Tennessee

Foreign registration · Form SS-4431

Massachusetts Corporation Foreign Registration in Tennessee

To do business in Tennessee, a corporation formed in Massachusetts registers there on Form SS-4431, with $600 in state fees. Tennessee also wants Massachusetts's Certificate of Good Standing ($12). We file it with the Secretary of State, Division of Business and Charitable Organizations using your Massachusetts records and act as your registered agent there for the first year.

What Massachusetts and Tennessee each ask for

	Massachusetts formed here	Tennessee registering here
Document	Massachusetts Certificate of Good Standing	Form SS-4431, Application for Certificate of Authority For-Profit Corporation
State fee	$12	$600 at order
How it is handled	Massachusetts: online, by mail or in person, delivered by mail or email depending on the certificate	Filed with Tennessee
Office	Massachusetts Secretary of the Commonwealth, Corporations Division	Tennessee Secretary of State, Division of Business and Charitable Organizations
Official page	sec.state.ma.us	sos.tn.gov
Age rule	Dated when issued	Must be current
Yearly filing	Annual Report, $125, every year	Annual Report, $20, every year
Due	Within 2.5 months after the close of the corporation's fiscal year
Agent	Your Massachusetts resident agent	Our Tennessee registered agent

How Massachusetts companies register with Tennessee

Order the Massachusetts certificate
The Certificate of Good Standing ($12) is ordered from Massachusetts separately; it is not part of our Tennessee order. It comes as a short form ($7) or a long form ($12). Tennessee wants the Massachusetts certificate current, so it is ordered close to the filing date.
We prepare and file Form SS-4431
It names us as your Tennessee registered agent, with your Massachusetts name and formation date and the certificate attached. The Massachusetts certificate comes first; then the Tennessee filing goes in. Once Tennessee approves it, the Massachusetts company can do business there.

First-year cost, Massachusetts to Tennessee

Item	Amount
State fees, paid at order	$600
Certificate of Good Standing, paid to Massachusetts	$12
Our service, with a year of Tennessee registered agent service	$199
First-year total, Massachusetts certificate included	$811

Will your Massachusetts name work for Tennessee?

Tennessee can hold a name for $20 before you file.

Agents: Tennessee and Massachusetts

Tennessee calls it a registered agent; Massachusetts says resident agent. Your current resident agent stays for Massachusetts; ours takes Tennessee's papers and notices.

Staying in good standing in Massachusetts and Tennessee

Each year your corporation files Massachusetts's Annual Report ($125) and Tennessee's Annual Report ($20). With our $149 registered agent renewal, Massachusetts plus Tennessee comes to $294 a year. Both states' filings stay current side by side.

LLC or corporation, Massachusetts to Tennessee

An LLC formed in Massachusetts files Form SS-4233 with Tennessee ($300 in state fees, plus the Certificate of Good Standing ($25)). After that come Massachusetts's Limited Liability Company Annual Report ($520) and Tennessee's Annual Report ($300). See the LLC filing.

Questions Massachusetts owners ask about Tennessee

Does my Massachusetts company need to register in Tennessee?

Yes, once a Massachusetts business operates there; Tennessee registers it as a foreign corporation.

Is this a certificate of authority?

Yes: Tennessee issues one to Massachusetts corporations once the form is approved.

How much does it cost to register a Massachusetts corporation in Tennessee?

$799 at checkout plus $12 to Massachusetts for the Certificate of Good Standing, $811 in all (checkout is $600 in state fees plus our $199).

Do I need Massachusetts's certificate of good standing?

Yes: Tennessee wants it ($12), current at filing.

What are the yearly costs for Massachusetts and Tennessee?

$294 a year: our $149 registered agent renewal, $125 to Massachusetts and $20 to Tennessee for the yearly reports.

Does Tennessee require a registered agent?

Yes: the Massachusetts resident agent stays, and ours covers Tennessee for year one.

Can I form a new Tennessee corporation instead?

Yes, but Massachusetts keeps the original, so you run two companies: the new one files Tennessee's Annual Report ($20), and the original keeps Massachusetts's Annual Report.

How do I withdraw from Tennessee later?

Massachusetts companies leave by filing an Application for Certificate of Withdrawal or Cancellation (Foreign Entity); until then, Tennessee's report stays due alongside Massachusetts's filings.

Official sources

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