Every fee datum on this page is verified against the agency's own published schedule or statute (independent re-verification, 2026-09-04); the origin of each value is kept in its record as evidence.
Values were first corroborated across independent internal records; verified cells now also carry the agency's own published schedule or statute as their authority, which is what promotion to verified requires.
Cost position
Ranked 5 of 54 on first-year state
filing cost, at $55.00 against a national median
of $185.00.
Recurring annual cost $190.
See the full ranking.
Where Kentucky sits among its neighbours in the first-year cost ranking (USD)Show all 54 jurisdictionsThe full ranking with Kentucky highlighted (USD)
Registered-agent statutes, quoted verbatim
The one section on this page that clears the publication gate in full. 8 citations, verified, quoted from the official code with every elision marked.
KRS 14A.4-010
◎Verified
Kentucky Business Entity Filing Act · applies to
corporations and LLCs
Registered office and registered agent required.(1) Each entity and each foreign entity qualified to transact business in this Commonwealth shall continuously maintain in this Commonwealth: (a) A registered office that may be the same as any of its places of business; and (b) A registered agent, who may be: 1. An individual who resides in this Commonwealth and whose business address is identical with the registered office; or 2. An entity or foreign entity qualified to transact business in this Commonwealth whose business address is identical with the registered office.
Kentucky Business Corporation Act · applies to
corporations
Registered office and registered agent -- Requirement for agent's written acceptance of appointment.Each corporation shall continuously maintain in this Commonwealth a registered office and a registered agent that comply with KRS 14A.4-010.
Kentucky Limited Liability Company Act · applies to
LLCs
Registered office -- Registered agent.Each domestic limited liability company shall continuously maintain in this Commonwealth a registered office and a registered agent that comply with KRS 14A.4-010.
Kentucky Business Corporation Act · applies to
corp
Articles of incorporation.(1) The articles of incorporation shall set forth: (a) A corporate name for the corporation that satisfies the requirements of KRS 14A.3-010; (b) The number of shares the corporation is authorized to issue; (c) The corporation's initial registered office and initial registered agent that satisfy the requirements of KRS 14A.4-010; (d) The mailing address of the corporation's principal office; and (e) The name and mailing address of each incorporator.
Kentucky Limited Liability Company Act · applies to
LLCs
Procedure for forming limited liability company.(1) One (1) or more persons may serve as the organizer and form a limited liability company by delivering articles of organization to the Secretary of State for filing. It shall not be necessary that the person or persons be members of the limited liability company. (2) Unless a delayed effective date is specified, the existence of the limited liability company shall begin when the articles of organization are filed by the Secretary of State. [...]
Kentucky Business Entity Filing Act · applies to
corporations and LLCs
Annual report.(1) Each entity and each foreign entity authorized to transact business in this Commonwealth shall deliver to the Secretary of State for filing an annual report that sets forth: (a) The name of the entity or foreign entity and the state or country under whose law it is organized; [...] (3) The first annual report shall be delivered to the Secretary of State between January 1 and June 30 of the year following the calendar year in which an entity was organized or a foreign entity was authorized to transact business in this state. Subsequent annual reports shall be delivered to the Secretary of State between January 1 and June 30 of each following calendar year.
Kentucky Business Entity Filing Act · applies to
corporations and LLCs
Grounds for administrative dissolution.(1) The Secretary of State may commence a proceeding to administratively dissolve an entity: (a) If the entity does not deliver for filing its annual report with the Secretary of State by the due date thereof; (b) If the entity is without a registered office or registered agent in this state for sixty (60) days or more; (c) If the entity does not notify the Secretary of State within sixty (60) days that its registered office or registered agent has been changed, that its registered office has been discontinued or that its registered agent has resigned; or (d) For such other reasons as are provided in this chapter or the organic law governing the entity.
Kentucky Business Entity Filing Act · applies to
corporations and LLCs
Entity name.(1) Except as authorized by subsection (24) of this section, the real name of an entity or foreign entity shall be distinguishable from any name of record with the Secretary of State. (2) The real name of a corporation or nonprofit corporation: (a) 1. Shall end with the word "corporation," "company," or "limited" or the abbreviation "Corp.," "Inc.," "Co.," or "Ltd." or words or abbreviations of like import in another language [...] (3) The real name of a limited liability company shall end with the phrase "limited liability company" or "limited company" or the abbreviation "LLC" or "LC," [...]
