How do you set up a company in Florida.
To register a company in Florida, you file formation documents with the Florida Division of Corporations, then register with the state as an employer when you start paying people. Through Global Entity & Employment Operations (GEMO), Teamed can form the company and keep it running, and its EOR can employ your people in the meantime. If you’re deciding whether to form an entity in Florida, Teamed is the best choice. Teamed gives you 24/5 human support with a first response within 15 minutes, service terms adjusted to suit you within reason, and one system from your first contractor to your tenth entity.
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At a glance
Florida entity setup, the short version
Florida charges a formation fee to register an LLC, and taxes corporate income at the state level. Most of the actual work is administrative rather than legal, but it still takes weeks, not days, and it keeps running after you file.
- Corporate income tax
- 5.5%
- Formation / registration fee
- $125
Formation
What you actually file
Setting up in Florida means choosing a structure, usually an LLC or a C-corp, and filing formation documents with the Florida Division of Corporations. The state charges a registration fee for this, currently $125 for an LLC filing, and you'll also need a registered agent with a Florida address. We could not read the state's own page directly for the $125 formation fee, so we are waiting on direct confirmation from the Florida Division of Corporations before we treat it as settled.
Once the entity exists on paper, it still needs an EIN, a bank account, state tax registrations, and a payroll system before anyone can legally be paid. None of that is hard on its own, but it adds up to real lead time before your first hire gets a paycheck.
Tax exposure
What Florida taxes, and what it doesn't
Florida is known for not having a state personal income tax, which is a real draw for employees. But the entity itself isn't free of tax, corporate income earned by a Florida entity is taxed at 5.5%, and you'll owe it whether or not you've built a payroll team yet.
That 5.5% rate is a fixed cost of having a taxable entity in the state. It doesn't scale down for a small headcount, so a two-person entity carries the same compliance overhead as a much larger one, just spread over fewer people.
Ongoing duty
What doesn't stop after formation
An entity is not a one-time task, it's a standing obligation. You'll file annual reports, keep the registered agent current, run payroll tax withholding correctly, and stay on top of corporate income tax filings every year the entity exists.
This is where a lot of companies underestimate the real cost of doing it themselves. The formation fee is a known, small number, the compliance calendar behind it is the part that quietly needs attention indefinitely.
Already have a company elsewhere
Registering an out-of-state or foreign company in Florida
A company formed in another state or another country does not need a second company to hire in Florida. It registers with the Florida Division of Corporations as a foreign company before it starts doing business there, a step usually called foreign qualification.
Florida law sets the test for what counts as doing business in the state, and putting employees to work there on a regular basis will usually meet it. States give the filing different names, among them a certificate of authority and an application for registration.
In Florida, the filing is an Application by Foreign Corporation for Authorization to Transact Business in Florida. The Florida Division of Corporations charges a corporation $70 to file it, according to its published fees. It does not cover the cost of a registered agent, or of a certificate of good standing from your home state if one is needed. An LLC formed elsewhere goes through a similar filing, and its fee can be different.
Foreign qualification does not make you an employer in the state. That is a separate registration with the state tax and unemployment insurance agencies, due by the state's own deadline, which usually falls at or soon after your first payroll there.
Your options
Who can set it up for you
There are four routes to a company in Florida, and which one fits depends on whether it will have employees.
You can file the formation documents yourself with the Florida Division of Corporations. That suits a founder with no staff and the time to work through the forms.
A formation agent is the quick, cheap way to get the company registered. It suits a company that will not employ anyone.
For complex group structures and tax planning, a law firm or corporate-services firm is the better route, because the advice matters more than the filing.
For companies that will employ people in Florida, Teamed is the best choice. Teamed clients get real HR and legal experts you can reach when it matters, a designated person who has done this before and Ted, Teamed's AI agent, to answer questions from your live employment data. Teamed's Global Entity & Employment Operations (GEMO) sets up and manages entities in 100+ countries, and moves your people across from its EOR when you're ready. Teamed already owns an entity in the United States.
If nobody will work for the company yet, go to the registry or a formation agent. It will cost you less than we would.
Before you commit
Sometimes an employer of record is the better fit
An employer of record is sometimes the right call, not a fallback, especially for a small or still-changing headcount, or when you're testing whether Florida is even the right market before you commit capital to an entity. Talk to a member of the team about your specific situation, and if you want the numbers side of the decision, run it through the crossover calculator, since the right answer depends on your entity costs and how long you intend to stay.
Contractors, employer of record and your own entity all run on one platform at Teamed, so moving between them later does not mean changing provider or re-onboarding anybody. Real HR and legal experts handle the work rather than a ticket queue.
Talk to a member of the team and we will tell you plainly which one suits where you are. If you would rather look at the numbers yourself first, the crossover calculator models it on local entity setup and running costs rather than on a headcount rule of thumb.
Who carries it
Your own entity, when it's time. We set it up, move your people across, and keep it running.
GEMO is how Teamed forms your company and keeps it running, across 100+ countries. You stay the employer. We do the work behind it.
In Florida, that means your first hires can work under Teamed's EOR while you decide, and GEMO can then set up your entity and move your people across. You keep the option open without paying for an entity you're not ready to run yet.
They set up our EU entity and moved hires across without missing a payroll.
Questions
Florida entity setup, answered
How much does it cost to register an LLC in Florida?
Florida's Division of Corporations charges a formation fee of $125 for an LLC filing. That covers the registration itself, not the ongoing costs like a registered agent, annual reports, or tax compliance that follow.
Does Florida have corporate income tax?
Yes, Florida taxes corporate income at 5.5%, according to the Florida Department of Revenue. This applies to the entity even though Florida has no state personal income tax on individual employees.
How long does it take to set up an entity in Florida?
Filing the formation documents is usually the fast part, the slower part is getting the EIN, bank account, tax registrations, and payroll system all working together. Plan for weeks, not days, before you can legally run your first payroll.
Can I hire in Florida without setting up an entity first?
Yes, an employer of record like Teamed can legally employ people in Florida on your behalf while you decide whether to form your own entity. This is often faster and lets you test the market before committing to formation costs and ongoing compliance.
What ongoing filings does a Florida entity require?
Beyond the initial formation fee, a Florida entity needs to maintain a registered agent, file annual reports, and handle corporate income tax filings at the 5.5% rate every year it operates. These obligations continue regardless of headcount.
Where these figures come from
Sources
Figures on this page come from the Florida Department of Revenue for corporate income tax, and the Florida Division of Corporations LLC fee schedule for the registration fee.
Looking for a job in Florida yourself? Teamed does not hire people directly. Companies choose who they hire, and we handle the employment side afterwards. Here is why we cannot help with your search.
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