Ohio LLC taxes: what a new LLC in North Ohio registers and files (federal, state and city)
Checked against the sources linked at the end on 14 October 2026. Written by ProTaxService in Brunswick, OH, for business owners across North Ohio. General information, not tax or legal advice for your situation.
TL;DR: Forming an Ohio LLC costs $99 with the Secretary of State. After that come the tax steps:
- EIN: a free employer identification number from the IRS.
- Federal tax treatment: a one-owner LLC goes on the owner’s Schedule C; an LLC with two or more owners files a partnership return by March 15; either can elect to be taxed as an S corporation.
- Ohio: the owners pay Ohio income tax on their share, with the first $250,000 of business income deducted. The commercial activity tax starts only above $6 million of Ohio receipts.
- Payroll: if you hire, you need Ohio withholding and unemployment accounts.
- City tax: your city taxes the net profit. In Brunswick you register with the city; in Medina or Strongsville with RITA; in Cleveland with CCA.
Filing the Articles of Organization is one form. The tax side is several registrations, each with its own agency, and the city part is the one most national checklists leave out. This guide walks through them in order, from the day the LLC exists to its first returns in 2027, with examples from Brunswick, Medina, Strongsville and Cleveland.
One limit before we start: choosing an LLC, writing an operating agreement and deciding who owns what are legal questions. Talk to an attorney about liability and structure. This guide covers what you register and file for tax.
Step 1: Form the LLC with the Secretary of State
Filing Articles of Organization for an Ohio LLC costs $99 (Ohio Revised Code 111.16). Registering an LLC formed in another state to do business in Ohio is also $99. You file with the Ohio Secretary of State.
Form the LLC first and get the EIN second. The IRS asks you to form the entity with the state before you apply.
Step 2: Get an EIN from the IRS, for free
The IRS issues an EIN online, in minutes, for free. The IRS warns about websites that charge for an EIN: you never have to pay one.
Who needs one:
- An LLC with two or more owners needs its own EIN.
- A one-owner LLC needs one if it has employees or owes certain excise taxes. Otherwise it can use the owner’s number for income tax. The IRS still says most new single-member LLCs will need an EIN, and one may be needed to open a bank account.
- Payroll: for employment taxes, the IRS treats even a one-owner LLC as a separate business that reports under its own name and EIN.
The city tax agencies use the EIN as well. RITA uses it as your account number, the Ohio Department of Taxation requires it to register for the state’s municipal net-profit filing, and Brunswick’s business registration form uses the federal ID as the account number.
Step 3: Know how the IRS taxes your LLC
The IRS doesn’t tax an “LLC” as such: it uses one of the existing categories, based on how many owners you have and what you elect.
| Your LLC | How the IRS treats it by default | Federal return |
|---|---|---|
| One owner (an individual) | Disregarded entity: the business is part of your own return | Schedule C with your Form 1040, due April 15, 2027 for 2026 |
| Two or more owners | Partnership | Form 1065 by March 15, 2027, with a Schedule K-1 for each owner |
| Any LLC that elects S corporation status | S corporation | Form 1120-S by March 15, 2027 |
A few details matter for new owners in North Ohio:
- Married couples. The IRS says an LLC owned by a husband and wife in a state without community property law should file as a partnership. Ohio is not on the IRS list of community property states, so a couple’s LLC in Brunswick files Form 1065.
- Self-employment tax. A one-owner LLC’s profit is subject to self-employment tax of 15.3% (Social Security plus Medicare) once your net earnings from self-employment are $400 or more. It goes on Schedule SE. For owners of a multi-owner LLC, it depends on your role in the business; ask your preparer.
- The S corporation election. It is made on Form 2553 no more than 2 months and 15 days after the start of the tax year it should take effect, or at any time during the year before. For a calendar year 2027 election, that is March 15, 2027. The IRS has relief for late elections when there is reasonable cause. Whether the election makes sense depends on your numbers and your ownership, so look at it with your preparer, and with your attorney if the ownership is shared.
- Late partnership returns are expensive. For a Form 1065 or 1120-S due in 2027, the penalty is $260 per owner for each month or part of a month it is late, for up to 12 months. An LLC with two owners that files three months late owes $1,560.
Step 4: State income tax and the commercial activity tax
An LLC that is not taxed as a C corporation passes its income through to the owners, who report their share on their own Ohio IT 1040.
