Montana Annual Report Filing: Due Date, Fee, and How to File

Every Montana LLC and corporation files an annual report with the Montana Secretary of State to stay in good standing. The good news for 2026: the filing is quick, it happens entirely online, and if you get it in by the deadline, the state currently charges you nothing. This page walks through the due date, the fee, the filing steps, and what happens if April 15 slips past you.

What the Montana Annual Report Covers

An annual report is not a financial statement or a tax return. It is a short confirmation filing. The state shows you what it has on record for your business, and you verify or update it. For a Montana LLC, that means your entity's addresses, your registered agent, your management type, and the people listed as principals. Most fields arrive pre-filled from the state's records, so the filing usually takes minutes.

The requirement for LLCs comes from Mont. Code Ann. § 35-8-208, part of the Montana Limited Liability Company Act. Corporations file on the same schedule under their own statutes.

When the Montana Annual Report Is Due

The deadline is April 15, every year. The filing window opens January 1, so you have three and a half months to get it done. The due date is fixed by statute (§ 35-8-208(3)) and does not move with your formation anniversary.

First-year businesses: your first annual report is due between January 1 and April 15 of the calendar year after your LLC was organized. Form your company in 2026, and your first report window runs January 1 to April 15, 2027.

The Montana Annual Report Fee: $20

The standard filing fee is $20. Right now, though, most filers pay less:

On-time filings are currently free. The Montana Secretary of State has waived the on-time annual report fee for filings submitted by April 15 in 2024 through 2027. File your 2026 report by the deadline and the state charges $0. The $20 figure remains the standard fee on the books.

Late filings run $35. After April 15, a $15 late fee applies on top of the standard $20, and the waiver no longer helps you. The state's fee schedule lists the total for a late report at $35.

How to File a Montana Annual Report Online

Montana accepts annual reports online only. Paper filings have not been accepted since 2017, so there is no form to print or mail. Here is the process:

1. Sign in at the Montana Secretary of State's Business Filing Portal, biz.sosmt.gov, using an ePass Montana account. If you do not have an ePass login yet, you can create one for free on the same page.
2. Locate your business by name or by its Folder ID number.
3. Review the pre-filled report. Confirm or update your addresses, registered agent, management type, and principals. If you need to change your registered agent, you can do it inside this filing at no charge.
4. Sign electronically, pay any fee that applies, and submit. Approval is instant, so your record updates right away.

Late Penalties and the Dissolution Timeline

Missing the deadline starts a clock that ends with your business being dissolved:

After April 15: the $15 late fee applies immediately, bringing your total to $35.

Around September 1: once the report is roughly 140 days past due, the Secretary of State mails a warning notice of pending administrative dissolution.

By about December 1: if the report still has not been filed, the state administratively dissolves the LLC. A dissolved company loses its good standing and the liability protection that comes with it.

Reinstatement: an administratively dissolved Montana LLC can generally apply for reinstatement within five years by filing every delinquent annual report and paying the reinstatement and late fees, which run about $35. It is far simpler to file on time.

How We Help You Stay Ahead of April 15

For $99 per year, our registered agent service includes the compliance support that keeps this filing off your worry list:

Deadline reminders: we alert you well before April 15 so you have plenty of runway to log in and file.

Same-day document handling: any notice the Montana Secretary of State sends your registered agent, including delinquency warnings, is scanned into your portal the day it arrives.

Ongoing records: your online portal keeps every piece of state correspondence in one place, so you can confirm what was received and when.

Filing the report itself remains your responsibility, but with our reminders and same-day scanning you will never be surprised by a deadline.

A Filing Worth Doing on Time

Few states make compliance this easy on a business. The report is short, the portal pre-fills your information, approval is instant, and an on-time 2026 filing is free under the current waiver. Add our $99 per year service for reminders and same-day document scanning, and staying in good standing in Montana takes almost no effort at all.

Ready for help staying compliant? Sign up today and let us keep watch on your deadlines.