What buying a Montana business actually costs

The state's own fees are the small part

Montana charges single digits for most filings in a purchase, and nothing at all for the annual report if it lands on time.

The Secretary of State's fee sheet runs the whole range: $35 to form an LLC, $20 to register a trade name, $5 for a Certificate of Existence, $7 to search for liens. What can cost real money is the re-licensing, and that depends on the trade being bought.

$35Montana charges $35 to file Articles of Organization for a domestic LLC. — Montana Secretary of State business fee sheet, retrieved 2026-09-29

$0 by April 15A Montana LLC annual report filed by April 15 carries no fee; the $35 charge applies only after the due date. — Montana Secretary of State business fee sheet, retrieved 2026-09-29

What an entity purchase files, and what it costs

An entity purchase files almost nothing at the state, which is the number buyers notice first and the reason they should look twice.

The transfer of membership interests has no Secretary of State filing and no fee. The new ownership surfaces at the next annual report, due April 15, which costs nothing on time. A Certificate of Existence at $5 is worth ordering before closing, to prove the company's standing is what the seller says it is.

The fees to watch are the backwards-looking ones. A lapsed LLC reinstates at $35 plus $35 for each year of delinquent annual reports, and that bill arrives attached to the entity the buyer just bought.

The forward-looking ones are small enough to list in full. Articles of Amendment run $15, and restated Articles of Organization run $15, so fixing a stale detail after closing costs less than the drive to the closing.

$5 and $35 per yearA Certificate of Existence for a Montana LLC costs $5, and reinstating a lapsed LLC costs $35 plus $35 per year of delinquent reports. — Montana Secretary of State business fee sheet, retrieved 2026-09-29

What an asset purchase files, and what it costs

An asset purchase costs $35 to set up, and that is most of the state's bill.

Forming an LLC to hold the purchase files Articles of Organization at $35. The EIN that follows is free from the IRS. Keeping the seller's trade name registers it as an assumed business name at $20. Nothing else goes to the Secretary of State.

The full filing bill for an asset purchase in an unlicensed trade, in other words, is $35 plus $20 plus nothing. The asset-versus-entity guide explains why the route is the usual default — and LLC formation services prices what a service charges to do the typing instead.

$20 and $0Registering an assumed business name in Montana costs $20, and the IRS issues an EIN at no charge. — Montana Secretary of State business fee sheet, retrieved 2026-09-29

The re-licensing bill, trade by trade

The line item that dwarfs the filing fees is the license restart, and it exists in some trades and not others.

A salon purchase restarts at $125 plus a $150 inspection fee, renewed at $125 a year. A landscaping purchase that sprays restarts at $85 per applicator, plus $25 for each of the first two operators each year. A food truck purchase restarts through the county plan review, with a state licensing fee paid to the Department of Public Health and Human Services on top. An electrical purchase does not restart at all — it hangs on the master electrician who stays or does not.

$125 plus $150A new Montana salon or shop license costs $125 plus a $150 inspection fee, renewed at $125 annually. — Montana Board of Barbers and Cosmetologists, retrieved 2026-09-29

$85 and $25Montana commercial pesticide applicator licenses cost $85 each, with operator licenses at $25 each for the first two added each year. — Montana Department of Agriculture, retrieved 2026-09-29

What renews after the first year

The year-two picture is quieter in Montana than in most states, because the annual report fee is waived on time and there is no sales tax registration.

A salon renews at $125 a year. Pesticide licenses renew each calendar year, with a $25 late fee on renewals postmarked after March 1. An LLC annual report renews at nothing if filed by April 15, and $35 if not. The county food license renews annually through the county office that issued it.

Write every date down at closing — the calendar, not the amounts, is what costs people money here. The license transfer guide maps which dates apply to which trade.

March 1Montana pesticide license renewals postmarked after March 1 add $25 to the cost of the license, and operator licenses must be renewed each calendar year. — Montana Department of Agriculture, retrieved 2026-09-29

Montana does not have a general-use sales tax. — Montana Department of Revenue, retrieved 2026-09-29

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