- The business income deduction. On the IT 1040, the first $250,000 of business income is deducted ($125,000 for each spouse filing separately), and business income above that is taxed at a flat 3%. Other income follows the 2026 schedule: $332 plus 2.75% above $26,050. See Ohio income tax in 2026.
- The entity-level return. An LLC taxed as a partnership or S corporation may have to file Ohio’s pass-through entity return (IT 1140, or the IT 4708 composite return) when it has owners who are not full-year Ohio residents. If every owner is a full-year Ohio resident individual, there is no IT 1140 to file; each owner files their own IT 1040.
- The commercial activity tax (CAT). For 2025 and later, only businesses with more than $6 million a year of Ohio taxable gross receipts pay it. They register within 30 days of crossing that line. The annual minimum tax ended in 2024. A new LLC under $6 million doesn’t register for the CAT.
- Sales tax. If you sell taxable goods or services, you need a vendor’s license, which costs $50 since April 9, 2025. Ohio lists accounting and legal services among the services that are not taxable.
Step 5: If you hire, open the payroll accounts
An LLC with employees registers with three more tax agencies.
- Ohio Department of Taxation, for withholding. Register for an Ohio withholding account online through OH|TAX eServices. The same account covers school district income tax, which you withhold for employees who live in a taxing school district. Our school district income tax guide lists them.
- Ohio Department of Job and Family Services, for unemployment insurance. You are a liable employer once you pay at least $1,500 of wages in a calendar quarter, or employ someone on at least one day in 20 different weeks, in the current or the preceding year. Register through The SOURCE, or on paper with form JFS-20100. The 2026 rate for a new employer is 2.85% (5.85% in construction) on the first $9,000 of each employee’s wages.
- The city where the work is done, for city withholding. It’s the same city registration as in step 6; choose the account type that includes withholding.
At year end the forms pile up in January:
- Federal W-2s: for 2026 wages, they go to employees and to the Social Security Administration by February 1, 2027.
- Ohio: ODT says the IT 941 annual reconciliation, the SD 141 and the W-2s are due by January 31 of the following year. The W-2s are uploaded electronically.
Step 6: Register for city net-profit tax (the local part)
Ohio cities tax business net profit, and a new LLC has to register with the agency that collects for the city where it does business. Here is how it works in North Ohio:
| Where the business is | Who collects | Register | Business return |
|---|---|---|---|
| Brunswick (2.0%) | The City of Brunswick | City business registration form | The city return, Schedule B |
| Medina (1.25%), Strongsville (2.0%), North Royalton (2.0%) | RITA | RITA MyAccount, online registration or Form 48 | RITA Form 27 (entities) or Form 37 (individuals) |
| Cleveland (2.5%) | CCA | CCA eFile or the CCA registration form | CCA Form 120-17-BR (entities) or the individual form |
Which return you file depends on how the LLC is taxed:
- A one-owner LLC is not a separate taxpayer for city tax. Ohio law puts a disregarded entity’s net profit on its owner’s return. You report the profit on your own city return: Schedule J of RITA Form 37 in a RITA city, CCA’s individual form in Cleveland, and Brunswick’s single return in Brunswick. You can’t send it to the state instead.
- A multi-owner or S corporation LLC files its own net-profit return. For a calendar year, it is due April 15. With a federal extension, state law moves the deadline for a business entity to November 15 (the 15th day of the 11th month).
- The state option. An LLC taxed as a partnership or S corporation can elect to file one municipal net-profit return (the MNP10) with the Ohio Department of Taxation instead of a return in each city. The election is due by the 15th day of the 4th month of the tax year, which is April 15 for a calendar year. Sole proprietors and disregarded entities can’t opt in.
- Profit earned in several cities is split among them with a three-factor formula: property, payroll and sales.
State law sets a $200 threshold for city estimated payments, and some cities, such as Brunswick, don’t enforce them. Our guide to Ohio estimated tax payments for 2026 covers the dates. For the way city tax treats self-employment income, credits for tax paid to another city, and examples, see Ohio municipal income tax for freelancers.
W-2 employee or 1099 contractor?
The IRS looks at three kinds of evidence, not a single test:
- Behavioral: whether you control how the work is done.
- Financial: whether you control the business side of the job.
- The relationship: contracts, benefits, and whether the work is a key part of your business.
If you are unsure, Form SS-8 asks the IRS to decide, but the IRS says the answer can take six months or more. A business that treats an employee as a contractor without a reasonable basis can be held liable for the employment taxes.
