it closes.

Same day document handling When the Secretary of State or the Franchise Tax Board sends notices to your agent address, we scan them into your portal the day they arrive. Your first three government mailings each year are scanned free; physical originals ship for a per-piece fee beyond that.

Your document portal Every scanned notice lives in your secure portal, so you can pull up state correspondence whenever a deadline question comes up.

Filing the statement and paying the Franchise Tax Board remain your responsibilities, but with reminders and same day scans, neither one will surprise you.

Order Here Questions about the Statement of Information, the franchise tax, or how our reminders work? Visit our FAQ page or contact us for information.