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Registered agent services

Starting a business is a big step with a ton of requirements. Before you consider filing papers with the Secretary of State, you must designate a registered agent. This person or company will play a key role in keeping your business compliant with the state.

Registered Agent is a position of trust. Your registered agent is responsible for your business compliance with the state. If they do not perform their role properly, your business could miss important deadlines, mail or even be sued.

If you haven’t formed your LLC yet, ZenBusiness is our top LLC formation choice and they offer registered agent services that you can include in your LLC package. If you only need a registered agent service, we recommend Northwest Registered Agent. They offer a quick, easy and reliable registered agent service plus an option to add registered agent locations to multiple states.

Why do I need a registered agent?

It’s required by law for each LLC or corporation to designate a registered agent in all 50 US states. You cannot launch your LLC business without appointing an agent and it’s one of the first sections to fill out on the application paperwork. This person or service must have a physical address where a person can receive and sign for business documents during normal business hours of 9:00-5:00 pm. A PO Box is not allowed.

This physical address is also called your registered office and is where your business is notified of annual renewals and licensing requirements. You can have a mailing address of a PO Box, but this is different from your registered office.

Therefore, if you do not have a physical address where someone is always available during business hours, appointing a service to act on your behalf gives you some freedom to work wherever you like. Having a professional registered agent ensures that you don’t miss important information. If you operate in several states and have filed foreign and domestic LLC papers, a professional registered agent service can keep track of multiple filings.

Who can be my registered agent?

• You can be your own registered agent
• You can appoint a friend, family member, or partner
• You can hire a professional registered agent service

Advantages of using a professional registered agent service

• You have the freedom to work where you like. If you do not live in the state where your business is registered, the service can perform all of the required duties
• You can concentrate on building your business, rather than keeping track of paperwork and legal requirements
• Protect your personal information from public record and stay anonymous
• If you are registered in more than one state, one service can keep track of all requirements
• If you desire to maintain a level of privacy, the agency is listed on the state documents and website rather than your name

We reviewed and tested all the registered agent services listed on our site. We put emphasis on experience, responsive and knowledgeable customer support, transparent pricing, and ease of use.

Decision time

The main job of a registered agent service is to keep your business compliant with the state by handling all legal and tax correspondence and documents on your business’ behalf so that you don’t miss any deadlines or important notifications.

Sure, you can decide to act as your own registered agent of your business, but this means that you will need to be on top of all state correspondence, deadlines, and legal proceedings as well as be physically available at your office address during working hours. This can also become complicated if your business operates in multiple states as you will need to assign a registered agent to each state.

Using a trusted, affordable, and reliable registered agent service will allow you to focus on what’s most important – running, growing, and managing your own business instead of worrying about paperwork, legal documents, and remaining in good standing with the state.