North Carolina annual report: April 15, $200, no reminders.
North Carolina charges LLCs one of the priciest annual reports in the country, $200 every April 15, and corporations one of the cheapest at $25. The state sends no invoice and no real warning until the Notice of Grounds arrives. Here is the whole system: what is due, what it costs, what happens late, and how to never think about it again.
This year's report, prepared and filed with the Secretary of State, with your standing verified after it posts.
Four facts cover the whole system
A once-a-year confirmation filed with the Secretary of State: current addresses, registered agent, and company officials. It is not a tax return and has nothing to do with the Department of Revenue; filing one never satisfies the other. What we file for you →
LLCs: April 15, every year, starting the year after formation. Corporations: the 15th day of the fourth month after fiscal year end, which for calendar-year companies is also April 15. One date, two rules, and the state does not send a bill ahead of it. Put it on a watched calendar →
$200 for an LLC, among the priciest annual reports anywhere, and $25 for a corporation, among the cheapest. Same state, same form family, an eight-fold difference by entity type. The fee is statutory; nobody files it cheaper, they only file it on time or late.
No late fee, which fools people. Instead the state issues a Notice of Grounds for Administrative Dissolution and starts a 60-day clock. File within it and the matter closes; let it run and the company is administratively dissolved, publicly, with reinstatement as the only road back.
✓ Accuracy verified against the official state schedule · checked 2026
No late fee, just a 60-day countdown
North Carolina skips the late fee and goes straight to process: miss April 15 and a Notice of Grounds for Administrative Dissolution starts a 60-day cure window. File inside it and nothing permanent happens. Ignore it and the state dissolves the company on the public record, where every bank and buyer who searches will find it.
Where you stand decides what you do next
If April 15 is ahead, file it now and be done. If it is behind you, file before the state notices formally; the overdue report costs the same $200 today that it costs on the last day of a Notice window, minus the fear.
The 60-day clock is running but nothing is lost yet: the overdue report filed inside the window ends it. If the window already closed, reinstatement brings the company back with the missed years settled.
An LLC on April 15 and a fiscal-year corporation on its own date is how one company stays clean while the other slips. A multi-entity dashboard with every deadline on one watched calendar ends the split.
No news felt like good news, until the Notice of Grounds
The state never billed us, so I assumed we were fine: April came and went for two years. The Notice of Grounds arrived in June looking like every other envelope, and it was a 60-day countdown to my company being dissolved. We filed both years inside the window, barely. North Carolina does not charge you late. It just starts ending your company, quietly, on schedule.
Representative composite drawn from customer outcomes.
Ask what the deadline means for you
Why is my LLC’s report $200 when my friend’s corporation pays $25?
I got a Notice of Grounds. Is my company already dissolved?
Just handle April 15 for me forever?
Every deadline your entity has, watched in one place
Every state's record, one guide per state
Name AvailabilityDistinguishable is not the same as safe, check properly
Registered AgentA North Carolina address that never misses a service of process
Compliance CalendarYour deadlines tracked, so the record stays boring
CRMThe counterparties you vet become the clients you keep
Business BankingOpen the account the day your filing comes back
North Carolina, beyond the report
How to Start an LLC in North Carolina
Name search to filed Articles, the North Carolina playbook.
Read the guide → CostsWhat a North Carolina LLC Costs
State fees, the recurring bill, and the first-year total.
See the numbers → State hubForm a Business in North Carolina
Entity types, taxes, and the North Carolina playbook.
Open the hub → FileForm an LLC in North Carolina
From clean name to filed Articles, handled.
Start the filing →North Carolina Annual Report questions.
What is the annual report filed with the North Carolina Secretary of State?
A once-a-year filing that confirms your company’s current addresses, registered agent, and officials on the state record, keeping your status active. It is not a tax return and does not touch the Department of Revenue; filing one never satisfies the other. We prepare and file the North Carolina version on time as part of annual report service.
When is the North Carolina annual report due?
April 15, every year, for LLCs, starting the calendar year after formation. Corporations file by the 15th day of the fourth month after their fiscal year ends, which for calendar-year companies is also April 15. The state sends no invoice ahead of the date, which is why it belongs on a watched calendar, not a memory.
How much does the North Carolina annual report cost?
$200 for an LLC, one of the priciest annual reports in the country, and $25 for a corporation, one of the cheapest. The fee is set by statute, and it is the first line of the total, not the whole of it. When we file it for you, the total is the state fee plus a transaction fee plus our service fee, as a one-time filing or on the automated annual plan, itemized on the pricing page before you pay, so nothing quoted here can go stale.
What happens if I miss the North Carolina annual report deadline?
There is no late fee, and that is the trap: instead of billing you, the state issues a Notice of Grounds for Administrative Dissolution and starts a 60-day cure window. File the overdue report inside it and the matter closes. Let it run and the company is administratively dissolved on the public record, with reinstatement as the only road back.
Can I update my information on the North Carolina annual report?
Yes, it is exactly where routine updates happen: a new principal address, changes in members or managers, or a new registered agent all go on the report so the record stays current. Bigger changes, like the company name, need a separate amendment instead. We make sure the report matches your real setup before it files.
Do foreign-registered entities file a North Carolina annual report too?
Yes. A company formed elsewhere but registered to do business in North Carolina files the North Carolina annual report on the same schedule and fee as domestic entities, on top of whatever its home state requires. Each state expects its own; our multi-entity dashboard tracks every one you operate in.
Can File.Business file my North Carolina annual report?
Yes. We put April 15 on a watched calendar, prepare the correct report for your entity type ahead of the date, file with the Secretary of State, with the $200 or $25 state fee, our transaction fee, and service fee itemized up front, one-time or on the automated plan, and verify your standing after it posts, every year, automatically.
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