If an entity has no registered agent, or the agent cannot with reasonable diligence be served, the entity may be served by registered or certified mail, return receipt requested, addressed to the entity at its principal office. Service is perfected on receipt, the return-receipt date, or 5 days after deposit in the U.S. mail, whichever is earliest.
Reinstatement Fee. Reinstatement after administrative dissolution requires payment of the reinstatement penalty ($100 under KRS 14A.2-060(1)(j)) plus the current fee for filing each delinquent annual report ($15 each under KRS 14A.2-060(2)(a)), a Department of Revenue tax-clearance certificate, and (for business corporations) an unemployment-insurance clearance.
No Court Access. A foreign entity transacting business in Kentucky without a certificate of authority (e.g. after revocation for failure to maintain an agent) may not maintain a proceeding in any Kentucky court until it obtains a certificate of authority.
Civil Penalty. A foreign entity transacting business without a certificate of authority is liable for a civil penalty of $2 for each day of unauthorized business.
Other. Revocation of a foreign entity's certificate of authority appoints the Secretary of State as the foreign entity's registered agent for proceedings on causes of action that arose while it was authorized.
Dollar amounts named in the registered-agent statutes
What
Amount
Status
Filing fee for a statement of change of registered office or registered agent, or both
$10
○Pending review
Agent's statement of change of registered office, per affected entity, capped at a total of $2,000
$10 (max $2,000)
○Pending review
Agent's statement of resignation
No fee
○Pending review
Reinstatement penalty following administrative dissolution
$100
○Pending review
Fee for each annual report (also the per-report fee for each delinquent report on reinstatement)
$15
○Pending review
Fee collected by the Secretary of State each time process is served on him or her under ch. 14A (recoverable as costs by a prevailing party)
$10
○Pending review
Civil penalty per day for a foreign entity transacting business without a certificate of authority
$2 per day
○Pending review
16 statutory citations and their supporting verbatim quotations sit behind this section in the record and are withheld from public display until the review pass lands, because a citation presented as authority is a verification claimed. Statutory references appearing inside the summaries above are part of the recorded text rather than an authority claim, and they are not rendered as citations, linked, or emitted in this page's structured data. How the gate works.
Governance rules
7 governance rules are recorded for Kentucky - the organizational and annual meetings, action by written consent, and whether bylaws or an operating agreement are mandatory. Each verified rule links to the statutory text it was verified against, quoted verbatim below.
Organizational meeting required · applies to
corporations ·
yes
the initial directors shall hold an organizational meeting, at the call of a majority of the directors, to complete the organization of the corporation by appointing officers, adopting bylaws
Operating agreement required · applies to
LLCs ·
no
"Operating agreement" means any agreement, written or oral, among all of the members, as to the conduct of the business and affairs of a limited liability company.
An operating agreement may set forth provisions relating to notice of the time, place, or purpose of any meeting at which any matter is to be voted on by any members
Action by written consent allowed · applies to
LLCs ·
yes
an action requiring the vote, approval, or consent of the members may be taken without a meeting and without prior notice if the vote, approval, or consent is set forth in a writing
Renewal certificate filed with SOS within the 6 months before expiration, $20, renews for successive 5-year term. SOS does NOT send renewal reminders - registrant must diarize
Publication
Not required. None
Online filing
Available
The regime
Kentucky requires a certificate of assumed name before any individual, general partnership, limited partnership, business or statutory trust, corporation, LLC, limited cooperative association, or filed unincorporated nonprofit association transacts business under anything other than its statutorily defined 'real name.' Individuals file with the county clerk; all listed business organizations (including general partnerships) file with the Secretary of State, with a stamped copy then filed with the appropriate county clerk.
Where it is filed
Individuals file the certificate with the county clerk of the county of their principal place of business. Business organizations deliver the certificate to the Secretary of State with an exact or conformed copy, and a stamped 'filed' copy is then filed with the county clerk of the county of the registered agent (or principal office); if the entity maintains neither in Kentucky, the certificate is filed only with the Secretary of State.
