$160 to form your Wyoming LLC

Wyoming LLC Cost: $100 Filing + $60 Annual Report (2026)

Forming an LLC in Wyoming costs $100 to file Articles of Organization and $60/yr for the annual report. No state income tax. No franchise tax. No publication requirement. Member names not required on public filings, Wyoming is the most privacy-friendly state for LLC formation. Five-year cost: $340. Wyoming was the first state to enact an LLC statute (1977) and remains a magnet for non-resident formations.

Reviewed by LLC Formation Cost Editorial Team, fact-checked against primary government sources • Last updated 2026-05-26 • 4 primary government sources cited

TL;DR

Wyoming LLCs file Articles of Organization with the Secretary of State for $100. The annual report is $60 minimum (or 0.0002% of WY-asset value, whichever is greater, under $300K WY assets pay $60 flat). Wyoming has no state income tax, no franchise tax, no LLC publication requirement, and no annual report requirement to list members or managers. Owners’ names are not on the WY public record, only the registered agent and organizer. Combined with FinCEN BOI privacy (the federal beneficial ownership database is non-public), Wyoming offers the strongest legal anonymity available to US LLC formations.

Wyoming LLC cost breakdown (2026)

Line item	Cost	Source
Articles of Organization	$100	sos.wyo.gov
Annual Report (minimum)	$60	sos.wyo.gov
Annual Report (over $300K WY assets)	0.0002% of WY-asset value	sos.wyo.gov
Registered Agent service (Wyoming-resident agent required)	$50-$200/yr	sos.wyo.gov RA list
Year 1 total (no add-ons)	$160
Year 1 with WY RA service	$210-$360
Year 2+ ongoing (DIY no RA)	$60
5-year total (DIY)	$340

All figures verified 2026-05-26 from primary Wyoming state sources.

Why Wyoming dominates non-resident formations

Wyoming was the first state to enact an LLC statute in 1977 (Wyoming Limited Liability Company Act), pre-dating the IRS’s 1988 ruling that LLCs could be taxed as partnerships. The state has had 49 years to refine its LLC law and has maintained business-friendly characteristics that make it a magnet for non-resident formations:

• No state income tax, Wyoming, like Texas and Florida, has no personal income tax. LLC pass-through profits flow only to the federal return.
• No franchise tax, the $60/yr annual report is a flat fee, not a tax.
• No publication requirement, unlike NY, AZ, or NE.
• Anonymity, member names are not required on the public Articles of Organization. The organizer (the person filing the LLC) and the registered agent are the only names on public record.
• Charging order protection, Wyoming’s charging order is the only remedy for a creditor against an LLC member’s interest, providing strong asset protection (Wyo. Stat. § 17-29-503).
• Series LLCs allowed, Wyoming permits Series LLCs under Wyo. Stat. § 17-29-1106, with one filing fee covering all internal series.

The single requirement non-residents can’t avoid: a Wyoming-resident registered agent. Wyoming RA services start at $50/yr (Wyoming Registered Agent Services, registeredagentwy.com) and go up to $200/yr (premium services with mail forwarding).

Filing steps (DIY, no service)

1. Pick a name, search availability at wyobiz.wyo.gov. Names must include “Limited Liability Company,” “LLC,” or “L.L.C.”
2. Hire a Wyoming registered agent, required by Wyo. Stat. § 17-28-101. Must have a Wyoming street address. Budget options: $50-$80/yr.
3. File Articles of Organization, $100 fee. File online at wyobiz.wyo.gov or by mail to Wyoming Secretary of State, 122 W 25th Street, Cheyenne, WY 82002.
4. Get a federal EIN, free at irs.gov.
5. Draft an operating agreement, not required by Wyoming law but standard practice. Free templates fine for single-member; attorney-drafted for multi-member or asset-protection structures.
6. Open a business bank account, Wyoming-licensed banks (First Interstate Bank, Wyoming Bank & Trust) easiest; out-of-state banks may ask for additional verification on anonymous LLCs.
7. Register for any required state taxes, Wyoming sales and use tax permit (free) if selling tangible goods, employer registration if hiring.
8. File FinCEN BOI report, required under the Corporate Transparency Act within 30 days of formation (post-2024). Free to self-file at fincen.gov/boi. Non-public.
9. Calendar the annual report, due first day of the LLC’s anniversary month each year. $60 minimum.
10. Maintain registered agent service, annual renewal of WY RA; $50-$200/yr.

Online filings via wyobiz are typically processed within 24-48 hours. Expedited filing is not separately charged in Wyoming, the standard online turnaround is fast enough.

Page-unique facts

• Wyoming was the first state to enact an LLC statute (1977). The Wyoming LLC Act predates the IRS’s 1988 partnership-classification ruling that made LLCs federally viable.
• Wyoming permits Series LLCs. Wyo. Stat. § 17-29-1106. One $100 filing covers a “master” LLC with multiple internal series, each holding separate assets and liabilities. Common pattern for real estate investors.
• Owner names are not on public record. Only the organizer (often a registered-agent service) and the RA appear on public Articles. Combined with FinCEN BOI privacy (non-public federal database), Wyoming offers the strongest legal anonymity available.
• Charging order protection. Wyo. Stat. § 17-29-503 makes the charging order the exclusive remedy for a creditor against an LLC member’s interest, meaning a creditor can intercept distributions but cannot force liquidation or seize the LLC itself.
• The $60 annual report is among the cheapest in the country. Only Hawaii ($15), Kentucky ($15), Utah ($18), and Nebraska ($13 biennial) are cheaper.

