Foreign registration · no form number

California Corporation Foreign Registration in North Dakota

North Dakota registers a corporation from California as a foreign corporation on an online registration (no form number), with $145 in state fees. North Dakota may ask for California's Certificate of Status ($5). We file it with the Secretary of State from your California records, then serve as your registered agent there for year one.

What California and North Dakota each ask for

	California formed here	North Dakota registering here
Document	California Certificate of Status	Foreign Business Corporation Certificate of Authority Application (no form number)
State fee	$5	$145 at order
How it is handled	California: online as a PDF within minutes, or on paper by mail or drop-off in Sacramento	Filed online with North Dakota
Office	California Secretary of State, Business Entities	North Dakota Secretary of State
Official page	bizfileonline.sos.ca.gov	sos.nd.gov
Yearly filing	Statement of Information (Form SI-550), $25, every year	Annual Report, $25, every year
Due	Last day of the corporation's registration-anniversary month, annually	May 15
Late yearly filing	$250 late fee	$20 late fee
Agent	Your California agent for service of process	Our North Dakota registered agent

How California companies register with North Dakota

We prepare and file the registration
It lists us as your North Dakota registered agent, next to your California name and formation date. If North Dakota wants the California certificate, it is ordered first. After approval, your California corporation is registered with North Dakota.

Your California name and North Dakota's rules

North Dakota accepts your California name if it includes company, corporation, incorporated, limited, or an abbreviation of one of them. We search North Dakota's records for California's name on file before anything is filed.

Your North Dakota agent and the California one

North Dakota calls it a registered agent; California says agent for service of process. North Dakota papers come to us; California's agent is unchanged.

Yearly filings: North Dakota and California

Each year your corporation files California's Statement of Information (Form SI-550) ($25) and North Dakota's Annual Report ($25). With our $149 registered agent renewal, California plus North Dakota comes to $199 a year. Both states' filings stay current side by side.

LLC or corporation, California to North Dakota

An LLC formed in California files its own registration with North Dakota ($135 in state fees, plus the Certificate of Status ($5)). After that come California's Statement of Information (Form LLC-12) ($20) and North Dakota's Annual Report ($50). See the LLC filing.

The other way: North Dakota into California

A corporation formed in North Dakota that registers with California files Form S&DC-S/N with $100 in state fees. See that filing.

Common questions: California to North Dakota

Does my California company need to register in North Dakota?

Yes, once a California business operates there; North Dakota registers it as a foreign corporation.

Is this a certificate of authority?

Yes: North Dakota issues one to California corporations once the filing is approved.

How much does it cost to register a California corporation in North Dakota?

$344 at checkout; North Dakota may also want California's Certificate of Status, at extra cost.

What are the yearly costs for California and North Dakota?

$199 a year: our $149 registered agent renewal, $25 to California and $25 to North Dakota for the yearly reports.

What if I don't register with North Dakota?

A California company cannot sue in court there until it registers.

Does North Dakota require a registered agent?

Yes: the California agent for service of process stays, and ours covers North Dakota for year one.

Will North Dakota accept my California name?

Yes, if no company there already uses it and it includes company, corporation, incorporated, limited, or an abbreviation of one of them.

Can I form a new North Dakota corporation instead?

Yes, but California keeps the original, so you run two companies: the new one files North Dakota's Annual Report ($25), and the original keeps California's Statement of Information (Form SI-550).

Official sources

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The same move for an LLC