Foreign registration · Form 326

Illinois Corporation Foreign Registration in Louisiana

Louisiana registers a corporation from Illinois as a foreign corporation on Form 326, with $160 in state fees. Louisiana may ask for Illinois's Certificate of Good Standing ($25). We file it with the Secretary of State, Commercial Division using your Illinois records and act as your registered agent there for the first year.

What Illinois and Louisiana each ask for

	Illinois formed here	Louisiana registering here
Document	Illinois Certificate of Good Standing	Form 326, Application of Foreign Corporation for Certificate of Authority
State fee	$25	$160 at order
How it is handled	Illinois: online as an instant PDF, printed from the receipt page or sent by email link	Filed with Louisiana
Paid expedite		24-hour $35, 2 to 4 hour $60
Office	Illinois Secretary of State, Department of Business Services, Limited Liability Division	Louisiana Secretary of State, Commercial Division
Official page	ilsos.gov	sos.la.gov
Yearly filing	Annual Report (Form BCA 14.05), $75, every year	Annual Report, $30, every year
Due	Before the first day of the entity's anniversary month each year	On or before the anniversary of the date authority to do business was issued
Agent	Your Illinois registered agent	Our Louisiana registered agent

How Illinois companies register with Louisiana

We prepare and file Form 326
It lists us as your Louisiana registered agent, next to your Illinois name and formation date. If Louisiana wants the Illinois certificate, it is ordered first. After approval, your Illinois corporation is registered with Louisiana.

Will your Illinois name work for Louisiana?

We check your exact Illinois name against Louisiana's records before filing.

Your Louisiana agent and the Illinois one

Illinois and Louisiana both call it a registered agent. Your current registered agent stays for Illinois; ours takes Louisiana's papers and notices.

Yearly filings: Louisiana and Illinois

Each year your corporation files Illinois's Annual Report (Form BCA 14.05) ($75) and Louisiana's Annual Report ($30). With our $149 registered agent renewal, Illinois plus Louisiana comes to $254 a year. The new registration does not replace any home-state filing.

LLC or corporation, Illinois to Louisiana

An LLC formed in Illinois files Form 972 with Louisiana ($190 in state fees, plus the Certificate of Good Standing ($25)). After that come Illinois's Limited Liability Company Annual Report (Form LLC-50.1) ($75) and Louisiana's Annual Report ($35). See the LLC filing.

Common questions: Illinois to Louisiana

Does my Illinois company need to register in Louisiana?

Yes, once an Illinois business operates there; Louisiana law lists 10 activities that do not count on their own.

Is this a certificate of authority?

Yes: Louisiana issues one to Illinois corporations once the form is approved.

How much does it cost to register an Illinois corporation in Louisiana?

$359 at checkout; Louisiana may also want Illinois's Certificate of Good Standing, at extra cost.

What are the yearly costs for Illinois and Louisiana?

$254 a year: our $149 registered agent renewal, $75 to Illinois and $30 to Louisiana for the yearly reports.

What if I don't register with Louisiana?

An Illinois company cannot sue in court there until it registers.

Does Louisiana require a registered agent?

Yes: the Illinois registered agent stays, and ours covers Louisiana for year one.

Can I form a new Louisiana corporation instead?

Yes, but Illinois keeps the original, so you run two companies: the new one files Louisiana's Annual Report ($30), and the original keeps Illinois's Annual Report (Form BCA 14.05).

How do I get an Illinois certificate of good standing?

Illinois issues the Certificate of Good Standing online as an instant PDF, printed from the receipt page or sent by email link ($25).

Official sources

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