Does Iowa require an operating agreement?
No. Iowa's LLC law doesn't require an LLC to have one: the operating agreement governs relations among the members and with the company, the managers' rights and duties, the company's activities and how the agreement is amended, and to the extent it doesn't provide for a matter, the chapter governs it (Iowa Code § 489.105(1)-(2)). It's still worth having. Without one, the Iowa Uniform Limited Liability Company Act decides how profits are shared, who can act for the LLC and what happens when a member leaves, and banks often ask to see a signed agreement before opening an account for an LLC.
The Iowa Uniform Limited Liability Company Act lets the agreement be oral or implied as well as written (Iowa Code § 489.102(19)). A signed, written agreement is still the only kind a bank, a court or a new member can read.
Iowa's LLC law and this template
Iowa LLCs are governed by the Uniform Limited Liability Company Act (Iowa Code chapter 489) (Iowa Code ch. 489). It is Iowa's version of the Uniform Limited Liability Company Act. Where your agreement is silent, the act's default rules apply. Where the act lets an operating agreement change one of its rules, your agreement controls.
Choose Iowa in the form and the agreement names the State of Iowa as the LLC's home and governing law, refers to the Certificate of Organization filed with the Iowa Secretary of State, and defines “the Act” as the Iowa Uniform Limited Liability Company Act. Everything else adapts to your answers: one member or several, run by the members or by managers, with or without a buyout when a member dies.
What the Iowa agreement covers
The agreement follows the order most operating agreements use: formation, name, principal office, registered agent, purpose and term; each member's contribution and, with several members, capital accounts and percentage interests; how profits, losses and cash are shared; management by the members or by managers, with the major decisions that need every member's consent; taxes, books, records and a separate bank account; transfers, new members, withdrawal and what happens when a member dies; and dissolution. Schedule A lists each member's contribution and share.
Forming and keeping an Iowa LLC
The operating agreement stays with the LLC's records; these are the filings that go to the state. Check that the name is free first with our Iowa LLC name search.
| Iowa | |
|---|---|
| Forming the LLC | Certificate of Organization, $50, filed with the Iowa Secretary of State |
| Name must end with | “limited liability company”, “limited company”, “L.L.C.”, “LLC”, “L.C.”, “LC”, “("Limited" may be abbreviated "Ltd." and "company" "Co.")” |
| Recurring report | $30 online every two years ($45 on paper) |
| Newspaper notice | Not required |
| Name reservation | $10, 120 days |
| Good standing certificate | Certificate of Existence, $5 |
How to finish your Iowa agreement
- Type the LLC's name exactly as it appears on its Certificate of Organization, ending included.
- Fill in or strike out anything left as a blank line, and make Schedule A's percentages add up to 100%.
- Have every member read and sign it. Electronic signatures count, and members can sign separate copies.
- Keep the signed agreement with the LLC's records; don't send it to the Iowa Secretary of State. Give each member a copy.
For an LLC with one owner, see the single-member operating agreement; with partners, the multi-member version explains shares, voting and buyouts.
Sources
Checked on 2026-10-08 against the state's own pages:
- https://www.legis.iowa.gov/docs/code/489.pdf
- https://www.legis.iowa.gov/docs/code/489.105.pdf
- https://www.legis.iowa.gov/docs/code/489.102.pdf
- https://filings.sos.iowa.gov
- https://sos.iowa.gov/businesses/business-entity-forms-and-fees
Common questions
Does Iowa require an LLC operating agreement?
No. Iowa's LLC law doesn't require one, but it's worth having: without it, the Iowa Uniform Limited Liability Company Act's default rules decide how profits are shared and who can act for the LLC.
Do I file the operating agreement with the Iowa Secretary of State?
No. The Iowa Secretary of State receives the Certificate of Organization; the operating agreement is an internal document that stays with the LLC's records.
Is this Iowa operating agreement template free?
Yes. There's no sign-up and no email address, and the agreement is built in your browser, so nothing you type is sent to us.