Term and renewal
Five years from the date of filing.
Name restrictions
An assumed name filed with the Secretary of State must be distinguishable from every name already of record with the Secretary of State.
Assumed names for registered entities
Kentucky's Business Entity Filing Act supplies the foreign-entity name-conflict mechanism: a foreign entity whose real name does not satisfy KRS 14A.3-010 may adopt a fictitious name (or add an entity identifier) to qualify, and any entity transacting business under other than its real or duly adopted fictitious name must comply with the assumed-name statute, KRS 365.015.
Secretary of State filing fee (each certificate, amendment, and renewal certificate)
$20
KRS 365.015(11)
◎Verified
County clerk filing fee
Set by KRS 64.012 fee schedule; dollar amount not printed in KRS 365.015
KRS 365.015(11)
◎Verified
Known gaps in the record
Fees: county clerk fee amount is delegated to the KRS 64.012 fee schedule and not printed in KRS 365.015 (fees:agency-schedule)
Penalties: KRS 365.015 contains no penalty or enforcement clause, and no chapter 365 penalty section tied to 365.015 was found in the chapter TOC in corpus (365.010 was repealed in 1974 per the retrieval manifest)
Where do I file an assumed name (DBA) in Kentucky?
It depends on who is filing. An individual (sole proprietor) files the certificate of assumed name with the county clerk of the county of his or her principal place of business. General partnerships, limited partnerships, corporations, LLCs, trusts, and limited cooperative associations deliver the certificate to the Secretary of State, and a copy stamped 'filed' is then filed with the county clerk of the county where the entity maintains its registered agent or principal office (KRS 365.015(3)).
How long does a Kentucky assumed name last?
Five years from the date of filing. It may be renewed for successive five-year terms by filing a renewal certificate within the six months before the term expires, in the same manner as the original filing (KRS 365.015(4)).
Does filing a Kentucky assumed name protect the name from use by others?
No. KRS 365.015(7) states: 'The filing of a certificate of assumed name shall not automatically prevent the use of that name or protect that name from use by other persons.' A certificate filed with the Secretary of State must, however, be distinguishable from names already on the Secretary of State's records (KRS 365.015(2)(d)).
What does a Kentucky assumed-name filing cost?
The Secretary of State receives a fee of twenty dollars ($20) for filing each certificate, amendment, and renewal certificate; the county clerk receives a fee under the separate KRS 64.012 fee schedule (KRS 365.015(11)).
Recurring entity-level tax
Limited Liability Entity Tax (LLET)
◎Verified
What it is called
Limited Liability Entity Tax (LLET)
KRS 141.0401 'Limited liability entity tax -- Exemptions -- Rate' (current version effective July 15, 2026, as amended by 2026 Ky. Acts ch. 161, sec. 51); imposed on 'every corporation and every limited liability pass-through entity doing business in Kentucky' - an annual entity-level tax owed regardless of income, i.e. a privilege-class tax · source↗ (opens the official source)
Administering agency
Kentucky Department of Revenue
KRS 141.0401(4)-(5) (returns filed with and forms prescribed by 'the department'); DOR Corporation Income and Limited Liability Entity Tax page · source↗ (opens the official source)
KRS 141.0401(2)(a)-(b): tax is 'the greater of the amount computed under paragraph (b)... or one hundred seventy-five dollars ($175)'; paragraph (b) tax is 'the lesser of' the gross-receipts and gross-profits computations · source↗ (opens the official source)
Minimum
$175
KRS 141.0401(2)(a): 'The tax shall be the greater of the amount computed under paragraph (b)... or one hundred seventy-five dollars ($175), regardless of the application of any tax credits' · source↗ (opens the official source)
Due date
Return due on or before the 15th day of the fourth month following the close of the taxable year (April 15 for calendar-year entities); filed with the income tax return (Forms 720/720S/725/765, Schedule LLET)
KRS 141.0401(4): 'on or before the fifteenth day of the fourth month following the close of the taxpayer's taxable year' · source↗ (opens the official source)
Stored as a delta against the federal baseline:
5 days this state closes that the
federal government does not, and 2 federal
holidays its filing office works through.
