How to Start an LLC in Minnesota
Minnesota is a great place to start and grow a business owing to its relatively stable economic climate. Entrepreneurs will appreciate the opportunities the state offers and the excellent communities they can serve with their businesses.
The best way to structure your business is to form a Limited Liability Company, or LLC for short. An LLC is a legal business structure that offers greater liability protection, tax incentives, and other benefits to small business owners.
If you are an entrepreneur who wants to limit their personal liability for business debts and lawsuits, starting an LLC in Minnesota is something you should consider. Following is a step-by-step guide on how to start an LLC in Minnesota to help you launch your business.
Choose an LLC Name for Your Business
The first step is to choose a name for your LLC. According to state law, your LLC name must contain the words “Limited Liability Company” or its abbreviation. It is best to use “LLC” at the end of your business’s name.
Your LLC’s name must also be distinguishable from the names of other registered entities in the state. You can check the availability of your LLC’s name by checking the Minnesota database for business names.
If your chosen business name is already taken or unavailable, you’ll have to brainstorm and come up with a different name for your LLC. If you find it difficult to come up with a name for your LLC, a business name generator is a great online resource for name ideas for your business.
File a Name Reservation
Once you find an available business name for your LLC, you must reserve it by filing a “Name Reservation.” This will reserve your name with the state for 12 months and ensure that you do not lose it to another business or entrepreneur.
It costs just $50 for the filing fee if you reserve your name by mail. It costs an additional $5 if you reserve it in person or online.
You can reserve your LLC name in Minnesota with the Office of the Minnesota Secretary of State Business & Lien system by clicking here.
Choose a Registered Agent
Every LLC in Minnesota must have an agent for filing taxes and receiving legal papers on behalf of the LLC in case it is sued. Your agent must be a registered agent and must either be a Minnesota resident, a Minnesota business entity, or a foreign business entity authorized to do business in the state.
The registered agent must also have a physical street address in Minnesota. Unlike many other states, your LLC cannot act as its own agent in the state of Minnesota.
You can find and appoint a professional Minnesota registered agent here for as low as under $50.
Prepare and File Articles of Organization
This is one of the most important steps for starting an LLC in Minnesota. Articles of Organization is a form submitted to the Minnesota Secretary of State. You can find the form here, and you must include the following basic information before submission:
Your LLC’s name
Your registered agent’s name and address
Your LLC’s organizer’s name, address, and signature
An email address and phone number as contact information
You can file Articles of Organization by mail, in-person, or online when you want to start an LLC in Minnesota. The fee for online and in-person filing is $155, whereas filing by mail costs $135, which is $20 less. However, online filings are processed faster, so it may be worth spending the extra money.
Put Together an LLC Operating Agreement
Unlike most states, an LLC operating agreement is not required in the state of Minnesota, but you should prepare one anyway. This agreement can help you structure your LLC by creating an operational framework, but most importantly, it can help better protect your limited liability.
By having an LLC operating agreement, you can show that your business is truly an LLC or a separate entity. Without this agreement, your LLC will operate under state law LLC. You can find a suitable Minnesota LLC Operating Agreement template here or create one on your own.
Obtain an EIN
EIN is short for Employer Identity Number, which is a unique number assigned by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) that acts like a social security number for your LCC.
Without this number, you cannot legally hire employees for your business, open a bank account, or file taxes in Minnesota.
Obtaining your EIN is perhaps one of the simplest steps for starting an LLC in Minnesota. You can simply register your business online with the official IRS website to get an EIN for free.
File Annual Renewals
All LLCs in Minnesota are required to file an annual renewal with the Minnesota Secretary of State once every calendar year. You can file the renewal at any time before December 31. The filing fee is $25 for filing by mail, whereas online or in-person filing costs $45.
You can file your annual renewal with the Minnesota Secretary of State online by clicking here.
Get a Website and Market Your Business
The mentioned steps will help you successfully complete the legal process of starting an LLC in Minnesota. However, you cannot expect to market your business, attract relevant audiences, gain customers, and start earning without a good business website.
Developing and maintaining a business website and marketing it successfully online are tough jobs that require full-time attention, especially if you lack prior experience. If you do not have experience or are proficient in these matters, you will have a tough time completing this last step. Fortunately, you do not need to hire full-time employees or experts for these jobs. Instead, you can let professional experts like Trady.com handle it all for you!
Trady.com is a powerful website-building service dedicated to trades and home services companies. It is quick, easy, and inexpensive to build your business website with Trady.com. They provide exclusive features like booking appointments and making payments online and make it look easy. Such features make it easier to convert your online audiences into paying customers, resulting in much higher profits for your business.
Trady.com’s end-to-end marketing services also spread the word about your business more efficiently and make marketing much simpler. With these and many other incredible features from Trady.com, you will only need to spend ten minutes a day managing your business website and marketing. This way, you can be free to focus on other important things like improving your product, services, customer experiences, or overall business.
Try the 14-day free trial by Trady.com to get started today!