Stay compliant with our registered agent services

Registered agents are required for businesses in most states. 

But beyond legal requirements, registered agents are useful for busy entrepreneurs. Registered agents are available during business hours to receive legal notices and official state mail so you can focus on other aspects of your business.

Many legal letters and other documents have strict deadlines. And if you miss deadlines to file documents or pay fees, you could be subject to penalties. With LegalZoom’s registered agent service, you’ll get alerts when you receive notices, and reminders when tax and annual report deadlines are approaching.

Registered agent services are also important for privacy, since their address and not yours will be listed on this part of the public record. A registered agent can receive your service of process documents instead of you so you can avoid being served in front of your family at home or employees and customers at work.

You're legally required to have a registered agent (also called statutory representation) in most states. Having a registered agent also helps ensure you won’t miss any critical legal notices, official mail from the state, or service of process documents. This helps you avoid penalties and potentially a legal judgment against your business.

To appoint a registered agent on your own, you’d need to:

• Download and complete the correct formation paperwork for your entity and state
• List the name of the registered agent in your paperwork
• Send off the documents and pay the fee to the Secretary of State's office (some states require in-person or mail delivery)

If you use LegalZoom’s registered agent service, we’ll take care of everything for you and serve as your registered agent. Just answer a few questions about your business and we’ll use your answers to complete your paperwork, send it to your state, and cover any fees.

You risk no longer being in good standing with your state, which puts you at risk of fees and penalties. If you're not there to receive any service of process, you could even have a lawsuit filed against you, not know, and be unable to respond in a timely manner.

A registered agent is an adult or authorized business that's available during normal business hours to accept legal notices, official state mail, or service of process on your behalf. They must have a physical address in the same state where your business formed or foreign qualified.

Yes. Depending on your state, you'll need to pay a fee, and file paperwork first. If you want to make us your new registered agent, we'll pay the fees and take care of that paperwork at no cost to you. We'll also change the registered agent information with your Secretary of State.

You might get things like legal mail (including legal service of process), official state correspondence, annual report notices, or junk mail (which we’ll shred for you). For legal service of process and other urgent mail, we will upload the documents to your secure cloud storage account, email you to let you know there’s mail in your account (including sending reminders if you don’t open your email), and mail a postcard notice to the address we have on file. For all other mail, we will upload the documents to your account and email you.

Yes. We offer an additional legal advice subscription service, which gives you unlimited 30-minute calls on new legal matters to vetted attorneys in our network for a subscription fee.

Different states use different names, but all three mean the same thing and provide registered agent services.

All LLCs are required to have a registered agent. The role of a registered agent service for a limited liability company (LLC), corporation, or any other type of business entity is the same as the role of all registered agents: to receive legal notices, official state mail, compliance-related documents, and service of process on your behalf.

Your registered agent must be at the address filed with your state during regular business hours to receive official state correspondence and service of process notices. If they're not, the consequences could be serious. For example, if you don't know a lawsuit filed against you has gone to court, you might receive a default judgment without the chance to defend yourself.

You must have a registered agent for every business you own, and in each state where you do business.

Limited liability partnerships are required to have a registered agent, just like limited liability companies.

Choosing a professional registered agent service with experience and expertise can take work off your plate and give you peace of mind. Registered agents handle the most sensitive correspondence about your business—you’ll want to feel confident that your privacy will stay intact, your critical mail will be kept secure, and that you’re being informed of legal notices in a timely manner.