Kentucky 2026 closure delta
Date
Day
Filing office
2026-01-02
New Year's second day
Filing office closed
2026-02-16
Washington's Birthday (Presidents Day)
OPEN - federal holiday not observed
2026-04-03
Good Friday (half day)
Filing office closed
2026-10-12
Columbus Day
OPEN - federal holiday not observed
2026-11-27
Day after Thanksgiving
Filing office closed
2026-12-24
Christmas Eve
Filing office closed
2026-12-31
New Year's Eve
Filing office closed
Provenance - Kentucky 2026 closures◎Verified
Citation withheld: this record did not clear the publication gate.
Kentucky observed status strings and their verdict
Observed status
Verdict
Confidence
(BLANK)
Unresolved - do not automate on this
medium
A - ACTIVE
In good standing
high
A - ACTIVE GOOD
In good standing
high
A-ACTIVE
Unresolved - do not automate on this
low
ACTIVE
In good standing
high
ACTIVE UNTIL
In good standing
high
B - BAD
Not in good standing
high
C - UNKNOWN
Unresolved - do not automate on this
medium
DEFAULT
Not in good standing
high
DISSOLVED
Not in good standing
high
F - REAL NAME OF FOREIGN ORG. WHICH FILED UNDER A
Unresolved - do not automate on this
medium
FILED IN <YEAR>
Unresolved - do not automate on this
medium
G - KENTUCKY RUPA PARTNERSHIP (KNG)
Unresolved - do not automate on this
low
G - ON FILE
Unresolved - do not automate on this
low
H - UNKNOWN
Unresolved - do not automate on this
medium
I - INACTIVE
Not in good standing
high
I - INACTIVE EXPIRED
Not in good standing
medium
I - INACTIVE WITHDRAWN
Not in good standing
high
I- INACTIVE
Not in good standing
high
I-INACTIVE
Not in good standing
high
INACTIVE
Not in good standing
high
N - NOT VERIFIED
Unresolved - do not automate on this
medium
NOT FILED
Unresolved - do not automate on this
medium
NOT SOS FILED
Unresolved - do not automate on this
low
NOT YET FILED
Unresolved - do not automate on this
medium
P - PENDING REINSTATEMENT
Not in good standing
high
PENDING DISSOLUTION
Unresolved - do not automate on this
medium
REVOKED
Not in good standing
high
WITHDRAWN
Not in good standing
high
X - PENDING DISSOLUTION
Not in good standing
medium
X - PENDING REVOCATION
Not in good standing
high
Restricted entity-name words
4 restricted entity-name word entries
are recorded for Kentucky - 3 prohibited outright,
the rest requiring an agency's consent or licensure before the word may appear in a name.
bank / banker / banking / trust (or similar term, including foreign-language equivalents, characters, ideograms)
Commissioner, Kentucky Department of Financial Institutions (enforcement); use allowed only if authorized by charter or state/federal law
KRS 286.3-027(1): a person 'shall not use the term "bank," "banker," "banking," "trust," or a similar term ... in its name ... in a manner that would imply to the public that the person is engaged in the banking or trust business'; civil penalty $1,000-$5,000 per violation under (3)
◎Verified
Prohibited
Cooperative
KRS 14A.3-010(13): 'Except as otherwise provided in this section, the word "cooperative" may not be used in the name of any entity doing business in this Commonwealth.'
◎Verified
Prohibited
credit union
KRS 286.6-045: 'No person, corporation, partnership or association, other than a legally chartered credit union, an association of credit unions, or an organization ... whose membership or ownership is primarily confined or restricted to credit unions ... may use a name or title containing the phrase "credit union" or any derivation thereof'
◎Verified
Prohibited
Rural Electric Cooperative
KRS 14A.3-010(12): 'The phrase "Rural Electric Cooperative" may not be used in the name of any entity or foreign entity except for one formed under KRS Chapter 279.'
● accepted · ○ not accepted · ? unknown or conditional (hover for the recorded condition). Channel data covers 54 jurisdictions (2026-08-15 wave). Source links render on verified rows only.
