Arkansas LLC Annual Requirements: The Franchise Tax

Start with the correction that matters: what many sites call the Arkansas "annual report fee" is actually the Annual LLC Franchise Tax Report, a combined report and tax filing owed to the Arkansas Secretary of State's Business and Commercial Services Division. It is a flat $150 for every LLC, active or dormant, profitable or not. Corporations calculate their franchise tax from capital stock; LLCs simply pay the flat amount under A.C.A. § 26-54-104.

When the Franchise Tax Is Due

The report is due on or before May 1 each year, and the filing window opens January 1. For mailed filings the date that counts is the USPS postmark (postage meter dates are not accepted). There are no extensions, a rule locked in by Acts 1046 and 1140 of 1991, so May 1 is a hard wall.

The Arkansas LLC Franchise Tax Amount

$150, flat. Every LLC and PLLC pays the same figure regardless of revenue, activity, or member count, per A.C.A. §§ 26-54-104 and 26-54-105. Foreign LLCs registered in Arkansas file the same form and pay the same $150. One built-in break: a newly formed LLC is exempt until the calendar year after formation, so an LLC organized in 2026 files its first franchise tax report in 2027.

How to File the Annual LLC Franchise Tax Report

1. File online through the state's franchise tax system at sos-franchise.ark.org, or download the current LLC form from the franchise tax forms page and mail it. Online card payments add a small processing fee of about $5.
2. Confirm the information on the report, especially your registered agent, whose address must be an Arkansas street address rather than a PO box or mail drop.
3. Pay the $150 and keep the confirmation. If you mail it, get it postmarked by May 1.
4. Handle any company changes separately. Name changes, mergers, and the like require their own BCS forms; a note scribbled on the franchise tax report does not count.

Miss May 1 and Here Is What Happens

A $25 late penalty attaches, and interest starts accruing immediately after May 1 under A.C.A. §§ 26-54-107 and 26-54-114. Stay delinquent long enough and the Secretary of State revokes the LLC's charter under A.C.A. § 26-54-111. Revocation strips the liability protection you formed the company for, and clawing back to good standing means paying every missed year's tax plus penalties and interest first.

The Registered Agent Obligation Never Sleeps

Arkansas requires a registered agent on file for the life of the LLC, with an Arkansas street address or rural route box under Ark. Code Ann. § 4-20-104. Losing your agent is its own path to bad standing, separate from the franchise tax. With our registered agent service the agent line stays valid and we nudge you well before each May 1.

Federal Side, Quickly

The state franchise tax has nothing to do with the IRS. Members still report pass-through income on their personal returns, pay self-employment tax on their share, make quarterly estimated payments when they expect to owe $1,000 or more, and run payroll filings if the LLC has employees.

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