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How do I pay the Delaware franchise tax online?

DelawareFranchise taxCompliance

You pay it on the Delaware Division of Corporations website, through the same online filing that produces the annual report. There is no separate payment step: the report is completed, the tax is calculated on screen, and payment is taken before the filing is accepted. The state takes credit cards, Visa, Mastercard, American Express and Discover, and ACH debit from a bank account. ACH is required for any transaction over $5,000.

What to have in front of you

The company's Delaware file number, which is on the certificate of incorporation and on the state's notice, is how the system finds the company. Then the details the report asks for: the principal place of business, every director's name and address, the name and address of the officer who signs, and a short description of the business. For the recalculation that brings a startup's tax down to the minimum, you also need total gross assets from the federal return and the number of issued shares. Finally, a card or the bank details.

If last year's tax was $5,000 or more

Corporations whose tax for the previous year was $5,000 or more do not wait until March. They pay estimated installments based on the prior year's assessment: 40 percent by June 1, 20 percent by September 1, 20 percent by December 1, and the balance with the annual report by March 1. A startup that paid the $400 minimum last year is not in this group.

The deadline and what lateness costs

The report and the payment must be received by March 1. A late or incomplete report adds a $200 penalty and 1.5 percent monthly interest on the tax and penalty, and the company is out of good standing until it is cured. Delaware LLCs and LPs are simpler: a flat annual tax due June 1, paid on the same site, with no annual report. It is $400 from the 2026 tax year, first billed in June 2027; the June 2026 payment was the last at $300.

If the number on the screen looks wrong for a company your size, stop before paying and ask in chat. Nearly every large first-year notice is the authorized shares method waiting to be recalculated.

Written by the lawyers who built Arabella. This is legal information, not legal advice for your situation, and reading it does not make us your lawyers. For a real dispute or a high-stakes decision, talk to a licensed attorney. More questions.