Contact the filing office
Verified against the agency's own contact page
2026-08-13 - office hours: 8:00 AM - 4:30 PM ET.
Source links render on verified rows only.
Reaching the filing office
◎Verified
Phone
(502) 564-3490
Mailing address
Office of the Secretary of State, P.O. Box 718, Frankfort, KY 40602-0718
Courier / walk-in
Kentucky Secretary of State, 1025 Capital Center Drive, Suite 201, Frankfort, KY 40601
The Division of Business Filings direct line and the form-footer PO box are the mail channel; overnight/courier and walk-ins go to the separate Capital Center Drive street address; checks to 'Kentucky State Treasurer', online filings via FastTrack (web.sos.ky.gov/fasttrack)
Where to search Kentucky's UCC (Article 9) financing statements, on what terms, and what the office charges to file one. Verified against the filing office's own pages 2026-09-11. UCC division contacts are listed with the other filing-office contacts above.
UCC records - Kentucky◎Verified
Filing office
Office of the Kentucky Secretary of State - UCC Division
Filing-office statute
KRS 355.9-501 (read at https://apps.legislature.ky.gov/law/statutes/statute.aspx?id=33806): '(b) The office of the Secretary of State, in all other cases, including a case in which the collateral is goods that are or are to become fixtures and the financing statement is not filed as a fixture filing.' Fixture filings / as-extracted collateral / timber to be cut: the office for recording a mortgage on the related real property (county clerk).
Search page: 'This service is offered free-of-charge, 24 hours a day' and 'For certified search results, please submit the UCC Information Request form and required fee to our office.' Results are marked 'This is not a certified search result'. UCC Fees page (https://sos.ky.gov/bus/UCC/Pages/UCC-Fees.aspx): 'Certified search results - $5.00'; 'Copies of UCC records - $0.50 per page'; 'Certified co
$5 filed electronically; $10 on paper for a financing statement of no more than two pages, $20 for more than two pages; the number of debtor names does not change the fee
Filing channels
online or paper; Online through the Secretary of State's UCC e-filing site (https://web.sos.ky.gov/ftucc/default.aspx - 'Through this website, you can file most types of simple UCC-1 and UCC-3 filings'); paper by mail
UCC-3 amendments, as the office states the fees
UCC-3 amendments, terminations, assignments and continuations: $5 electronic; $10 written up to two pages, $20 written over two pages
Effective for
5 years from filing - KRS 355.9-515(1)
Bulk data
published bulk-data program - no separate setup fee published - subscription-based ($1,500/mo UCC data); FREE for non-commercial users (e.g. research) unless use turns commercial
Whether Kentucky requires a general state-level business license, and on what terms. A "None" is a verified finding cited to the agency's own pages, not a gap. Which of the state's filings ask for an industry code is in the next section.
State business license - Kentucky◎Verified
General state license
None - the state issues no general business license; licensing is occupation-specific and local
Where a new business registers
Kentucky Department of Revenue (tax registration, Form 10A100 via MyTaxes.ky.gov / Kentucky One Stop) - no general license issuer agency page↗ (opens the official source)
county and city licenses - The fiscal court of each county having a population of thirty thousand (30,000) or more may by ordinance impose license fees on franchises, provide for licensing any business, trade, occupation, or profession
Which of Kentucky's business filings ask the filer for an industry classification, and in what form. "No industry information" is a positive finding cited to the form. Where the state uses its own category list and the list was captured, it is expandable below. The NAICS and SIC reference lists are on their own page.
Industry code on Kentucky filings, 6 of 6 rows verified
Filing
Entity scope
Asks for
Required
Where on the form
Source
Formation
domestic profit corporation
no industry information
not asked
Form PAI Articles I-V (name, authorized shares, registered office/agent, principal office, incorporator) plus veteran-owned and nicotine-vapor-retailer checkbox
Kentucky has 120 county-equivalents: 120 countyies. Names and codes are the U.S. Census Bureau's (2020 national county codes); county seats and official sites are not yet published here.
These come from a research pass its own author graded CANDIDATES. They are shown because they are useful and withheld from every ranking on this site because they are not ratified.