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Formation ClassClass is in session: LLC paperwork, state by state.

Session 3 · Illinois

Foreign LLC Registration Class, Illinois (2026): 5 Assignments and the 3 Best Services

If you want help registering an LLC from another state in Illinois in 2026, the top grades go to Mainstay Filing ($199), Illinois Registered Agent.co ($199) and IL Registered Agent.org ($199), in that order. Registering takes 5 assignments and a $150 state fee, with $75 due on each later report.

Taught by the Formation Class faculty

Read this first

Fee at the state office$150ilsos.gov (page read October 2026)
Home certificate60 daysAge limit
Maintenance filing$75Annual report
Three-year state cost$300Registration, reports and any minimum tax
Assignments in this class5In order

What this class teaches

  • When the rule kicks in
  • How the filing gets made
  • What comes after registration
  • The services at the top of the class

The Illinois honor roll

Tuition over three years leads, then homework done, year-two tuition, Illinois fit and readable fees (grading page).
Top of the class

1. Mainstay Filing: best for one provider for both states

$199 and the $150 state fee, then $149 yearly

We start with Mainstay Filing; a $199 service fee plus Illinois's own fee, then $149 a year for the agent.

Illinois Registered Agent.co is $100 cheaper over three years; this one still earns the higher grade because it does more of the work.

Agent service past the first year is $149 yearly.

Covered by the tuition

  • Registration paperwork handled
  • The registered agent costs nothing in year one
  • One fee wherever you register

Strengths

  • Year-one agent is covered
  • $199 on top of Illinois's fee
  • One price anywhere

Weak spots

  • $50 more a year for the agent
Focused on Illinois

2. Illinois Registered Agent.co: best for a budget registration

$199 and the $150 state fee, then $99 yearly

Second place goes to Illinois Registered Agent.co, since $199 above the state fee, first agent year covered, and $99 a year afterward.

Covered by the tuition

  • Filing made with the state
  • One year of agent service is part of the price

Strengths

  • A free first agent year
  • Then $99 per year
  • $199 and the state fee

Weak spots

  • The home state needs a different agent
Focused on Illinois

3. IL Registered Agent.org: best for Illinois-only registrations

$199 and the $150 state fee, then $99 yearly

Third place goes to IL Registered Agent.org, since $199 above the state fee, first agent year covered, and $99 a year afterward.

It lists the same prices as Illinois Registered Agent.co.

Covered by the tuition

  • Filing made with the state
  • One year of agent service is part of the price

Strengths

  • Then $99 per year
  • $199 and the state fee
  • A free first agent year

Weak spots

  • The home state needs a different agent

The services compared

#ServiceFirst yearFrom year twoThree-year total
1Mainstay Filing$199$149/yr$497Visit Mainstay FilingPartner link. We may earn money if you buy.
2Illinois Registered Agent.co$199$99/yr$397Visit Illinois Registered Agent.coPartner link. We may earn money if you buy.
3IL Registered Agent.org$199$99/yr$397Visit IL Registered Agent.orgPartner link. We may earn money if you buy.
Each company's posted price on November 13, 2026. The $150 state fee is left out of these figures.

The Illinois registration, in order

  1. Assignment
    1

    Is Illinois registration needed?

    When an LLC from elsewhere starts operating in Illinois, foreign registration is the way in. Skipping registration has a price: Its own lawsuits have to wait until it registers (805 ILCS 180/45-45(a)). Its contracts remain valid (805 ILCS 180/45-45(b)). Fees for the unregistered period come due as well.

    Textbook page: ilga.gov (page read October 2026)

  2. Assignment
    2

    Get a certificate from your home state

    Illinois asks for certificate of Good Standing or Existence, issued no more than 60 days.

    Leave the certificate until everything else is ready.

  3. Assignment
    3

    Appoint the Illinois registered agent

    Every LLC must name a registered agent with an in-state street address. The address has to be a registered office in Illinois that matches the agent's business office. A P.O. box alone is not accepted.

    The grade list covers this role.

    Textbook page: ilga.gov (page read October 2026)

  4. Assignment
    4

    Complete, sign and file the Application for Admission to Transact Business

    the Illinois Secretary of State, Department of Business Services, Limited Liability Division is the office that wants the filing above plus $150.

    Textbook page: ilsos.gov (page read October 2026)

  5. Assignment
    5

    What comes after

    File the annual report at $75, within the 60 days before your anniversary month to keep the registration going.

What this class costs

EntryGoes toCost
Foreign registrationPaid to the state$150
Annual reportPaid to the state$75
Optional serviceThe service$199 at the start
Three-year state totalPaid to the state$300
Here is how the three-year state row works: filing fee, plus the report in each of years two and three, plus any yearly minimum tax. Service fees get their own rows.

Why the list runs this way

Homework the price does makes up 34% of the grade, and that is where got ahead in Illinois.

The LLC is active in two states, and reach decided the order.

Short answers

What is Illinois's fee for an out-of-state LLC?

$150 in state fees. The graded services add $199.

Which form do I file to register?

Fill in the form named in assignment 4 and send it to the Illinois Secretary of State, Department of Business Services, Limited Liability Division.

Do I need a certificate from my home state?

Yes: certificate of Good Standing or Existence, issued within 60 days of filing.

What if the LLC does business there without registering?

Its own lawsuits have to wait until it registers (805 ILCS 180/45-45(a)). Its contracts remain valid (805 ILCS 180/45-45(b)). Fees for the unregistered period come due as well.

What is due after registering?

Next is the annual report at $75.

Which service should handle the registration?

Mainstay Filing gets the top grade and Illinois Registered Agent.co and IL Registered Agent.org follow; Mainstay Filing wins on homework the price does.

See also

Textbook pages and extra reading

  1. The Illinois Secretary of State, Department of Business Services lesson rests on ilsos.gov, read again in August 2026; check our work against it.
  2. The Illinois Secretary of State, Department of Business Services lesson rests on ilsos.gov, read again in August 2026; check our work against it.
  3. The 805 ILCS 180/5-5 lesson rests on ilga.gov, read again in August 2026; check our work against it.
  4. The Illinois formation fee: Filing fee, official source lesson rests on ilga.gov, read again in October 2026; check our work against it.
  5. The Illinois formation fee: Filing fee, official source lesson rests on ilsos.gov, read again in October 2026; check our work against it.
  6. The Illinois registered agent statute lesson rests on ilga.gov, read again in October 2026; check our work against it.
  7. The Form LLC-45.5, Application for Admission lesson rests on ilsos.gov, read again in October 2026; check our work against it.
  8. The Form LLC-45.40, Application for Withdrawal lesson rests on ilsos.gov, read again in October 2026; check our work against it.
  9. The 805 ILCS 180/45-45, consequences of transacting business without lesson rests on ilga.gov, read again in October 2026; check our work against it.
  10. The 805 ILCS 180/45-47, activities that are not transacting lesson rests on ilga.gov, read again in October 2026; check our work against it.
  11. The 805 ILCS 180/45-45 lesson rests on ilga.gov, read again in November 2026; check our work against it.
  12. Pulled November 13, 2026: Illinois service page from Mainstay Filing
  13. Pulled November 13, 2026: pricing page from Illinois Registered Agent.co
  14. Pulled November 13, 2026: pricing page from IL Registered Agent.org