South Dakota Foreign Corporation Certificate of Authority

South Dakota corporation certificate of authority at a glance

Filing

Application for Certificate of Authority (Foreign Business Corporation) (no form number)

State fee

$750 filing fee

Total with us

$949, first year of South Dakota registered agent service included

Online processing

immediately

Home-state certificate

Required

South Dakota yearly filing

Annual Report, every year

Filed with

South Dakota Secretary of State

What the South Dakota filing asks for

For the filing, South Dakota needs:

• The exact name of your corporation as formed, or an alternate name if that name is taken there
• The state it was formed in and its date of formation
• A South Dakota registered agent with a street address there; we fill in ours
• A principal office address
• A certificate of good standing from the home state

Corporation into South Dakota, by home state

The first-year total adds the home state's certificate fee to the $949 checkout total; the certificate is ordered from that state.

When South Dakota expects a corporation to register

South Dakota law lists 11 activities that do not, on their own, count as doing business in South Dakota; the list gives examples and is not the full test. Owning property there, without more, is not doing business either. An office, staff, or regular sales and contracts there are what typically lead to registration.

If you do business in South Dakota without registering

An unregistered corporation doing business there cannot start a lawsuit in South Dakota courts until it registers.

South Dakota registered agent rule

South Dakota requires every registered foreign corporation to keep a registered agent there. The agent must agree to serve before South Dakota accepts the appointment. Switching agents later costs $10. A resigning agent stays responsible for 31 days after filing the resignation. Our $199 includes the first year of South Dakota registered agent service, then $149 a year.

South Dakota yearly filings

Once registered, your corporation files the South Dakota Annual Report every year, due by the first day of the registration anniversary month each year. The South Dakota filing window opens first day of the anniversary month and closes last day of the anniversary month. Filing it late adds $50.

How long South Dakota takes

We file it online with the South Dakota Secretary of State. South Dakota online processing: immediately. South Dakota paper processing: one to three business days on average. Paid speed-ups: expedite $50; they are optional and not in the total.

Leaving South Dakota later

If your corporation stops doing business there, it ends the registration by filing an Application for Certificate of Withdrawal, Foreign Business Corporation. Until that is filed, South Dakota's yearly filing stays due.