How to form a Vermont PLLC

How do you form a Vermont PLLC?

1. 1

   Confirm members and managers are licensed

   Under 11 V.S.A. § 4011(g), a Vermont LLC renders professional services only on the terms chapter 4 sets for a professional corporation. Ownership is limited to individuals authorized to render the service (§ 830), and at least half of any managers must be qualified persons (§ 840, applied by § 4011(g)(2)(C)). Before rendering services, deliver a certified copy of the articles to each licensing authority with jurisdiction (§ 870).

   Source: 11 V.S.A. § 4011(g) · 11 V.S.A. § 830 · 11 V.S.A. § 840 · 11 V.S.A. § 870 · Vermont Secretary of State: Limited Liability Company

2. 2

   Add the professional designator to the name

   The name must meet 11 V.S.A. § 4005, so it carries "limited liability company", "limited company", "L.L.C.", "LLC", "L.C." or "LC", and it must also contain the word "Professional" or the abbreviation "P.L.C.", "PLC", "P.L.L.C." or "PLLC" (§ 4011(g)(2)(E)). It must be distinguishable in the Secretary of State's records.

   Source: 11 V.S.A. § 4011(g) · 11 V.S.A. § 4005 · Vermont Secretary of State: Limited Liability Company

3. 3

   File Articles of Organization with the PLC election

   File Articles of Organization with the Secretary of State's Business Services Division and choose the Professional LLC (PLC) additional election. The office prefers online filing and also takes mail. The articles state the name, designated office, agent for service of process and organizers (11 V.S.A. § 4023). Pay the filing fee set by the state.

   Have LLCity prepare and file it ›

   Source: Vermont Secretary of State: Limited Liability Company · 11 V.S.A. § 4023 · Vermont Secretary of State: Fees and statutory citations

4. 4

   Name an agent for service of process

   An LLC must keep a designated office and an agent for service of process (11 V.S.A. § 4007). The agent must be a Vermont resident or a business organization with a place of business in, and authorized to do business in, Vermont (§ 1655(a)). The Secretary of State, which calls this the registered agent, requires a street and mailing address in Vermont.

   What Vermont requires of your agent, and how we serve as it ›

   Source: 11 V.S.A. § 4007 · 11 V.S.A. § 1655 · Vermont Secretary of State: Registered Office & Agent Filings

5. 5

   Adopt an operating agreement

   Vermont defines the operating agreement as any form of description of membership rights and obligations agreed to by the members, kept in any tangible or electronic medium (11 V.S.A. § 4001(20)). Where it conflicts with the articles, the operating agreement controls as to managers, members and transferees (§ 4023(c)).

   Source: 11 V.S.A. § 4001 · 11 V.S.A. § 4023

6. 6

   File the annual report and keep the agent current

   File an annual report with the Secretary of State within three months after the end of the company's fiscal year (11 V.S.A. § 4033). If the registered agent resigns and no new agent is appointed within the statutory period, the business loses good standing and is placed in Terminated status.

   Source: 11 V.S.A. § 4033 · Vermont Secretary of State: Limited Liability Company · Vermont Secretary of State: Registered Office & Agent Filings

Steps checked against the sources linked under each one on 12 November 2026.

The Vermont professional LLC

Does a licensing board have to approve the filing?

Neither chapter 4 nor the Secretary of State requires a licensing-board certificate before filing. After filing, 11 V.S.A. § 870 provides that a professional corporation may not render professional services until it delivers a certified copy of its articles to each licensing authority with jurisdiction over a professional service described in them; § 4011(g) applies chapter 4's conditions to a limited liability company rendering professional services.

Which occupations does Vermont say must use a PLLC?

A general licensed-profession test. 11 V.S.A. § 817(6): "professional service" means a service that may be lawfully rendered only by a person licensed or otherwise authorized by a licensing authority in Vermont and may not be lawfully rendered by a corporation under Title 11A. The Secretary of State describes the professional LLC as for professionals "individually licensed in their profession, such as health care, financial, legal, and real estate professionals" and states that "all members, and no fewer than half of any managers appointed must be licensed in the company's profession".

Vermont also offers a corporation under a professional statute

A practice choosing between the two forms is choosing between these rules and the ones above.

Does the agent requirement differ from an ordinary Vermont LLC’s?

No. Vermont sets no separate agent requirement for a professional entity — it is the same requirement an ordinary Vermont LLC files under.

The professional LLC is an election on an ordinary LLC filing, so the general rule applies: 11 V.S.A. § 4007 requires a designated office and an agent for service of process under § 1655, which must be a Vermont resident individual or a business organization with a place of business in, and authorized to do business in, Vermont. The Secretary of State calls this the registered agent and requires a street and mailing address in Vermont.

What else Vermont requires

Vermont treats the professional LLC as an "Additional Election" on an LLC filing and the professional corporation as a "Profit Corporation Sub-Type"; neither is a separate entity type on the office's list. The office abbreviates the professional LLC "PLC", and the statute accepts "PLC", "P.L.C.", "PLLC" or "P.L.L.C." (§ 4011(g)(2)(E)). The professional-LLC rule is § 4011(g); the office's LLC page cites § 4011(f), which is the governing-law subsection. "Professional association" ("P.A.") and "service corporation" ("S.C.") are professional-corporation name designators under § 825, not separate entity types.