New York LLC Name Requirements

There are business naming restrictions to be aware of when forming an LLC in New York.

First, all LLC names must be distinguishable from other LLC names already on file with the New York Department of State. We do a name availability search prior to every LLC formation, which can help prevent naming issues, conflicts, processing delays, etc. You may also want to consider contacting our sister company Total Trademarks to determine if the LLC Name can be trademarked.

Second, all business entity names must include the appropriate designation. For example, all limited liability company names must end in the words Limited Liability Company or LLC.

If you’re forming a professional entity such as a Professional Limited Liability Company (PLLC) additional naming restrictions will apply depending on your profession. For example, doctors seeking to form a medical practice in NYS must obtain a Certificate of Authority from the NYS Office of the Professions and they will not permit the use of the words: Cure, Healing, International, Management Co., National, Network, Partners, Spa, Center, Clinic, or Hospital in the company name. Words that suggest superiority are also prohibited from use in professional entities such as: Advanced, Best, Exceptional, Super, Premier, Outstanding, etc.

Lastly, the name of every LLC may not include a restricted word or phrase, unless a special circumstance applies. Some examples of restricted words are: academy, annuity, assurance, attorney, bank, benefit, blind, board of trade, casualty, college, conservatory, corporation, cooperative, council, doctor, education, elementary, endowment, exchange, fidelity, finance, guaranty, handicapped, historical, indemnity, insurance, investment, lawyer, mortgage, partnership, school, surety, union, and university.

The above list is not comprehensive, but you get the idea of why these types of terms need to be regulated. Seem like a lot of to consider? It is, but we’re very experienced in this process. Send us an email if you’re setting up an LLC and we’d be happy to schedule a free phone consultation regarding how we can help.

New York LLC Annual Fees

We often get asked about the annual fees for New York LLCs. This is a great question and we love when our clients are able look past the set up costs to see the bigger picture.

In New York LLC maintenance is very cheap. From a legal perspective, The New York State Department of State requires that a Biennial Statement be filed every 2 years in order to keep the LLC in good standing. The filing process is easy and also affords the opportunity to update the address of the LLC (a frequent occurrence within the first 2 years of a new LLC). The filing fee is only $9 to boot!

Contrast this process to Delaware, another popular state for setting up LLCs. The Delaware annual Franchise Tax is $300, which means that the LLC has to pay about 30 times as much per year just to have a Delaware-based LLC set up (and also file every year as opposed to every other year).

Of course, if your LLC is making money there will be income taxes to pay, but from a legal perspective the maintenance of New York LLCs is very easy. For Clients using our Registered Agent Service, we even include the Biennial Statement filing fees in with the service so that our client’s LLCs never lose good standing.

For more information on our LLC Formation Services or Registered Agent Services send us an email to schedule a free phone consultation.