Michigan Articles of Organization: File for $50 (2026)
File CSCL/CD-700 with the $50 base fee. Duration need only be stated if the LLC is not perpetual. Provide the resident agent and Michigan registered-office street address, plus the office mailing address if different; complete the current organizer and other required form fields. Optional formation review adds $50 for 24-hour service or $100 for same-day service, subject to current cutoffs and conditions. Ordinary 3–5-business-day estimates are operational estimates, not guaranteed approval.
File CSCL/CD-700 with the $50 base fee. Duration need only be stated if the LLC is not perpetual. Provide the resident agent and Michigan registered-office street address, plus the office mailing address if different; complete the current organizer and other required form fields. Optional formation review adds $50 for 24-hour service or $100 for same-day service, subject to current cutoffs and conditions. Ordinary 3–5-business-day estimates are operational estimates, not guaranteed approval.
- Filing fee
- $50
- Form number
- CSCL/CD-700
- Portal
- MiBusiness Registry
- Processing
- Current queue; estimate varies
- Expedite
- +$50 / 24h; +$100 same-day*
- Agency
- LARA
What the Articles of Organization Do
The Articles of Organization are your LLC's birth certificate. When LARA accepts form CSCL/CD-700, your LLC exists: liability protection attaches, the name is claimed, and you can bank and contract as the company. Michigan's form is short and standard — the only real decision inside it is your resident agent, and the only decision around it is when you file, which sets your first annual statement deadline (more below).
The MiBusiness Registry Walkthrough
Create a MiBusiness Registry account
One login handles formation now and every February 15 annual statement after — keep the email durable.
Choose "Start a New Business" → domestic LLC
The portal walks form CSCL/CD-700 field by field and checks your name against LARA's records as you enter it.
Enter your details and pay $50
Name, purpose, duration, resident agent, and registered office; pay by card at submission. Add an expedite tier if you need faster review.
Download your stamped Articles
Save the approved Articles the moment they issue — your bank requires them, and they anchor your formation date for the first-statement timing.
File CSCL/CD-700 with the $50 base fee. Duration need only be stated if the LLC is not perpetual. Provide the resident agent and Michigan registered-office street address, plus the office mailing address if different; complete the current organizer and other required form fields. Optional formation review adds $50 for 24-hour service or $100 for same-day service, subject to current cutoffs and conditions. Ordinary 3–5-business-day estimates are operational estimates, not guaranteed approval.
Every Line of the Articles
LLC name
With a valid designator (LLC, L.L.C., or L.C.), distinguishable on LARA's records — verified in Step 1.
Purpose
A general "any lawful activity" purpose is fine for most LLCs; certain professional LLCs state a specific professional purpose.
Duration
State a duration only if the LLC will not be perpetual. Follow the current Articles instructions rather than treating a perpetual-duration entry as universally required.
Resident agent & registered office
Provide the resident agent and Michigan registered-office street address. Include the registered-office mailing address if different, as requested by the current form.
Organizer signature
The person forming the LLC signs — the classic omission on paper filings.
Payment
$50 by card online, or check/money order payable to the State of Michigan by mail. Add expedite fees if needed.
The First-Statement Timing Trick
Here's a genuinely useful Michigan quirk: your formation date decides whether you owe an annual statement almost immediately or get most of a year off. Form January 1–September 30 and your first annual statement is due the very next February 15. But form October 1–December 31 and Michigan waives that first February 15 — your first statement isn't due until the February after. Use the calculator to see exactly when your first $25 is due.
Michigan First-Annual-Statement Timing Calculator
Pick your formation month → see when your first $25 statement is due
Based on Michigan's rule: form Jan 1–Sep 30 → first statement next Feb 15; form Oct 1–Dec 31 → skip that Feb 15, first statement the following year. Educational estimate.
After Approval: Your Immediate Next Moves
- Save your stamped Articles — banks require them alongside your EIN letter.
- Create your operating agreement — the document that overrides Michigan's statutory defaults.
- Get your free EIN at IRS.gov, then register with Michigan Treasury Online.
- Calendar February 15 — using the timing calculator above to know your first due date.
Ahmad Adil's Take: Michigan's filing is refreshingly boring — $50, a short form, a good portal, done in a few days. The one piece of strategy worth a moment is the October–December timing. If you're forming late in the year and don't need the LLC live immediately for a contract or a bank account, waiting until after October 1 means Michigan skips your first February 15 statement entirely — a free pass on your first $25 and, more importantly, on the risk of forgetting a deadline you've barely had time to learn about. It's a small perk, but it's the kind of detail that separates a guide that's read the statute from one that hasn't.
- ✓Optional formation assistance; confirm filing scope, service pricing and submission responsibilities.
- ✓Optional formation assistance; confirm filing scope, service pricing and submission responsibilities.
- ✓Confirm registered-agent eligibility, coverage, included periods and renewal charges.
- ✓Review address-use rules and privacy policies; a service does not remove all information from public filings.
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Articles Fields and Optional Review
File CSCL/CD-700 with the $50 base fee. Duration need only be stated if the LLC is not perpetual. Provide the resident agent and Michigan registered-office street address, plus the office mailing address if different; complete the current organizer and other required form fields. Optional formation review adds $50 for 24-hour service or $100 for same-day service, subject to current cutoffs and conditions. Ordinary 3–5-business-day estimates are operational estimates, not guaranteed approval.
Current LARA LLC forms and instructions.
Michigan LLC — FAQ
Ahmad Adil is the founder and CEO of LLC School. For filing and ongoing compliance, confirm the requirements with the responsible state agency. This is educational information, not legal or tax advice.
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