Form your California LLC for free!

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FormLLCDirect provides entrepreneurs and business owners with direct access to the tools and information needed to form your California LLC for FREE!

STEP 1
CHECK NAME AVAILABILITY FOR YOUR CALIFORNIA LLC

Generally, a limited liability company ("LLC") in California may use any permissible name that is not the same as or deceptively similar to existing corporations, partnerships, limited partnerships, or other LLCs. You may verify that the name you have selected for your new California LLC is available. There is no fee for this service.

California LLC Check Name Availability

STEP 2
FORM YOUR CALIFORNIA LLC

1. The name of the LLC: The name must include the words limited liability company, LLC or L.L.C. at the end of the entity name.
2. The purpose of the LLC: An LLC may list any lawful purpose.
3. The name and address of the registered agent: You may not use a PO Box. A registered agent must be an individual residing in the state, a domestic corporation or a foreign corporation authorized to do business in the state. The registered office is typically the business office of the registered agent. It need not be the same office of the LLC’s business office. If you or one of the members of the LLC has an address in the state you may use that address for register agent purposes.
4. Whether the LLC will be managed by member(s) or manager(s): A member managed LLC means that every member has authority to act on behalf of the business. If the LLC will have only one owner, typically the LLC will be member managed. With a manager managed LLC, the members, by virtue of being members, do not have authority to manage and operate the business of the limited liability company. Instead, the members elect “managers” and it is the managers who have this authority. A manager managed LLC can either be managed by one or more members or by appointed non-members. A manager managed LLC is typically the structure of choice for multi-member LLCs for a number of reasons. With no management structure, multiple owners acting on behalf of the LLC by signing checks or contracts could lead to potential problems for the LLC and its members. In addition, where one or more members are “passive members (not actively engaged in management) using a manager managed structure is useful in order to create a layer between the members and managers. It is important that a manager managed LLC have a well drafted LLC Operating Agreement that sets out the rules and procedures for the managers to follow when managing the LLC.
5. Any optional provisions.
6. The signature of the organizer(s) - The organizer(s) must sign the Articles of Organization. The organizer is generally not required to be a member of the LLC.
   

STEP 3
GET A CUSTOMIZED CALIFORNIA OPERATING AGREEMENT

It is extremely important that every California LLC has an LLC Operating Agreement. The LLC Operating Agreement is the core document that is referred to when issues concerning the LLC need to be resolved. The LLC Operating Agreement reflects the agreement among the members with respect to the affairs and management of the LLC, as well as governs the relationship amongst the members of the LLC.

STEP 4
GET AN EIN FOR YOUR NEW LLC

An Employer Identification Number (EIN) is also referred to as a Federal Tax Identification Number. The EIN is generally used to identify a business entity. In general, every business requires an EIN.

Receive your entity's EIN for FREE in minutes