How To Be My Own Registered Agent

The Pros and Cons of Acting As Your Own Registered Agent

Most entrepreneurs know that when you incorporate your small business concern, whether your entity is an LLC, Corporation, or C Corporation, you're going to demand a registered agent. An RA serves as your betoken of contact between the business and the state, accepting official documents on behalf of the business and helping the company remain in compliance with state police. Your RA can be a third party service, or you may act as your own registered amanuensis.

While many minor business concern owners work alongside an organisation, some decide that they want to exist their own RA — and that's legally adequate. Recall that with nifty power comes nifty responsibility, on acme of all of your other existing entrepreneurial duties. If you lot're planning to act every bit your own registered agent, proceed the following pros and cons in mind before getting started.

Pro… It's less expensive to designate yourself every bit an RA

While we tin't quote yous an exact price range, acting every bit your own RA is going to be much less expensive than paying an outside arrangement for assistance. If you lot're on a tight upkeep, you might consider acting every bit your ain RA for a bit.

Con…You'll demand to be available during general business concern hours

Think Monday through Friday during general hours of functioning, similar 8 AM to 5 PM. Not merely will you need to exist available to have service of process during these hours, but you volition too demand to exist a resident of the state and nowadays at your designated physical address. (Another requirement for registered agents since P.O. Boxes are not considered to exist an acceptable course of address.)

While much of this volition depend on the entrepreneur'due south circumstances and nature of their small business, I placed availability in the 'con' section simply for those 'what if?' moments. Even if y'all piece of work from domicile, you may find there are days where you demand to get out to accept a meeting offsite or caput on a business trip. If y'all're not physically there during the hours you said y'all would exist to have the documents, it could spell trouble for your business.

Pro/Con…You'll demand to be extremely organized

Some of the legal documents you may receive as an RA include, merely are not limited to, general paperwork like annual reports, franchise revenue enhancement forms, and renewal reminders.

If y'all are naturally organized when it comes to paperwork and time-sensitive materials, then you're likely to stay on top of everything every bit an RA. However, if you struggle with organization and worry of import documents could slip through the cracks, yous might want to designate a third party RA. They volition be able to keep your paperwork organized and passed along to you in a timely way and then your business organization doesn't fall out of good standing with the state.

Pro/Con…Yous're comfortable receiving confidential paperwork publicly

Every entrepreneur is different. Some aren't phased at the thought of beingness served confidential legal notices, like a court summons or lawsuit paperwork, in public. Others might be extremely embarrassed and worried that the act could impairment their reputation. If you autumn into the latter category, working with a registered amanuensis service provides an added layer of security. They will accept the documents on your behalf, so that no unwanted visitors prove up at your designated accost, giving you and your business some privacy and peace of mind.

Deborah Sweeney is the CEO of MyCorporation.com. MyCorporation is a leader in online legal filing services for entrepreneurs and businesses, providing start-up bundles that include corporation and LLC formation, registered agent, DBA, and trademark & copyright filing services. MyCorporation does all the work, making the business concern formation and maintenance quick and painless, so business concern owners can focus on what they do best. Follow her on Twitter @mycorporation.

Please note that KPMG SPark's sponsorship of this web log commodity is non intended to address the specific circumstances of any item individual or entity and does non constitute an endorsement of whatsoever entity or its products or services. This content represents the views and opinions of the writer, and does not necessarily represent the views or professional communication of KPMG LLP.

KPMG Spark June 27, 2016 Posted In: Business Tips

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