The state of Delaware has something called franchise taxes, which there are two ways to calculate. https://corp.delaware.gov/frtaxcalc/ Revenue is not a factor under either method; you can think of this more as a renewal fee than an income tax.
If a company does not file their franchise taxes, Delaware will send them a letter demanding taxes. To put a number on that letter, Delaware uses the Authorized Shares Method. This returns a different number than the Assumed Par Value Capital Method.
Since companies are allowed to pick whichever is in their interest when they file their taxes, companies receiving that letter will often not pay the number on it.
Stripe Atlas companies can calculate, file, and pay their Delaware franchise tax through our tax tool. Overwhelmingly, they pay the minimum tax when filing on time: $400. There is a minor additional charge for late filed taxes.
Since we are aware that the state of Delaware sends letters on this matter which are confusing to many founders if those founders fail to file their taxes, we aggressively get in touch with Atlas founders around tax time.