The Process
6 Steps to Reinstate Your Montana LLC
Montana reinstatements are handled through the Montana Secretary of State's online business portal. With a $15 reinstatement fee, $15 annual reports, and a $15 late penalty per year — all among the lowest rates in the country — the total cost of reinstatement stays low even if you've had a multi-year lapse. Here is the complete process.
Check Your LLC's Status with the Montana SOS
Visit the Montana Secretary of State's Business Entity Search at sosmt.gov and look up your LLC by name or entity ID. Confirm the status is listed as "Dissolved" or "Delinquent." Note the dissolution date and make a list of every year for which an annual report was missed — you'll need to file and pay for each one during reinstatement.
10–15 minutesGather Your LLC Information
Before filing, collect your LLC's exact registered name, Montana entity number, the name and physical Montana address of your current registered agent, and the names and addresses of all current members or managers. If your registered agent has changed since the original registration, you will need the new agent's information ready. Montana requires a physical street address — P.O. boxes are not accepted for registered agent addresses.
30 minutesFile Delinquent Annual Reports
Montana LLCs must file an annual report each year by April 15. If your LLC was dissolved for failure to file, you'll need to submit each missed annual report. The fee is $15 per year. Montana accepts back annual report filings through the SOS online portal. Work through each missed year chronologically, starting with the oldest, to ensure the filing history is complete.
30–60 minutes per missed yearPay Late Penalties
Montana charges a $15 late penalty for each year a required annual report was not filed on time. This fee is separate from the annual report filing fee itself. The total penalty per year of delinquency is $30 ($15 annual report + $15 late penalty). Because both fees are so low, even a multi-year lapse remains manageable — a three-year gap would result in $90 in back annual report costs before the reinstatement fee.
Included with annual report filingsSubmit the Application for Reinstatement
File the Application for Reinstatement through the Montana Secretary of State's online portal at sosmt.gov. Pay the $15 reinstatement fee by credit card. Montana processes online reinstatement filings faster than paper submissions, so the online portal is strongly recommended. Include all required information about your registered agent and confirm that all back annual reports have been filed before submitting the reinstatement application.
30 minutes to fileReceive Confirmation and Obtain Good Standing Certificate
Montana's standard processing window for LLC reinstatements is approximately 30 days. Once your LLC status updates to "Active Good Standing" in the Montana SOS database, you can request a Certificate of Good Standing directly from the SOS office. Update your operating agreement, business bank accounts, and any contracts that require the entity to be in good standing. Set a calendar reminder for April 15 each year to avoid future annual report lapses.
~30 days processingMontana's fees are low, but penalties still add up across multiple years. Each missed annual report costs $15 in back fees plus $15 in late penalties — $30 per delinquent year. A five-year lapse means $150 in back annual report costs before the $15 reinstatement fee. Start the reinstatement process as soon as you know your LLC has lapsed to keep the total cost as low as possible.
Why LLCs Get Dissolved
Common Reasons Montana LLCs Lose Good Standing
Montana LLC dissolutions are nearly always administrative — caused by a missed compliance step rather than an intentional decision to close the business. Understanding the cause is the first step to fixing it.
Missed Annual Report
Montana LLCs must file an annual report by April 15 each year. Missing this deadline triggers a delinquency notice, and continued non-filing leads to administrative dissolution. This is the most common cause of Montana LLC dissolution.
Lapsed Registered Agent
Every Montana LLC must maintain a registered agent with a physical Montana address. If the agent resigned or moved without a replacement being named, the state may dissolve your LLC for failing to maintain a valid registered agent on file.
Unpaid Filing Fees
Returned checks or failed electronic payments for annual report fees can result in an unpaid balance that, if not resolved, leads to a delinquent status and eventually dissolution. Montana sends notices before dissolving, but these may be missed if your registered agent address is outdated.
Outdated Registered Agent Address
State correspondence including renewal notices and delinquency warnings is sent to your registered agent. If that address became invalid and was never updated, critical compliance notices were likely never received — leading to inadvertent dissolution that came as a surprise.
Frequently Asked Questions
Montana LLC Reinstatement FAQ
Ready to Restore Your Montana LLC?
Check your LLC's current status in seconds. Montana has some of the lowest reinstatement fees in the country — just $15 to file.