BALTIMORE, MD – The Maryland State Department of Assessments and Taxation (SDAT) today announced that as of July 1, businesses will no longer be required to pay a $100 filing fee to close their business. The Department has been pursuing this fee elimination since 2017, and this year led a bipartisan effort to pass HB0647, which was signed into law by Governor Hogan.
“Thanks to Governor Hogan’s leadership and support during the COVID-19 pandemic, Maryland’s business community is stronger than ever, with more businesses registering in 2020 than any year prior,” said SDAT Director Michael Higgs. “For businesses that unfortunately need to close, SDAT is proud to have led the effort on this bi-partisan legislation that assists business owners in that process by removing the dissolution fee.”
Despite the many difficult circumstances faced by businesses over the past year, SDAT has witnessed a tremendous growth in new businesses being registered and qualified to do business in Maryland. 91,929 new entities were registered with SDAT in 2020—22% more than in 2019—and May 2021 marked a new milestone with 470,784 legal entities being registered and in Good Standing with SDAT.
Supporting this new business growth is the ease at which Marylanders can file and manage their business online using Maryland Business Express. In April 2020, the Department released 15 new online services that make it significantly easier for businesses to obtain and remain in Good Standing status, a requirement necessary for many types of COVID-related relief. A real-time processing feature will also be launched on July 1, giving customers the ability to see when their document(s) will be reviewed by the Department before and after they are submitted. In the coming months, the Department is also planning on releasing same-day review and non-expedited filing options online.