How to form a West Virginia PLLC

How do you form a West Virginia PLLC?

1. 1

   Get the board's Verification of Eligibility

   Have your state licensing board complete and sign the Verification of Eligibility (Form VOE) and attach it to the articles. The Secretary of State cannot complete the filing until the board verifies that the members' licences are current, and rejects an application without a signed VOE. Each board adopts rules on forming and approving PLLCs in its profession (W. Va. Code § 31B-13-1304).

   Source: West Virginia Secretary of State: Form LLD-1, Articles of Organization (Rev. 09/2026) · West Virginia Secretary of State: Form VOE, Verification of Eligibility · W. Va. Code § 31B-13-1304

2. 2

   Put a PLLC designator in the name

   The name must contain "professional limited liability company" or the abbreviation "P.L.L.C.", "PLLC", "Professional L.L.C." or "Professional LLC" (W. Va. Code § 31B-13-1303). Form LLD-1 repeats this rule in its instructions.

   Source: W. Va. Code § 31B-13-1303 · West Virginia Secretary of State: Form LLD-1, Articles of Organization (Rev. 09/2026)

3. 3

   File Form LLD-1 marked as a Professional LLC

   File the Articles of Organization (Form LLD-1) with the Secretary of State's Business & Licensing Division, checking the Professional LLC box, naming the profession and attaching the signed Form VOE. Only the fourteen professions listed in W. Va. Code § 31B-13-1301(3) may form a PLLC. File one original (two for a stamped copy) and pay the filing fee set by the state.

   Have LLCity prepare and file it ›

   Source: West Virginia Secretary of State: Form LLD-1, Articles of Organization (Rev. 09/2026) · W. Va. Code § 31B-13-1301

4. 4

   Decide on an agent of process

   West Virginia lets an LLC maintain an office and an agent for service of process in the state (W. Va. Code § 31B-1-108), and Form LLD-1 asks for the agent "if any". The agent may be an individual resident, a corporation or another LLC. If none is appointed or found, the Secretary of State is the company's agent for service (§ 31B-1-111(b)).

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

   Source: W. Va. Code § 31B-1-108 · W. Va. Code § 31B-1-111 · West Virginia Secretary of State: Form LLD-1, Articles of Organization (Rev. 09/2026) · W. Va. Code § 31B-13-1306

5. 5

   Adopt an operating agreement

   The LLC Act defines the operating agreement as the agreement concerning the relations among the members, managers and the company (W. Va. Code § 31B-1-101(16)). The Secretary of State says it may be written or oral and is not filed with its office.

   Source: W. Va. Code § 31B-1-101 · West Virginia Secretary of State: Business Structures guide

6. 6

   File the annual report and keep cover in place

   File the annual report by June 30 each year, starting the year after registration, online through the One Stop Business Portal (W. Va. Code § 59-1-2a(e)). Report members with signature authority, and promptly report changes, to the Secretary of State (§ 31B-13-1302(c)). Carry the professional liability insurance § 31B-13-1305(e) requires at all times.

   Source: W. Va. Code § 59-1-2a · West Virginia Secretary of State: Form LLD-1, Articles of Organization (Rev. 09/2026) · W. Va. Code § 31B-13-1302 · W. Va. Code § 31B-13-1305

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

The West Virginia professional LLC

Does a licensing board have to approve the filing?

Yes. Form LLD-1 requires a Verification of Eligibility (Form VOE) completed and signed by the appropriate state licensing board and attached to the articles; the Secretary of State says it cannot complete the filing until the board verifies that the members' licences are current, and that the application will be rejected without a signed VOE. W. Va. Code § 31B-13-1304 directs each licensing board to adopt rules for "the formation and approval" of PLLCs in its profession. Form CD-1 carries the same VOE requirement for professional corporations, and a medical corporation also needs the board's certificate of authorization (§ 30-3-15).

Which occupations does West Virginia say must use a PLLC?

Enumerated list. W. Va. Code § 31B-13-1301(3) defines "professional service" by naming fourteen professions and their articles of W. Va. Code ch. 30: attorneys-at-law (art. 2), physicians and podiatrists (art. 3), dentists (art. 4), optometrists (art. 8), accountants (art. 9), veterinarians (art. 10), architects (art. 12), engineers (art. 13), land surveyors (art. 13A), osteopathic physicians and surgeons (art. 14), chiropractors (art. 16), psychologists (art. 21), social workers (art. 30) and acupuncturists (art. 36). Form LLD-1 reproduces the list and tells members of any other profession to contact their licensing board before forming a regular LLC. § 31B-13-1302 allows members from the same or compatible professions, and members may be natural persons, professional corporations, other PLLCs or professional partnerships.

West Virginia 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 West Virginia LLC’s?

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

§ 31B-13-1306 applies the LLC Act to PLLCs. Under § 31B-1-108 an LLC may maintain an office and an agent for service of process in West Virginia, and Form LLD-1 asks for an agent of process "if any" for a PLLC exactly as for an LLC. If no agent is appointed or the agent cannot be found, the Secretary of State is the company's agent for service (§ 31B-1-111(b)). One PLLC-specific reporting duty exists: the names of members with signature authority must be furnished to the Secretary of State and changes promptly reported (§ 31B-13-1302(c)).

What else West Virginia requires

A PLLC must carry professional liability insurance at all times, or hold designated and segregated funds in one of the forms § 31B-13-1305(h) allows (W. Va. Code § 31B-13-1305(e)); the current Form LLD-1 instructions say the same. The Secretary of State's Business Structures guide (Rev. 10/31/2018) still says general liability; the statute and the current form govern. Annual reports are due by June 30 (§ 59-1-2a(e)); since July 1, 2026 an entity with five consecutive timely annual reports may elect biennial reporting (§ 59-1-2a(d)(3)).