FAQ

Is Wyoming the cheapest state for non-residents?

Among states with strong privacy + low ongoing cost, yes. Wyoming’s $60/yr annual report is among the cheapest in the country, and there’s no state income tax. Five-year cost: $340 (DIY) or $625-$1,225 with RA service. New Mexico ($50 + $0/yr = $50 over 5 years) is cheaper but has weaker statutory privacy. Source: sos.wyo.gov, verified 2026-05-26.

Does Wyoming require my name on public records?

No. Wyoming allows the registered agent or organizer to file without listing members on the public Articles of Organization. Member names are not in the WY public record. The only name on the public filing is the organizer (typically a registered-agent service) and the RA. FinCEN Beneficial Ownership Information reporting (federal, non-public) still applies, but FinCEN BOI is not publicly searchable. Source: Wyoming SOS Business Filings.

Can I move my LLC from another state to Wyoming?

Yes, via “domestication” (where both states permit) or by dissolving the old LLC and forming a new WY LLC and assigning assets. Wyoming accepts incoming domestications from any state that permits outgoing. The domestication filing fee is $100 (same as a new LLC). The reverse, moving a WY LLC to another state, also works for outbound states that accept domestication. Source: sos.wyo.gov LLC continuance.

Will I pay franchise tax in Wyoming?

No. Wyoming has no LLC franchise tax, only the $60/yr annual report fee (or 0.0002% of WY-asset value, whichever is greater; under $300K WY assets pay $60 flat). For most non-resident-owned WY LLCs holding minimal WY assets, the annual report stays at the $60 minimum indefinitely. Source: Wyoming SOS.

Why is Wyoming’s charging-order protection considered the strongest?

Wyo. Stat. § 17-29-503 makes the charging order the exclusive statutory remedy a creditor can use against a Wyoming LLC member’s interest, meaning a judgment creditor can intercept distributions but cannot foreclose on the membership interest, force a sale of LLC assets, or compel dissolution. Wyoming was the first state to codify exclusive-remedy language for both multi-member AND single-member LLCs (most states limit it to multi-member). Combined with no income-tax nexus for non-resident formations, this is why high-net-worth investors form Wyoming holding LLCs even when they operate elsewhere. The American Bar Association Section of Business Law lists Wyoming alongside Nevada and Delaware as the top three jurisdictions for charging-order asset protection.

Does Wyoming require an operating agreement?

No. Wyoming does not statutorily require LLCs to adopt an operating agreement. However, Wyo. Stat. § 17-29-110 explicitly recognizes operating agreements (oral, written, or implied by conduct) as binding between members. Single-member Wyoming LLCs without a written operating agreement are at higher risk of veil-piercing if a creditor argues the LLC is the alter ego of the owner; courts generally view a documented operating agreement as evidence of separate-entity respect. Banks (especially out-of-state) will usually still demand a written agreement to open a business checking account. Source: Wyoming Statutes Title 17 Chapter 29.

State quirk: the 1977 Wyoming LLC Act, the original

Wyoming is the birthplace of the modern US LLC. The Wyoming Limited Liability Company Act, passed in 1977 and modeled loosely on the German GmbH and the Panamanian Limitada, predated the IRS’s pivotal 1988 Revenue Ruling 88-76 by 11 years. That ruling, which classified Wyoming LLCs as partnerships for federal tax purposes, is what unlocked the LLC nationwide; before 1988, the IRS could have classified them as associations taxable as corporations, killing the structure. Wyoming also pioneered the “close LLC” concept (single-member privacy) and remains the only state where charging-order-only protection is enshrined for both single-member and multi-member LLCs in the same statutory section. Cross-reference: IRS Publication 3402.

Common mistake in Wyoming

The most common Wyoming LLC mistake is using a Wyoming registered-agent service to “form in Wyoming” while actually living and operating in another state, then assuming home-state taxes don’t apply. They do. Operating in California with a Wyoming LLC triggers California foreign qualification ($70) plus the $800 franchise tax. Operating in New York triggers NY publication + biennial fees. Wyoming saves money only when you have genuine Wyoming nexus or when the LLC is a passive holding entity for assets located outside high-tax jurisdictions.

Sources

1. Wyoming Secretary of State Start a Business, last verified 2026-05-26
2. Wyoming SOS Business Filings Portal, last verified 2026-05-26
3. Wyoming SOS Registered Agents Directory, last verified 2026-05-26
4. Wyoming Statutes Title 17 Chapter 29 (LLC Act), last verified 2026-05-26
5. IRS Publication 3402, Taxation of Limited Liability Companies, last verified 2026-05-26
6. American Bar Association Section of Business Law, LLC and partnership resources, last verified 2026-05-26

About the author

Aissam Baidi is the founder and researcher behind llcformationcost.com. He verifies Wyoming LLC fees directly from sos.wyo.gov on a quarterly cycle. Connect on LinkedIn.

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Not legal advice. Estimates based on publicly available data from each state’s Secretary of State office. Consult a licensed attorney in your jurisdiction.