Rhode Island

Foreign registration · Form 150

California Corporation Foreign Registration in Rhode Island

To do business in Rhode Island, a corporation formed in California registers there on Form 150, with $319 in state fees. Rhode Island also wants California's Certificate of Status ($5). We file it with the Department of State, Business Services Division from your California records, then serve as your resident agent there for year one.

California and Rhode Island side by side

	California formed here	Rhode Island registering here
Document	California Certificate of Status	Form 150, Certificate of Authority
State fee	$5	$319 at order (filing fee $310 plus charges collected at filing)
How it is handled	California: online as a PDF within minutes, or on paper by mail or drop-off in Sacramento	Filed with Rhode Island
Office	California Secretary of State, Business Entities	Rhode Island Department of State, Business Services Division
Official page	bizfileonline.sos.ca.gov	docs.sos.ri.gov
Age rule	Dated when issued	Must be current
Yearly filing	Statement of Information (Form SI-550), $25, every year	Annual Report for a Corporation (Form 630), $50, every year
Due	Last day of the corporation's registration-anniversary month, annually	May 1
Late yearly filing	$250 late fee	$25 late fee
Agent	Your California agent for service of process	Our Rhode Island resident agent

From California to Rhode Island, step by step

Order the California certificate
The Certificate of Status ($5) is ordered from California separately; it is not part of our Rhode Island order. Rhode Island wants the California certificate current, so it is ordered close to the filing date.
We prepare and file Form 150
It lists us as your Rhode Island resident agent, next to your California name and formation date, with the certificate attached. With the certificate issued on the spot, nothing from California delays the Rhode Island filing. After approval, your California corporation is registered with Rhode Island.

First-year cost, California to Rhode Island

Item	Amount
State fees, paid at order	$319
Certificate of Status, paid to California	$5
Our service, with a year of Rhode Island resident agent service	$199
First-year total, California certificate included	$523

Your California name and Rhode Island's rules

If Rhode Island's records show it taken, you can use an alternate name for the California company. Rhode Island can hold a name for 120 days for $50 before you file.

Agents: Rhode Island and California

Rhode Island calls it a resident agent; California says agent for service of process. Rhode Island papers come to us; California's agent is unchanged.

Yearly filings: Rhode Island and California

Each year your corporation files California's Statement of Information (Form SI-550) ($25) and Rhode Island's Annual Report for a Corporation (Form 630) ($50). With our $149 resident agent renewal, California plus Rhode Island comes to $224 a year. Both states' filings stay current side by side.

LLC or corporation, California to Rhode Island

An LLC formed in California files Form 450 with Rhode Island ($156 in state fees, plus the Certificate of Status ($5)). After that come California's Statement of Information (Form LLC-12) ($20) and Rhode Island's Annual Report for a Limited Liability Company (Form 632) ($50). See the LLC filing.

The other way: Rhode Island into California

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

Questions California owners ask about Rhode Island

Does my California company need to register in Rhode Island?

Yes, once a California business operates there; Rhode Island law lists 12 activities that do not count on their own.

Is this a certificate of authority?

Yes: Rhode Island issues one to California corporations once the form is approved.

How much does the Rhode Island registration cost?

$518 at checkout plus $5 to California for the Certificate of Status, $523 in all (checkout is $319 in state fees plus our $199).

Do I need California's certificate of good standing?

Yes: Rhode Island wants California's Certificate of Status ($5), current at filing.

What are the yearly costs for California and Rhode Island?

$224 a year: our $149 resident agent renewal, $25 to California and $50 to Rhode Island for the yearly reports.

Does Rhode Island require a registered agent?

Yes: the California agent for service of process stays, and ours covers Rhode Island for year one, with a street address there.

Will Rhode Island accept my California name?

Yes, if no company there has it; if one does, it uses an alternate name there and keeps its California name at home.

Can I form a new Rhode Island corporation instead?

Yes, but California keeps the original, so you run two companies: the new one files Rhode Island's Annual Report for a Corporation (Form 630) ($50), and the original keeps California's Statement of Information (Form SI-550).

How do I withdraw from Rhode Island later?

California companies leave by filing a Certificate of Withdrawal; until then, Rhode Island's report stays due alongside California's filings.

Official sources

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