Virginia Law

Article 11. Annual Registration Fees.

The Commission shall assess and collect the annual registration fees imposed by this chapter. When the Commission receives payment of a registration fee assessed against a domestic or foreign limited liability company, or any protected series thereof, such payment shall be applied against any unpaid registration fees previously assessed against such limited liability company or protected series, including any penalties incurred thereon, beginning with the assessment that has remained unpaid for the longest period of time.

1991, c. 168; 2019, c. 636.

A. Every domestic limited liability company, every protected series, every foreign limited liability company registered to transact business in the Commonwealth, and every foreign protected series registered to transact business in the Commonwealth shall pay into the state treasury on or before the last day of the twelfth month next succeeding the month in which it was organized, established, or registered to transact business in the Commonwealth, and by such date in each year thereafter, an annual registration fee of $50, provided that (i) for a domestic limited liability company that became a domestic limited liability company by conversion from a domestic stock corporation or nonstock corporation, or by domestication from a foreign limited liability company that was registered to transact business in the Commonwealth at the time of the domestication, the annual registration fee shall be paid each year on or before the date on which its annual registration fee was due prior to the conversion or domestication and (ii) for a domestic limited liability company that became a domestic limited liability company by conversion from a domestic limited partnership or business trust, the annual registration fee shall be paid each year on or before the last day of the twelfth month next succeeding the month in which it was originally incorporated, organized, or formed as an entity, except the initial annual registration fee to be paid by the domestic limited liability company shall be due in the year after the calendar year in which the conversion became effective when the annual registration fee of the domestic limited partnership or business trust was paid for the calendar year in which it was converted, or when the month in which the conversion was effective precedes the month in which the domestic limited partnership or business trust was originally incorporated, organized, or formed as an entity by two months or less.

The annual registration fee shall be imposed irrespective of any specific license tax or other tax or fee imposed by law upon the domestic or foreign limited liability company or any protected series thereof for the privilege of carrying on its business in the Commonwealth or upon its franchise, property, or receipts.

B. Each year, the Commission shall ascertain from its records each domestic limited liability company, each protected series, each foreign limited liability company registered to transact business in the Commonwealth, and each foreign protected series registered to transact business in the Commonwealth, as of the first day of the second month next preceding the month in which it was organized, established, or registered to transact business in the Commonwealth, and, except as provided in subsection A, shall assess against each such limited liability company and each such protected series the annual registration fee herein imposed. Notwithstanding the foregoing, (i) for a domestic limited liability company that became a domestic limited liability company by conversion from a domestic stock corporation or nonstock corporation, or by domestication from a foreign limited liability company that was registered to transact business in the Commonwealth at the time of the domestication, the assessment shall be made as of the first day of the second month next preceding the month in which its annual registration fee was due prior to the conversion or domestication and (ii) for a domestic limited liability company that became a domestic limited liability company by conversion from a domestic limited partnership or business trust, except as provided in subsection A, the assessment shall be made as of the first day of the second month next preceding the month in which the domestic limited liability company was originally incorporated, organized, or formed as an entity.

C. At the discretion of the Commission, the annual registration fee due date for a limited liability company may be extended, on a monthly basis for a period of not less than one month nor more than 11 months, at the request of its registered agent of record or as may be necessary to distribute annual registration fee due dates of limited liability companies as equally as practicable throughout the year on a monthly basis.

D. A statement of the assessment, when made, shall be forwarded by the clerk of the Commission to the Comptroller and to each domestic and foreign limited liability company and each protected series thereof.

E. A domestic or foreign limited liability company shall not be required to pay the annual registration fee assessed against it pursuant to subsection B in any year if (i) the Commission issues or files any of the following types of certificate or instrument and (ii) the certificate or instrument is effective on or before the annual registration fee due date:

1. A certificate of cancellation of existence or a certificate of organization surrender for a domestic limited liability company;

2. A certificate of cancellation for a foreign limited liability company;

3. A certificate of merger or an authenticated copy of an instrument of merger for a domestic or foreign limited liability company that has merged into a surviving domestic limited liability company or other business entity or into a surviving foreign limited liability company or other business entity; or

4. An authenticated copy of an instrument of entity conversion for a foreign limited liability company that has converted to a different entity type.

The Commission shall cancel the annual registration fee assessments specified in this subsection that remain unpaid.