For contractors, the paperwork is lighter:
- Threshold: for payments made in 2026, a 1099-NEC is required at $2,000, up from $600.
- Due date: the 2026 forms go to the contractor and the IRS by February 1, 2027, because January 31 is a Sunday.
Our 2026 tax changes guide has the other 2026 thresholds.
The first filing calendar for a calendar-year LLC
| Date | What is due |
|---|---|
| January 15, 2027 | The owners’ last 2026 estimated payments (federal, Ohio and city) |
| January 31, 2027 | Ohio IT 941, SD 141 and W-2 upload (ODT lists January 31, a Sunday in 2027; file by Friday, January 29, to be safe) |
| February 1, 2027 | W-2s to employees and the SSA; 1099-NEC to contractors and the IRS |
| March 15, 2027 | Form 1065 or Form 1120-S; Form 2553 for an S corporation election that starts in 2027 |
| April 15, 2027 | The owner’s Form 1040 with Schedule C, the Ohio IT 1040, city returns, and entity net-profit returns; the state municipal opt-in for 2027 |
Frequently asked questions
Does a one-owner LLC in Brunswick file its own tax return?
Not for income tax, unless it elects to be taxed as a corporation. The IRS treats it as part of your return (Schedule C), Ohio taxes the profit on your IT 1040, and Brunswick taxes it on your city return. It files its own payroll returns if it has employees.
My LLC is in Medina but I live in Brunswick. Where do I pay city tax?
Generally, the profit is taxed where the business is conducted, Medina through RITA in this case, and your home city may tax it too, with a credit for tax paid elsewhere that depends on its rules. Our guide to living in one city and working in another covers how the credits differ.
Does my new Brunswick LLC need to register for the commercial activity tax?
Only once your Ohio taxable gross receipts pass $6 million a year. Then you register within 30 days.
Can I use my Social Security number instead of an EIN?
A one-owner LLC with no employees and no excise taxes can, for income tax. You still need an EIN for payroll, the IRS notes one may be needed to open a bank account, and the city agencies key business accounts to it. Getting it is free on IRS.gov.
The short version
- Form: $99 Articles of Organization with the Ohio Secretary of State.
- EIN: free from the IRS; required for payroll and for a multi-owner LLC.
- Federal: one owner, Schedule C; two or more owners, Form 1065 by March 15; S corporation, Form 2553 and Form 1120-S.
- Ohio: the owners file the IT 1040, with $250,000 of business income deducted and 3% above that; no CAT under $6 million.
- Payroll: an Ohio withholding account (OH|TAX eServices), unemployment through The SOURCE, and city withholding.
- City: register with Brunswick, RITA or CCA. A one-owner LLC’s profit goes on the owner’s city return; other LLCs file a net-profit return by April 15.
Rules change, and your facts matter. Confirm figures with the IRS, the Ohio Department of Taxation or your city, or bring your records to a preparer well before a deadline.
ProTaxService is a small practice in Brunswick, OH, run by Elena Rusakovich, an IRS-registered tax preparer (PTIN), working with individuals and small businesses across North Ohio. We help with business registration, bookkeeping and business tax returns, and with payroll, W-2s and 1099-NEC forms, for Brunswick and for the cities that use RITA, such as Medina and Strongsville. Tell us what you need or call (440) 212-9613.
Sources
- Ohio Revised Code: 111.16 Secretary of State fees, 5747.01 business income deduction, 5747.02 rates, 5751.01 CAT exclusion, 718.01 definitions, 718.02 apportionment, 718.05 returns and extensions, 718.80 state municipal filing election. Read 14 October 2026.
- IRS: get an EIN, limited liability company, single-member LLCs, Form 2553 instructions, Form 1065 instructions, Revenue Procedure 2025-32 (2027 penalty amount), self-employment tax, Publication 555, independent contractor or employee, 2026 W-2 and W-3 instructions, 1099-MISC and 1099-NEC instructions. Read 14 October 2026.
- Ohio Department of Taxation: business income deduction, pass-through entity tax, commercial activity tax, sales and use tax, taxable services, municipal net profit tax, 2025-2026 withholding due dates. Read 14 October 2026.
- Ohio Department of Job and Family Services: who is an employer, registering as an employer, contribution rates. Read 14 October 2026.
- City tax: RITA business FAQs, CCA business FAQs, City of Brunswick income tax. Read 14 October 2026.