Which business structures each therapy license may use, where to file and what it costs, the taxes to expect, and the order to do it in. Every fee shows the date we checked it.
For all four licenses, we confirmed: LLC. A sole proprietorship works in every state and needs no company filing.
From state law and board rules as we last read them, not advice for your situation. “Yes” means we confirmed it. When we could not, the card says to confirm with your board.
Licensing board: Maryland Board of Professional Counselors and Therapists
Join the waitlist for your counseling practiceLicensing board: Maryland Board of Professional Counselors and Therapists
Join the waitlist for your marriage and family therapy practiceLicensing board: Maryland Board of Social Work Examiners
Join the waitlist for your social work practiceLicensing board: Maryland Board of Examiners of Psychologists
Join the waitlist for your psychology practiceCounselors: Md. Code, Corps. & Ass'ns s.4A-201 lets an LLC conduct any lawful business, and s.4A-203(10) gives it the power to render professional services; s.4A-301.1 keeps each professional personally liable for his or her own negligent acts. The licensing law (Health Occupations Article, Title 17) and the board's regulations (COMAR 10.58) contain no entity restriction, so an ordinary LLC is available. Maryland has no separate professional LLC: Title 4A lets any LLC render professional services. A professional corporation is marked check: Corps. & Ass'ns s.5-101(g)(1) limits professional services to licensed services that may not lawfully be rendered by a corporation under the Maryland General Corporation Law, and the examples in s.5-101(g)(2) do not include counselors. Whether a general corporation may lawfully render these services is not settled by the statute; the State Department of Assessments and Taxation or the Board of Professional Counselors and Therapists can answer. If the service does qualify, s.5-102(a)(2) requires a corporation to use the professional corporation form.
Marriage and family therapists: Md. Code, Corps. & Ass'ns s.4A-201 lets an LLC conduct any lawful business, and s.4A-203(10) gives it the power to render professional services; s.4A-301.1 keeps each professional personally liable for his or her own negligent acts. The licensing law (Health Occupations Article, Title 17) and the board's regulations (COMAR 10.58) contain no entity restriction, so an ordinary LLC is available. Maryland has no separate professional LLC: Title 4A lets any LLC render professional services. A professional corporation is marked check: Corps. & Ass'ns s.5-101(g)(1) limits professional services to licensed services that may not lawfully be rendered by a corporation under the Maryland General Corporation Law, and the examples in s.5-101(g)(2) do not include marriage and family therapists. Whether a general corporation may lawfully render these services is not settled by the statute; the State Department of Assessments and Taxation or the Board of Professional Counselors and Therapists can answer. If the service does qualify, s.5-102(a)(2) requires a corporation to use the professional corporation form.
Social workers: Md. Code, Corps. & Ass'ns s.4A-201 lets an LLC conduct any lawful business, and s.4A-203(10) gives it the power to render professional services; s.4A-301.1 keeps each professional personally liable for his or her own negligent acts. The licensing law (Health Occupations Article, Title 19) and the board's regulations (COMAR 10.42) contain no entity restriction, so an ordinary LLC is available. Maryland has no separate professional LLC: Title 4A lets any LLC render professional services. A professional corporation is marked check: Corps. & Ass'ns s.5-101(g)(1) limits professional services to licensed services that may not lawfully be rendered by a corporation under the Maryland General Corporation Law, and the examples in s.5-101(g)(2) do not include social workers. Whether a general corporation may lawfully render these services is not settled by the statute; the State Department of Assessments and Taxation or the Board of Social Work Examiners can answer. If the service does qualify, s.5-102(a)(2) requires a corporation to use the professional corporation form.
Psychologists: Md. Code, Corps. & Ass'ns s.4A-201 lets an LLC conduct any lawful business, and s.4A-203(10) gives it the power to render professional services; s.4A-301.1 keeps each professional personally liable for his or her own negligent acts. The psychology licensing law (Health Occupations Article, Title 18) and the board's regulations (COMAR 10.36) contain no entity restriction, so an ordinary LLC is available. Maryland has no separate professional LLC: Title 4A lets any LLC render professional services. Psychologists are named in Corps. & Ass'ns s.5-101(g)(2)(xii), so a Title 5 professional corporation is also available; a corporation formed to practice psychology must use the professional corporation form (s.5-102(a)(2)), but an LLC is not a corporation and is not affected.
$100 (SDAT fee schedule, revised May 2024). Expedited review $50 (7-10 business days); same-day rush $325 online or $425 on paper; Maryland Business Express adds a 3% service fee. A resident agent and a Maryland principal office address are required.
$100 plus a $20 organization and capitalization fee for professional corporations whose aggregate par value of stock is $100,000 or less, $120 total (SDAT fee schedule, revised May 2024). Expedited review $50; same-day rush $325 online or $425 on paper; 3% online service fee. Confirm the exact professional corporation articles form with SDAT.
This is an estimate, added up from the fees on this page: the state filing fee, the first annual report or yearly state fee, and any flat minimum tax our data names. It leaves out board application fees, a registered agent company, expedited filing, newspaper notices, name reservations, local licenses and income tax. The state sets the real amounts.
| Item | Amount |
|---|---|
| State filing fee | $100 |
| First annual report or yearly state feeOur research could not confirm this amount. Not counted in the total. | $300 (not counted) |
| Known state costs in year one (not complete) | $100 |
Shown but not counted in the total, because it may not apply in year one or is unconfirmed: First annual report or yearly state fee.
Does not include state taxes unless a flat minimum is listed above.
Some details of these fees are unconfirmed. Read the fee notes in the filing section.
| Item | Amount |
|---|---|
| State filing fee | $120 |
| First annual report or yearly state feeOur research could not confirm this amount. Not counted in the total. | $300 (not counted) |
| Known state costs in year one (not complete) | $120 |
Shown but not counted in the total, because it may not apply in year one or is unconfirmed: First annual report or yearly state fee.
Does not include state taxes unless a flat minimum is listed above.
Some details of these fees are unconfirmed. Read the fee notes in the filing section.
Check with the state tax agency which state taxes apply to your business type before you file. Its official pages are linked below.
State tax information More tax information
City and county: Ask your city or county whether a local business license or home occupation permit applies to a practice like yours.
Ask an accountant before you choose how the company is taxed. This page does not tell you which tax treatment to pick.
The order below follows the rules we found for Maryland. A board approval or a newspaper notice changes where a task falls, so a different state may order these differently.
Your Maryland licensing board can add its own rules to the state's business law. Read them for your license before you file anything.
Check that no one in the state already has the name, and follow the state's name rules for professional practices.
The state requires a registered agent with a street address in the state. That can be you, if you have a street address in the state, or a registered agent company.
Use the form and fee for the structure you chose, listed above.
It is free. Apply only on irs.gov, after the state approves your filing.
You may already have one. Get a second, organization number only if your practice is a company that bills under its own name.
Bring your state filing, EIN letter and ID. Keeping practice money in its own account keeps your records clean.
Ask your city or county whether a local business license or home occupation permit applies to a practice like yours.
Put your yearly report and any state taxes on your calendar so your company stays in good standing.
SyncedUp builds your fees, paperwork, booking and website from a few answers, then runs the practice with you. We fill in Maryland for you. Everything on this page stays free to read.
Join the waitlistRegistration is paused. Joining the waitlist does not create an account or reserve a plan.
Last checked: Oct 18, 2026. We change this date only when someone re-checks the facts, never when the page is rebuilt.
We checked these facts against the official sources listed below, including the state filing office and the licensing boards.
See a mistake? Email us a correction. Please do not include any client or personal information.
