Register in Additional States

Getting Started

Learn More

Foreign Qualification – register your corporation or LLC in other states

Share |

In order to do business legally in states other than your home state (the state where your company was formed or incorporated), you may need to register (also referred to as qualifying) your company in those states. If your business has offices, employees or advertises in states outside of your company's home state, chances are you'll need to qualify your company in that state. Your company becomes qualified by obtaining something often called a Certificate of Authority from the Secretary of State.

incorporate.com can help

incorporate.com can provide you with guidelines to help you understand whether you need to qualify your business. We'll also help you prepare and file the necessary paperwork to obtain your Certificate of Authority.

It's important to understand that by doing business in other states, you may be required to meet other compliance obligations, including the need for business licenses, business permits and tax registrations in those states. incorporate.com can help you fulfill these and other compliance obligations in all the states where you'd like to transact business.

Learn More

To get more details about qualifications be sure to view our "Doing Business in more than one State: Are YOU Qualified?" webinar or visit our frequently asked questions section.

Ready to Register your Business in Another State? Get Started

Foreign Qualification FAQs

What is a qualification?

If your corporation or Limited Liability Company (LLC) conducts business outside of the state where it was formed, then you may need to register your company in additional states-also referred to as "foreign" states. incorporate.com can assist you with this registration process, known as 'qualifying'.

Back to Top

How do I qualify in a foreign state?

Requirements for qualification vary by state. incorporate.com can tell you what information you need in order to qualify. incorporate.com can help you to file the documents your company needs in all of the states where you do business..

Back to Top

How do I know whether my company needs to qualify in a foreign state?

A company needs to qualify in the states where it is "doing business," Generally, a company is doing business in a state if it has regular, repeated and continuous business contacts of a local nature in that state. Typically, a business is doing business in a state where it:

  • Has an office, employees, and advertises
Back to Top

What could happen to my business if my company doesn't qualify in a state where it does business?

In some cases, a business can be liable to pay penalties or back taxes for the time period that they were doing business without qualification. Another downside is that in some cases, your company will not have access to the courts in that state. This means you will not be able to bring a lawsuit in that stateAlmost all states impose penalties, and in some states these penalties can be applied against the officers and directors of the company. In one state, Louisiana, officers and directors not only face civil penalties for failing to qualify, but can face a prison sentence as well.

Back to Top

How can incorporate.com help?

We have been in business since 1899 and our team has experience filing qualification documents in all 50 states. We will research your filing and identify what it will cost. In addition, we will complete the documents and return them to you so you can review and sign them (if necessary). Then we will file them with the Secretary of State, so you can focus your attention on running your business.

Back to Top

Place Your State Registration Order Now

Turn to incorporate.com for help with additional state registrations.

  • Tell us you want help registering to do business in additional states.

  • We take your payment and basic information about your company.

  • We research the registration costs and provide the appropriate paperwork and fee breakdown.

  • You complete, sign, and return the paperwork to us for submission to the state.

  • Once the state approves your application, we send you the official evidence of the registration.

Foreign Qualification

$199

plus state fees

Get Started

Would you rather place your order by phone? Call us at 800.818.6082