Do you have to open a business bank account under the your name or the name of the LLC?
Does it matter if you open a business account under your name or that of the LLC?
The short answer is no. The long answer is it doesn't matter, but you may want to do it under your name in some circumstances.
If you choose to open the account under the name of your LLC, this is called "doing business as" or "DBA." A lot of people mistakenly think that if they're operating their business through an LLC, everything must go through the LLC.
Opening a separate bank account
If you open a separate bank account for your LLC that's funded with personal money, that's okay. You can even pay personal expenses through this account--that's perfectly legal and normal for an LLC. It's also okay to use this account for business expenses provided it's done so on a reasonable basis and in good faith.
Writing checks
If you start writing checks from this account for every single purchase made by your business, including things like lunch and gas, it looks less like operating expenses and more like a slush fund to hide income from taxes. Even if there are legitimate reasons behind why these purchases are being made with this account, it makes it look like you have some other reason for having the LLC bank account other than straightforward bookkeeping purposes.
If you have questions, you can get a free consultation with the Best Business Lawyers.
Parklin Law - Business Lawyer
5772 W 8030 S, # N206
West Jordan UT 84081
(801) 618-0699
