File Your LLC in West Virginia

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Benefits of opening an LLC in West Virginia

There are many reasons to form an LLC in West Virginia.
Here are the main ones:

Legal protection in case of bankruptcy or lawsuits

Separation of personal and business assets 

Tax benefits: flexibility & pass-through taxation

Increasing credibility and trust for your business

How to form your West Virginia LLC with Tailor Brands

Check if your LLC name is available in West Virginia

Choose a registered agent for your LLC

Sit back and let us take care of the paperwork for you

How to start an LLC in West Virginia in 5 steps

If you’re thinking of forming an LLC in West Virginia, there are benefits to consider with this type of business entity. For starters, it generally pays lower taxes than a corporation.

While LLCs have the characteristics of corporations, sole proprietorships, and partnerships. The advantage of forming an LLC over partnerships and sole proprietorships in that it separates business liabilities from personal assets with the limited liability protection. However, it’s important to note that the protection is not guaranteed and depends on maintaining proper business conduct. 

West Virginia has a list of professions that cannot form LLCs and must instead form a Professional Limited Liability Company (PLLC). To form the PLLC, they must provide verification from their professional licensing agency that each member of the PLLC has a valid, current license from the licensing board to practice their profession.

There are five main steps to register an LLC in West Virginia:

  1. Name your West Virginia LLC
  2. Choose your registered agent
  3. File articles of organization
  4. Create an operating agreement 
  5. Apply for an EIN

Below, you’ll find a detailed explanation of each step to walk you through establishing your own LLC.

Step 1: Name your West Virginia LLC

West Virginia has specific rules about naming your business. Most are either the same or similar to rules in other states. In West Virginia, choosing a business name is the first step.

You must carefully follow the rules established by the West Virginia Legislature for naming your business. Specifically:

Naming your professional limited liability company

Members of certain professions may form a Professional Limited Liability Company (PLLC). Only members licensed or otherwise legally authorized may be a member of the PLLC. The same rules that apply for naming an LLC apply to the naming of a PLLC.

Professions that qualify to form a PLLC and that may not form an LLC are:

To complete your filing for a business name, you must include the names of all who will be members of the PLLC and verification from the state licensing board that the professional licenses of all members are current and authorized to practice their profession.

Step 2: Choose a registered agent

As in all other states, West Virginia requires every LLC to have a registered agent. Your LLC can be our registered agent if you provide a physical address and phone number and the person designated to receive process is over the age of 18.

You must provide the name of the registered agent and the physical street address in West Virginia as a place where service of process can be made. The registered agent must be a resident of West Virginia or a corporation or LLC authorized to do business in West Virginia.

In West Virginia, the LLC may be its own registered agent. A registered agent may be a professional registered agent service.

Step 3: File articles of organization

An LLC in West Virginia is formed by filing articles of organization. In general, the following information must be included:

State fees

There are quite a few state fees you must pay to begin your LLC and be ready to operate it as a business entity. Some of those fees include:

Articles of organization: The fee for filing the Articles of Organization is $100. If you have an existing LLC and want to do business in West Virginia, the fee is $150. It will take 5-10 business days for processing.

Reservation of business name: $15.

DBA (trade name, if required): $25 for each DBA registered.

You can expedite the processing by paying the following fees:

Pay an extra $15 for a certified copy of your Articles of Organization.

All fees are waived for veterans.

Rules and regulations change now and then. This may not be a complete list, so check with the office of the West Virginia Secretary of State before submitting your application to be sure you have covered all the fees. If a required fee does not accompany the application, the registration of your LLC will be delayed.

Annual report: All LLCs are required to file an annual report. The fee is $25. The annual report fee for veterans is waived for the first 4 years the LLC is in operation.

There is a $50 late filing fee. The failure to file an annual report may result in revocation of the LLCs authorization to do business in West Virginia.

How to file

You can file your articles of organization online. If you do this, you can pay the filing fee by credit card if you provide an e-payment authorization form.

If you prefer to file the documents in person or by mail, you can download the form and fill it out.

If mailing the articles of organization, they can be sent to any one of the following state business centers:

  • Charleston Office One-Stop Business Center
    1615 Washington Street East
    Charleston, WV 25311
    Phone: (304) 558-8000 Fax: (304) 558-8381
  • Clarksburg Office North Central WV Business Center
    200 West Main Street
    Clarksburg, WV 26301
    Phone: (304) 367-2775 Fax: (304) 627-2243
  • Martinsburg Office Eastern Panhandle Business Center
    229 E. Martin Street
    Martinsburg, WV 25401
    Phone: (304) 356-2654 Fax: (304) 260-4360

You may walk into any of these three offices for in-person filing. Call first to get the hours of operation.

Step 3: Choose a registered agent

As in all other states, West Virginia requires every LLC to have a registered agent. Your LLC can be your own registered agent in West Virginia if you provide a physical address in the state and phone number and the person designated to receive process is over the age of 18.

You must provide the name of the registered agent and the physical street address in West Virginia as a place where service of process can be made. The registered agent must be a resident of West Virginia or a corporation or LLC authorized to do business in West Virginia.

In West Virginia, the LLC may be its own registered agent. A registered agent may be a professional registered agent service.

Step 4: Create an operating agreement

An operating agreement for your LLC is not required to be filed with the state of West Virginia. However, it is highly recommended that you create one.

The Small Business Administration (SBA) of the federal government urges you to create this agreement and that it should include:

Step 5: Apply for an EIN

In some cases, for example if your LLC have employees, you will need to get an EIN from the IRS, which is an “employer identification number.”

Applying for an EIN is fast and free. Go to the IRS website and fill out form SS-4 for an LLC EIN. You will need to answer specific questions about your LLC and submit the Social Security Numbers (SSNs) of all the principals. You must also use a physical address for your LLC, which may be the address of a principal or the address of your Registered Agent.

Although you can apply yourself, you can also apply for an EIN with Tailor Brands.

Your EIN will be used for all tax and business purposes. Some ways you will use this number include:

Even if you’re nor required to obtain an EIN, there are personal benefits to using an EIN instead of just using your SSN. These include:

West Virginia LLC Formation: The Basics

This step-by-step guide details the steps you need to  name your West Virginia LLC properly by searching if it is unique.

There are different costs to form an LLC in West Virginia and maintain it. We’ve listed all of them in this post.

Appointing registered agent is a mandatory step in your LLC formation process in West Virginia – learn more about it.

LLCs in West Virginia are required to file an annual report with the state. Learn more to avoid penalties.

Why is Tailor Brands the Best LLC Service in WV

We love helping people start their business. We take care of the LLC filing and offer additional services so you can focus on launching and growing your business, while remaining compliant with state regulations.

Here’s why people choose to form their LLC with us:

Easy and intuitive

Our products are user friendly, all you need to do is answer a few questions about your business and let us take care of all the rest.

Friendly dashboard

Our platform is easy to use and is optimally designed to guide you through your LLC formation process and business journey.

Additional services

We offer more products to help you set and manage your business like registered agent, business licenses, and annual report.

Real Tailor Brands reviews, from real business owners

For more reviews from our customers, visit our reviews page.

Form a West Virginia LLC, Hassle-Free

This portion of our website is for informational purposes only. Tailor Brands is not a law firm, and none of the information on this website constitutes or is intended to convey legal advice. All statements, opinions, recommendations, and conclusions are solely the expression of the author and provided on an as-is basis. Accordingly, Tailor Brands is not responsible for the information and/or its accuracy or completeness.