Missouri Registered Agents: How, Why, and When to Get One

What is a Missouri registered agent?

A Missouri registered agent is an individual or company that you appoint to accept service of process on behalf of your business. They serve as the official point of contact for your business, receiving and forwarding important documents such as service of process, annual report reminders, tax notices, compliance notifications, official state correspondence, and legal notices from creditors or other parties.

What are Missouri's legal requirements for registered agents?

Under Missouri Revised Statutes Chapter 351.370, a registered agent must meet these requirements:

• Be an individual (aged 18 or older) or business entity authorized to transact business in the state
• Maintain a physical street address (not a P.O. box) in Missouri where they can be served with legal documents.
• Be available during normal business hours (typically 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday through Friday).

Can I be my own registered agent in Missouri?

Yes, you can serve as your own registered agent in Missouri if you meet the residency and availability requirements. However, this decision comes with important considerations.

Advantages of serving as your own registered agent include:

• No additional service fees
• Direct control over document receipt
• Immediate awareness of legal notices

There are also some disadvantages of serving as your own registered agent:

• Your personal address or business address becomes part of the public record.
• Your address is accessible to anyone searching Missouri business records.
• If you travel frequently or work irregular hours, you may miss important legal documents.
• If you receive a lawsuit in your primary business office or at home, it could result in potential embarrassment in front of clients, employees, or family.

Small business owners in particular may find it difficult to serve as their own registered agent since the limitations on their time and location can make it hard to perform their other responsibilities effectively.

Why consider a professional Missouri registered agent service

A registered agent service like LegalZoom can often make running your business much easier. Here are some examples of when they’re especially helpful:

• You live outside of Missouri.
• You work from home and prefer privacy.
• You travel frequently for business.
• You prefer having experts handle compliance matters.

Additionally, many professional registered agent companies offer additional services beyond the receipt of service of process that can be valuable to your business. For example, when you choose LegalZoom as your registered agent, you’ll get unlimited document scanning, storage, and digital access to make organization a breeze. We also maintain a detailed compliance calendar to remind you about important deadlines related to your annual reports and other compliance tasks.

LegalZoom has registered agent offices in both St. Louis and Cape Girardeau.

How much does a Missouri registered agent service cost?

In Missouri, professional registered agent services usually cost between $100 and $300 per year. The price depends on factors like level of service, additional features, company reputation and reliability, and whether you need coverage only in the state of Missouri or nationwide.

LegalZoom’s registered agent service costs $249/year and includes perks like:

• Compliance reminders. Reminders about filing your Missouri annual report as well as tax filing requirements and deadlines
• Document scanning. Digital access to important documents from anywhere
• Mail forwarding. Prompt forwarding of all legal notifications and official correspondence
• Time-sensitive alerts. Immediate notification when legal notices or official mail arrive
• Cloud storage. Secure storage and management of business correspondence backed up in the cloud
• Junk mail filtering. Elimination of unnecessary mail and document shredding services

Plus, if you’re switching from a different registered agent to LegalZoom, we cover the registered agent change fee and handle the paperwork for you.

If you’re appointing a registered agent at the same time as you file your formation documents with the Missouri Secretary of State, you do not need to pay any additional fees on top of your registration fee. It costs $10 for most businesses to file a Change of Registered Agent/Office Address form, and $37 for LLPs.

How to appoint a Missouri registered agent

In Missouri, you will need to list your registered agent’s information on your formation paperwork. To form a corporation, this will be your articles of incorporation, and to start an LLC in Missouri, you’ll file articles of organization. Both are filed with the Missouri Secretary of State, either online or by mail.

To file your articles online:

1. Access the Missouri Secretary of State website at sos.mo.gov.
2. Navigate to the Business Services section and select your entity type.
3. Complete the online formation documents including registered agent information.
4. Pay applicable filing fees using the online payment system.
5. Receive confirmation right away, including your filing number.

 For businesses preferring to file by mail, Missouri provides specific forms for each entity type:

• Corporations: Articles of Incorporation (Form Corp. 41)
• LLCs: Articles of Organization (Form LLC-1)
• Limited Partnerships: Certificate of Limited Partnership (Form LP-41)
• Limited Liability Partnerships: Registration (Form LP-24)

To file by mail, you’ll need to print the form, fill it out, include a check or money order for the filing fee, and mail it to: