How to Start a Business in Pennsylvania (2026 Guide)

To start a business in Pennsylvania, file a Certificate of Organization (LLC) or Articles of Incorporation with the Pennsylvania Department of State through Business Filing Services, list a Pennsylvania registered office, get an EIN, and register for state taxes through the Department of Revenue’s myPATH system. As of October 2026, the filing fee is $125 for an LLC or a business corporation.

Pennsylvania added a new yearly step in 2025: an annual report. It costs just $7, but starting with reports due in 2027, companies that skip it can be administratively dissolved.

Updated October 2026.

Best Business Formation Services in Pennsylvania (2026)

If you’d rather not handle forming a business in Pennsylvania yourself, these are the services we recommend, in order. The table compares price and what’s included.

1. Mainstay Filing

Mainstay Filing is our top pick in Pennsylvania. It costs $199/year + state fee at cost and covers lLC formation filing, registered agent for the year, EIN application, annual report preparation and filing. The price stays the same every year, with no add-on menu.

2. PA Registered Agent.org

PA Registered Agent.org is a Pennsylvania registered agent service at $99/year. It provides $99 per year, flat; in-state street address for the registered office; legal documents served on the company are scanned and sent to the owner online. It’s a fit if you only need a registered agent rather than full formation help.

3. Pennsylvania Registered Agent.co

Pennsylvania Registered Agent.co is a Pennsylvania registered agent service at $99/year. It provides in-state street address for the registered office; legal documents served on the company are scanned and sent to the owner online. It’s a fit if you only need a registered agent rather than full formation help.

Pennsylvania at a glance (October 2026)

Fees are from the Department of State’s fees page. For a fuller budget, see Mainstay Filing’s Pennsylvania LLC costs.

Which structure should a Pennsylvania business choose?

Pennsylvania’s structures differ in paperwork as well as liability:

• Sole proprietorship. No Department of State formation filing, but you register a fictitious name if you operate under anything other than your own name. You are personally liable.
• General partnership. Shared liability and the same fictitious name rule.
• LLC. $125 to form, no newspaper advertising, and a $7 annual report. The most popular choice for small businesses. Our step-by-step Pennsylvania LLC guide goes deeper on this filing.
• Corporation. $125 to form, but business corporations must advertise their incorporation in two newspapers. C corporations pay the Corporate Net Income Tax, 7.49% for 2026 and stepping down each year to 4.99% in 2031, per the Department of Revenue.

Naming your Pennsylvania business

An LLC name must contain “company”, “limited” or “limited liability company”, or an abbreviation, and may not include “corporation” or “incorporated”. Corporate names need “corporation”, “company”, “incorporated” or “limited” (or similar words). Some words, such as bank, insurance or university, need approval from the relevant state agency, according to the Department of State’s business registration guide.

Check your name:

1. Search the Department of State’s business entity database, or read our Pennsylvania business name search guide.
2. Look up domains and social handles at once on Namechk.
3. Search federal trademarks with the USPTO.

The business name generator can help with ideas. A name reservation costs $70 and holds the name for 120 days; it cannot be renewed.

Fictitious names (DBAs)

Pennsylvania calls a DBA a fictitious name, and you register it with the Department of State for $70; county filing ended decades ago. If any individual is listed as a party to the name, you must also advertise the registration in two newspapers of general circulation in the county where the business is located, one of them a legal newspaper. Keep proof of publication with your records. A business that operates under an unregistered fictitious name cannot enforce its contracts in Pennsylvania courts until it registers.

The registered office requirement

Pennsylvania does not require a registered agent in the usual sense. Instead, every LLC and corporation keeps a registered office: either a Pennsylvania street address (not a P.O. box) or the name of a Commercial Registered Office Provider (CROP) on the Department of State’s list. Changing the registered office costs $5.

Using a CROP keeps your home address off public records and ensures someone accepts legal papers during business hours. Mainstay Filing includes Pennsylvania registered office service for the first year in its formation package.

Filing your Certificate of Organization

File online through Business Filing Services, which uses a Keystone Login, or on paper. An LLC submits:

1. The Certificate of Organization (DSCB:15-8821), with the LLC name, registered office or CROP, and organizer.
2. A Docketing Statement, which has no fee.
3. The $125 filing fee, paid by card online.

Standard processing can take a few weeks, so the Department of State offers expedited service: same-day for $100, three-hour for $300 and one-hour for $1,000. Pennsylvania LLCs have no publication requirement. After approval, sign an operating agreement for your records.

Get an EIN

Apply for a free Employer Identification Number from the IRS before registering with the state. You need it for payroll, unemployment registration and your bank account.

Register for Pennsylvania taxes

Use the Department of Revenue’s online business tax registration in myPATH to set up:

• Sales, Use and Hotel Occupancy Tax license. Required if you sell taxable goods or services. The state rate is 6%, with an extra 1% in Allegheny County and 2% in Philadelphia, according to the Department of Revenue. Returns are due even for periods with no sales.
• Employer withholding, for state income tax on employee wages.
• Unemployment compensation, through the same registration path.

Many Pennsylvania municipalities also levy local earned income and business privilege taxes, so check with your township, borough or city.

Hiring employees in Pennsylvania

Pennsylvania’s minimum wage remains $7.25 per hour, per the Department of Labor and Industry. A bill to raise it to $15 passed the state House in 2026 but had not become law as of October.

Employers also need to:

• Pay unemployment compensation tax. For 2026, newly liable non-construction employers pay 3.822% on the first $10,000 of each employee’s wages, and employees contribute 0.07%, according to L&I.
• Carry workers’ compensation insurance, which is mandatory for most employers regardless of size.
• Report new hires to the state.

Licenses and permits

Pennsylvania has no general statewide business license. The Department of State’s corporations bureau does not issue activity licenses, so check:

• Professional licenses from the Bureau of Professional and Occupational Affairs, covering fields such as cosmetology, real estate and nursing.
• Other state agencies, such as the Department of Agriculture for food businesses and the Liquor Control Board for alcohol.
• Local requirements from your county, city, borough or township, including business privilege licenses, zoning and occupancy permits. Philadelphia, for example, requires a Commercial Activity License.

The PA Business One-Stop Shop and the Pennsylvania SBDC network offer free guidance.

Banking and insurance

Open a business bank account with your filed Certificate of Organization, EIN and operating agreement. Keep business and personal funds separate. Insurance to consider includes general liability, professional liability, commercial auto and property coverage, plus the required workers’ compensation.

Pennsylvania’s annual report

Pennsylvania replaced its old decennial report with an annual report starting in 2025. The rules:

• Fee: $7 for LLCs and business corporations; $0 for nonprofits.
• Due dates: corporations file January 1 through June 30; LLCs file January 1 through September 30; limited partnerships, LLPs and other entities file by December 31.
• First report: due the calendar year after the entity registers.
• Enforcement: beginning with reports due in 2027, entities that do not file are administratively dissolved six months after the due date. Reinstating a domestic entity costs $35 online or $40 on paper, plus $15 for each missing report.

File online through Business Filing Services; no PIN is needed.

A website for your Pennsylvania business

Register a domain that matches your business name and set up a basic website so customers can find you. These builders are a good starting point:

An easy-to-use website builder that lets users create attractive online stores.

Visit Square Online

Easy-to-use, no-code, hosted website builder. Great for beginners.

Visit Wix

Create, sell, and market your business from one place.

Visit Squarespace

FAQs

Disclosure: We may earn a commission from services recommended on this page.