Staying compliant in New Hampshire

When is the New Hampshire annual report due, and what does it ask?

The report is due between January 1 and April 1 of each year after the formation year, and the fee is $100. The Secretary of State's own wording is that the report and fee are due by April 1st of each year following the year of registration.^{1, 2, 4}

Your first report

Under the annual report statute, the first annual report is due between January 1 and April 1 of the year following the calendar year of formation. LLCs formed near the end of a year get extra time, because an LLC formed in December files its first report in the second calendar year after formation. So an LLC formed in early spring files its first report early the next year, while one formed in December waits more than a year. Mark the right year on your calendar as soon as the Certificate of Formation is accepted.¹

What the report contains

The statute sets the report's contents (Name and state of formation; registered office and agent; principal office; names and business addresses of managers (or at least one member); brief description of the business). For the people involved, the statute calls for "The names and business addresses of its managers or, if there are no managers, at least one member". So a member-managed LLC with several owners need list only one of them.¹

Because the registered agent and registered office are on the report, it acts as a yearly check on both. If you moved offices or swapped agents mid-year, though, waiting for the report can be too late: an LLC that fails to report an agent/office change within 60 days gives the state a ground for dissolution. File the change form when it happens (see the agent section below).⁵

How to file

According to the Secretary of State, "Credit card payment is accepted for on-line filing of annual reports or business registrations through NH QuickStart." The sources behind this page confirm that online route for annual reports; if you want to file another way, ask the Corporation Division how.⁶

If your LLC operates in other states as well, their deadlines will differ. Compare staying compliant in Massachusetts or staying compliant in New York, and see how annual reports work for the general picture.

Does New Hampshire tax LLCs?

New Hampshire's Business Profits Tax can apply to an LLC: the Department of Revenue Administration lists the Business Profits Tax (7.5%), which reaches "Any business organization, organized for gain or profit carrying on business activity within the State" once gross business income passes the filing threshold.⁷

The department gives that threshold as $103,000 for 2023 to 2024 periods and says thresholds are inflation-adjusted every two years, so check the current figure for your tax period instead of relying on an old one. A small LLC with modest receipts may fall below it; a growing one can cross it without noticing.⁷

This page covers only what the department's Business Profits Tax FAQ says. Other state taxes, and how federal tax treats your LLC, depend on what you sell, how the LLC is owned and any elections it has made. Ask the Department of Revenue Administration which returns apply, and talk to a tax professional about the rest. Tax deadlines sit on a separate calendar from the annual report; filing one does nothing for the other.

What happens if a New Hampshire LLC files late or loses its agent?

A report filed after the deadline adds a $50 late fee, and repeated non-filing can end in administrative dissolution. Losing the registered agent or office can lead to the same result.²

The state's dissolution statute and its FAQs give several grounds. Three of them concern the filings on this page.

1. Not filing annual reports: the state lists administrative dissolution after two consecutive years of non-filing.²
2. Being without a registered agent or office for 60 days or more.⁵
3. An LLC that fails to report an agent/office change within 60 days.⁵

A dissolved LLC loses good standing. That can hold up a bank loan, a lease or a licence renewal that asks for a certificate of good standing.

Reinstatement

The state charges $135 to reinstate, and the application must be filed within 3 years of dissolution. The application must also come with a tax certificate if more than 120 days after the dissolution notice, which adds a document to gather. Applying sooner avoids that extra step. If the LLC kept trading or signed contracts while dissolved, ask a lawyer how that affects you. The New Hampshire registered agent guide explains the agent-related grounds in more depth.²

How do you keep your agent and registered office current?

File Form 10 Statement of Change of Registered Office or Registered Agent or Both whenever the agent or registered office changes. The fee is $15, and the state's estimate for online filings is generally no more than 10 business days.^{2, 3, 4}

New Hampshire's rule makes this more than housekeeping. The registered office has to be the agent's own residence or business office (N.H. Rev. Stat. Ann. § 304-C:36), so when an agent whose home is the registered office moves house, your registered office moves with them and the state needs to hear about it. An LLC that fails to report an agent/office change within 60 days gives the state a ground for dissolution.^{5, 8}

Resignations need watching too. When an agent quits, the SOS mails a copy to the LLC's principal office, and the appointment ends 31 days after filing or on appointment of a successor, whichever is first. If your principal office on file is out of date, that copy may never reach you. Foreign LLCs registered here (registration costs $100) keep an agent and office under a separate section that also requires a statement of change when either one changes. The order of steps for a switch, new agent first and cancellation last, is on how to change a registered agent.^{2, 8}

What provider compliance features cover in New Hampshire

New Hampshire has a real annual report, so filing services and reminders have something to do here. Read what each one includes before paying.

• Filing done for you. Northwest Registered Agent charges $100 + state fees at filing, and tells agent customers "you'll automatically be enrolled in our renewal service." InCorp Services lists $89 + state fees, and LegalZoom lists $99 + state filing fees, billed once. Swyft Filings sells ComplianceGuard at $199/year (annual report filing included, state fee applies), with a 14-day free trial then auto-charged. Tailor Brands puts annual report filing in some plans and not others: Included in Essential and Elite (annual compliance report filing and updates); not in Lite. Bizee (formerly Incfile) offers filing, with no standalone price stated. Northwest, InCorp, LegalZoom and Swyft Filings say the state's $100 report fee comes on top; Tailor Brands and Bizee don't publish how it is handled.^{9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14}
• Reminders. LegalZoom's agent service sends email reminders about annual report deadlines via Compliance Calendar, and Northwest Registered Agent says its agent service will remind you when your deadline is approaching. A reminder on its own still leaves the filing to you.^{15, 16}
• Not mentioned in these services' published terms: the Business Profits Tax, which goes to the Department of Revenue Administration. A filing service works from the details you have given it, so update them first if your managers or office changed.

The agent fee itself recurs as well. InCorp Services renews at $129 per year flat rate, Harbor Compliance at $159 annually, and Swyft Filings bills $149 per quarter and renews until you cancel. Prices and terms for every provider are on the New Hampshire registered agent comparison, and services that file reports for you are grouped on the compliance list. Before dropping a service, see how to cancel a registered agent service.^{17, 18, 19}

What does a New Hampshire LLC compliance calendar look like?

Plan on one state report in each January to April window after the formation year, plus agent renewals and tax dates kept on their own list.

The formation year

1. Certificate accepted. Save the acceptance and note the formation date, which sets your first report year. Formation itself is covered in the New Hampshire LLC formation guide, and costs in the cheapest ways to form a New Hampshire LLC.
2. Agent contact details. Confirm the email and phone your agent service will use, and note its renewal date.
3. Taxes. Ask the Department of Revenue Administration whether the Business Profits Tax could apply, and start a separate tax calendar.
4. No annual report is due in the formation year. If you formed in December, remember that an LLC formed in December files its first report in the second calendar year after formation.

The first report year and after

1. The report window opens in January. File between January 1 and April 1 for $100 through NH QuickStart.^{2, 6}
2. Late filing adds a $50 late fee. Repeated misses put the LLC at risk of dissolution.
3. Agent renewal. Decide whether to keep your service before its renewal date or any notice period in its terms.
4. After any agent resignation or office move, file Form 10 for $15 straight away instead of waiting for the next report.³

Definitions for terms such as administrative dissolution and service of process are in the glossary, and the agent's role is explained in what a registered agent is.