Year-One Entity Cost Sheet: Check Delaware LLC Fees First

You are about to incorporate, and Delaware is the default answer. Before you file, put the year-one entity cost on one page. The first line you check is the annual tax. The page should be short enough to finish now, and specific enough to change the call.

Keep the sheet next to your incorporation docs, not in a folder you will open after you have started. It is a compact check built for a decision: whether Delaware is worth it before first revenue.

Put the recurring Delaware tax first

The annual tax is the recurring cost that makes Delaware feel like a default. It is the line you will pay every year, so it belongs at the top of the sheet. If your structure is an LLC, a limited partnership, or a general partnership, this is the number to check. If you are choosing Delaware because it is the default, this is the first number that tests that choice.

Do not confuse the Delaware annual tax with a general annual report. It is the line that makes the home-state comparison meaningful.

Put the first payment date in the calendar

The due date comes second because it is the first calendar reminder. It tells you when the first bill lands, and it should be entered as a date, not a vague later. If the date falls after you have incorporated, raised a small round, or hired your first person, you need to know it before you file.

A deadline is the moment the entity cost becomes real. Put it in the same place as your bank account, payroll, and tax filing dates. A date in the calendar is easier to honor than a reminder that waits in a file.

Use the one-page sheet to make the call

Each line is a number you can verify in a minute, and the page should keep the decision small.

• Annual tax: $400 for an LLC, LP, or GP, up from $300.
• First payment date: June 1, 2027 for tax year 2026.
• Effective date: the annual tax rules started January 1, 2026.
• Registered series fee: up to $100 per LLC or LP series, up from $75.
• LLP or LLLP: up to $300 per partner, up from $200, capped at $180,000.
• Rush filing: 30-minute expedited processing costs $10,000, up from $7,500.
• Service of process: Delaware's service-of-process fees double under House Bill 400, so add the new amount to the sheet.
• Home-state comparison: enter your state's annual filing or tax amount and due date.

The annual tax survives after the filing fee disappears. The deadline is the first date that can turn a small oversight into a bigger one. Series and partner charges catch separate costs that some founders use without realizing they add a line. Rush filing makes the price of late action visible before pressure forces the choice. Service of process keeps legal exposure on the page, even when it does not show up in the first year. The home-state line forces the default answer to win only when the comparison is written down.

If you are not using series, mark them as not applicable rather than leaving them blank. If you are not using LLP or LLLP, do the same. Marking them not applicable keeps the sheet honest.

Before you incorporate, open a blank page and write the lines above. Fill in the Delaware numbers, then fill in the home-state line. If the sheet says Delaware is still the right call, file with the deadline in your calendar. If it says the spread is too small, choose the simpler home state, and keep the sheet for the next decision.