2025 fees West Virginia Secretary of State Rank #16 of 51

LLC Costs in West Virginia (WV)

$250 all-in for your first year - $100 to file, $25 annual report, plus a registered agent. West Virginia is $133 (35%) cheaper than the national average for first-year LLC costs.

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Annual report is due July 1 each year. West Virginia has been working to attract businesses with various incentives. Low cost of living and real estate prices offset the state's economic challenges.

Updated 2025 · Source: West Virginia Secretary of State

Lower periodic report fee

Lower periodic report fee. Annual Report at $25 sits in the cheaper third of report fees among states that still charge one. West Virginia's first-year total of $250 (#16 of 51) folds in filing, registered agent and the Annual Report. Fees are those published by the West Virginia Secretary of State; registered agent is a $125/yr market-rate line, not a vendor quote.

According to the West Virginia Secretary of State fee schedule; registered agent normalized at $125/yr. See methodology. How we calculate →

$100
One-time filing fee
$25 /yr
Annual report
$250
First-year total
#16 of 51
Cost rank (1 = cheapest)

Published SOS fee schedule

Fee strip WV · West Virginia SOS FY 2026 · rank #16

West Virginia · FY 2026 · 5-7 business days · no pub

  • REPORT Online filing
  • REPORT sos.wv.gov
  • REPORT 5-7 business days
  • REPORT +$25 expedite
  • REPORT near Oklahoma
  • REPORT 35% below avg

Cheap-third stack: stamps derive from this state's Secretary of State fee schedule, not a recommendation of where to form. Read with where this cheap-third stack ranks → · All 51 SOS fee rows →

1. Iowa$2352. West Virginia$2503. Oklahoma$2504. Indiana$2515. Pennsylvania$2576. Louisiana$260
1. Iowa$2352. West Virginia$2503. Oklahoma$2504. Indiana$2515. Pennsylvania$2576. Louisiana$260
First-year SOS-fee total for West Virginia and nearest-cost peers. Source: each Secretary of State + 51-row aggregate.

Cost vs. speed: where West Virginia sits among all 51 filing offices

West Virginia delivers both: below-average cost and a 6-business-day turnaround faster than the national median. 2×2 strategic matrix plotting 30 entities by First-year cost ($) (X) and Processing time (business days) (Y), with a crosshair dividing the plot into four quadrants. Slow & expensiveCheap but slowFast but priceyFast & cheap $0$500$1,000$1,500 0d10d20d30d First-year cost ($) Processing time (business days) Cost vs. speed: where West Virginia sits among all 51 filing offices
West Virginia delivers both: below-average cost and a 6-business-day turnaround faster than the national median.
West Virginia delivers both: below-average cost and a 6-business-day turnaround faster than the national median. National median processing time: 6 business days; national average first-year cost: $383. Source: each state's Secretary of State published processing-time guidance + the 51-row SOS fee aggregate.

How the cheap-third $250 stack breaks down

How your $250 first-year total breaks down Registered agent is still the largest piece (50%) even though West Virginia sits in the cheaper third overall.
  • State filing fee $100
  • Annual Report (yr 1) $25
  • Registered agent $125
Cost Item Amount
State Filing Fee $100
Annual Report $25
Registered Agent $125/yr
Expedited Filing (optional) $25
Total, First Year $250

Ongoing tax burden after formation

West Virginia's effective property tax rate of 0.53% ranks among the lowest nationally (#11 of 51 lowest), a bigger long-run factor than the $250 formation cost above for any LLC that owns real estate.

Corporate income tax
6.5%
6.5% corporate tax rate, #31 of 51 lowest nationally
Effective property tax rate
0.53%
Of assessed property value, per year

Sources: Tax Foundation state corporate tax rates, Census ACS effective property tax rates.

Fee check: Verify current LLC fees with the West Virginia Secretary of State at https://sos.wv.gov. Not legal or tax advice.

West Virginia LLC quick facts (cheap third)

Filing Fee $100
Annual Report $25 /yr
Processing Time 5-7 business days
Expedited $25 → Same business day
Online Filing Available
First-Year Total $250
File with West Virginia SOS

Similar Cost States

Arizona $175 Mississippi $175 Missouri $175 New Mexico $175

Still-cheaper peers

Even cheaper first-year SOS stacks than WV (already bottom-third):

Idaho $225 Iowa $235 South Carolina $235

Read our methodology - how this data is sourced, computed, and verified. Report a data error on this page.

Sources used on this page
  • West Virginia Secretary of State - LLC filing fee, annual-report requirement, and processing time. sos.wv.gov
  • Federation of Tax Administrators - cross-check of state fee and tax figures. taxadmin.org
LLC fees and requirements sourced from the West Virginia Secretary of State. See our methodology for details.

Verify with the West Virginia Secretary of State →