Delaware Franchise Tax Calculator
Calculate your Delaware corporation's franchise tax — both methods compared
Frequently Asked Questions
Delaware lets every corporation use whichever of the two methods produces the lower tax, and its own online system automatically picks the lower one for you. Startups with a high number of authorized shares but modest actual assets almost always come out far ahead using the Assumed Par Value Capital Method.
It's based purely on how many shares your corporation is authorized to issue (regardless of how many are actually issued or what the company is worth): $0-5,000 shares = $175 minimum; 5,001-10,000 shares = $250; each additional 10,000 shares (or portion) adds $85, up to the $200,000 maximum tax.
It uses your total gross assets and issued shares: Assumed Par Value = Gross Assets ÷ Issued Shares. Multiply that by your Authorized Shares to get Assumed Par Value Capital. Divide by $1,000,000, round up to the next whole number, and multiply by $400 — with an overall $400 minimum tax.
Total gross assets as reported on your corporation's U.S. federal tax return (Form 1120, Schedule L) for the relevant tax year — not just cash, but all assets before depreciation and other reductions.
Yes — the maximum annual franchise tax is $200,000 under either method (or $250,000 for a company identified as a 'large corporate filer'), and every Delaware corporation also owes a $50 annual report filing fee alongside the tax.