Learn the steps to form an LLC in Oregon – from choosing your name to filing your Articles of Organization. $1 + $100 state fee. Start today.
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Filing fee: $100 (Articles of Organization) — filed through the Oregon Business Registry
Processing time: 1-3 business days online; several weeks by mail. No paid expedite — Salem counter service is the fast lane
State agency: Oregon Secretary of State, Corporation Division
Annual report due: Your LLC’s anniversary date each year — $100. Just 45 days late means administrative dissolution.
State tax rate: No sales tax at all, but graduated income tax of 4.75-9.9% on pass-through income — the 9.9% top rate starts at just $125,000 single. Corporate Activity Tax only above $1 million in Oregon revenue
Start your U.S. business journey today. Form your company with confidence and let Brio handle the paperwork.
Forming an LLC in Oregon takes 5 steps: choose and check your business name, appoint a Registered Agent with a physical Oregon address, file Articles of Organization through the Oregon Business Registry, draft an operating agreement, and get an Employer Identification Number (EIN) from the IRS. The state filing fee is $100.
Oregon is one of only five states with no sales tax — no seller’s permits, no sales tax returns, no collection at the register — which simplifies life considerably for product businesses. Formation is a flat $100, the annual report is a quick $100 online renewal, and there’s no franchise tax or entity-level tax until the Corporate Activity Tax kicks in above $1 million in Oregon revenue. An LLC gives you personal liability protection and pass-through taxation without the administrative overhead of a corporation.
The trade-off is on the income side: Oregon’s graduated personal rates run 4.75% to 9.9%, and the top rate arrives at just $125,000 of single-filer income — among the earliest top brackets in the country (softened some years by Oregon’s unique “kicker” refund when state revenue beats forecast). Portland-area businesses face an extra local layer: city, county, and Metro business taxes that can add roughly 4-5% on net income, with registration required even below the exemption thresholds.
Oregon doesn’t require you to reserve your name before filing — you simply claim it when you file your Articles of Organization. The reservation option exists ($100 for 120 days, paper-only) but at the same price as forming the LLC itself, it rarely makes sense: if your name is available, just file.
Your LLC name must contain “Limited Liability Company,” “L.L.C.,” or “LLC,” may not contain words implying another entity type (“corporation,” “incorporated,” “cooperative”), and must be distinguishable from every active name on the Oregon registry — the state checks against all entity types, not just LLCs. Check the Business Registry name search before you file.
Every Oregon LLC must have a registered agent — a person or entity designated to receive legal notices and government documents on behalf of the business. The agent must be an Oregon resident or an entity authorized to do business in Oregon, with a physical street address in the state (no P.O. boxes or commercial mail drops), available during regular business hours.
You can serve as your own registered agent if you have a physical Oregon address and can be there during business hours. Many business owners use a professional registered agent service instead — it keeps your personal address off public records, and a reliable agent matters more in Oregon than most states, since a missed dissolution notice leaves only 45 days to react.
The Articles of Organization is the document that legally creates your Oregon LLC. You file it with the Secretary of State’s Corporation Division through the Oregon Business Registry portal for $100, with approval in 1-3 business days. Mail filings realistically take several weeks round trip. Oregon has no paid expedite tier; the two accelerators are overnight-courier delivery (priority handling) and same-day counter service in Salem if you arrive by 4 p.m.
The Articles must include your LLC’s name, its duration if not perpetual, the principal office address, your registered agent’s name and Oregon street address, a mailing address, whether the company is member-managed or manager-managed, and the organizers’ names. No publication, no notarization, no initial report.
Oregon doesn’t require you to file an operating agreement with the state, but you should have one. It’s the internal document that defines how your LLC is managed — who owns what, how profits are distributed, and how decisions get made. Without one, Oregon’s default LLC statutes fill in the gaps, which may not reflect what you actually want.
Your operating agreement should specify whether the LLC is member-managed or manager-managed. In a member-managed LLC, all owners share day-to-day authority. In a manager-managed LLC, a designated manager handles operations while other members retain economic rights. A written agreement is the version that holds up when disputes arise.
An Employer Identification Number (EIN) is a 9-digit federal tax ID issued by the IRS. Your Oregon LLC needs one to open a business bank account, hire employees, and file federal taxes. Applying online at irs.gov is free and issues your EIN immediately after you complete the application.
To use the IRS online application, the responsible party must have a valid Social Security Number (SSN) or Individual Taxpayer Identification Number (ITIN), and the business must have its principal place of business in the United States. The IRS does not charge a fee for issuing an EIN.
Oregon LLCs file one report with the Secretary of State: a $100 annual report due every year on the LLC’s anniversary date — the date the Articles were filed. It’s a few-minute online renewal, and the state emails a reminder about 45 days ahead. The deadline has unusually sharp teeth: just 45 days after the due date, an unfiled LLC is administratively dissolved. Reinstatement within five years costs $100 plus $100 for each missed report — provided your name is still available.
There’s no sales tax and no general state business license — check the state’s license directory for occupation-specific requirements. Two registrations scale with size and location: the Corporate Activity Tax requires registration once Oregon commercial activity passes $750,000 (tax is owed only above $1 million, at $250 plus 0.57%), and Portland-metro businesses must register with the City of Portland Revenue Division even under the small-business exemption — the city, Multnomah County, and Metro together tax business income at roughly 4-5% on top of state rates.
The required Oregon state fee is $100 to file the Articles of Organization, and the annual report is another $100 each year — simple, flat numbers with no surcharges. Name reservation exists at $100 for 120 days but rarely makes sense at the same price as filing. There’s no sales tax registration to pay for, and no additional state fee to get your EIN; the IRS issues EINs for free.
Yes. Oregon allows a single person to form and own an LLC – this is called a single-member LLC. You can complete the Articles of Organization yourself through the Oregon Business Registry without an attorney, with approval in a few business days. You’ll still need a registered agent with a physical Oregon address, but that can be yourself if you qualify.
No. Oregon charges a $100 Articles of Organization fee – that’s a required state fee you can’t avoid. What you can avoid is paying extra for formation help. We handle your Oregon LLC filing for $1; you only pay the required state fees.
Yes. Every Oregon LLC files a $100 annual report on its formation anniversary each year — a quick online renewal, with a reminder emailed about 45 days beforehand. Treat the deadline seriously: Oregon administratively dissolves LLCs just 45 days after a missed report, one of the shortest fuses in the country. Reinstatement is available for five years at $100 plus each missed report, but only if nobody has claimed your name in the meantime.
Yes, every Oregon LLC is required to have a registered agent. A registered agent is a person or entity that receives legal notices and official government documents on behalf of your LLC. The agent must be an Oregon resident or authorized entity with a physical street address in the state — no P.O. boxes or mail drops — and be available during regular business hours. You can serve as your own registered agent or use a professional service.
The defining Oregon mistake is missing the anniversary-date annual report — with only a 45-day window before administrative dissolution, owners who expected a fixed calendar deadline or ignored the reminder email get dissolved faster than in almost any other state. Others include Portland-area businesses skipping city and county tax registration because they’re under the exemption (registration is still required), forgetting Corporate Activity Tax registration at $750,000 of Oregon revenue, paying $100 to reserve a name they could simply claim by filing, and using a P.O. box for the registered agent.
Online filings through the Oregon Business Registry process in 1-3 business days. Mail filings realistically take several weeks round trip. There’s no paid expedite tier: if you need speed, file online, ship documents by overnight courier for priority handling, or use the same-day counter service in Salem (arrive by 4 p.m., Monday through Friday).
Thinking about another state? Compare Wyoming, Delaware, Texas and Florida — or browse all 50 state guides.
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