F. Annual registration assessments that have been paid shall not be refunded.

G. The fees paid into the state treasury under this section and the fees collected under § 13.1-1005 shall be set aside and paid into the special fund created under § 13.1-775.1, and shall be used only by the Commission as it deems necessary to defray the costs of the Commission and of the office of the clerk of the Commission in supervising, implementing, administering and enforcing the provisions of this chapter. The projected excess of fees collected over the costs of administration and enforcement so incurred shall be paid into the general fund prior to the close of each fiscal year, based on the unexpended balance of the special fund at the end of the prior fiscal year. An adjustment of this transfer amount to reflect actual fees collected shall occur during the first quarter of the succeeding fiscal year. For the purpose of determining the projected excess of fees and the actual fees collected under this section, the Commission, for any prepaid annual registration fee paid in accordance with subsection H, shall include only the portion of the prepaid annual registration fee attributable to the year to which the fee pertains.

H. Notwithstanding the provisions of this section, the Commission is authorized to establish a process for online prepayment of the annual registration fees required by this section whereby a domestic or foreign limited liability company may prepay its annual registration fees for two or three years.

1991, c. 168; 1995, c. 621; 2001, c. 545; 2002, c. 1; 2006, c. 748; 2010, c. 703; 2013, c. 17; 2019, c. 636; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, c. 487; 2022, c. 290.

Repealed by Acts 2010, c. 703, cl. 3.

A. Any domestic or foreign limited liability company, or any protected series thereof, that fails to pay the annual registration fee into the state treasury within the time prescribed in § 13.1-1062 shall incur a penalty of $25, which shall be added to the amount of the annual registration fee due. The penalty prescribed herein shall be in addition to any other penalty or liability imposed by law.

B. The Commission shall mail to each domestic and foreign limited liability company that fails to pay the annual registration fee within the time prescribed in § 13.1-1062 a notice of assessment of the penalty imposed herein and of the impending cancellation of its existence or certificate of registration, as the case may be.

C. The Commission shall mail to each protected series and each foreign protected series that fails to pay the annual registration fee within the time prescribed in § 13.1-1062 a notice of assessment of the penalty imposed herein and of its impending cancellation or the impending cancellation of its certificate of registration, as the case may be.

1991, c. 168; 1997, c. 190; 2000, c. 52; 2004, cc. 274, 601; 2005, c. 255; 2008, c. 108; 2019, c. 636.

A. The Commission shall not file or issue with respect to any domestic or foreign limited liability company any document or certificate specified in this chapter, except a statement of change pursuant to § 13.1-1016, a statement of resignation pursuant to § 13.1-1017, and a statement of change pursuant to § 13.1-1018.1, until all fees, fines, penalties, and interest assessed, imposed, charged, or to be collected by the Commission pursuant to this chapter or Title 12.1 have been paid by or on behalf of such limited liability company. Notwithstanding the foregoing, the Commission may file or issue any document or certificate with respect to a domestic or foreign limited liability company that has been assessed an annual registration fee if the document or certificate is filed or issued with an effective date that is on or before the due date of the limited liability company's annual registration fee payment in any year, provided that the Commission shall not issue a certificate of domestication with respect to a foreign limited liability company or a certificate of entity conversion with respect to a domestic limited liability company that will become a domestic other business entity until the annual registration fee has been paid by or on behalf of that limited liability company.

B. The Commission shall not file or issue with respect to any protected series or foreign protected series any document or certificate specified in this chapter until all fees, fines, penalties, and interest assessed, imposed, charged, or to be collected by the Commission pursuant to this chapter or Title 12.1 have been paid by or on behalf of such protected series. Notwithstanding the foregoing, the Commission may file or issue any document or certificate with respect to a protected series or foreign protected series that has been assessed an annual registration fee if the document or certificate is filed or issued with an effective date that is on or before the due date of the protected series' annual registration fee payment in any year.

C. The Commission shall have authority to certify to the Comptroller directing refund of any overpayment of a fee, or of any fee collected for a document that is not accepted for filing, at any time within one year from the date of its payment.

1991, c. 168; 2002, c. 608; 2004, c. 316; 2006, c. 659; 2007, c. 810; 2009, c. 450; 2019, c. 636; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, c. 487.

The annual registration fee with penalty and interest shall be enforceable, in addition to existing remedies for the collection of taxes, levies, and fees, by action in the name of the Commonwealth in the appropriate circuit court. Venue shall be in accordance with § 8.01-261.

1991, c. 168; 2016, c. 288.