Tennessee

Foreign registration · no form number

Tennessee Corporation Foreign Registration in South Dakota

South Dakota registers a corporation from Tennessee as a foreign corporation on an online registration (no form number), with $750 in state fees. South Dakota also wants Tennessee's Certificate of Existence ($20). We file it with the Secretary of State using your Tennessee records and act as your registered agent there for the first year.

What Tennessee and South Dakota each ask for

	Tennessee formed here	South Dakota registering here
Document	Tennessee Certificate of Existence	Application for Certificate of Authority (Foreign Business Corporation) (no form number)
State fee	$20	$750 at order
How it is handled	Tennessee: online or by mail	Filed online with South Dakota
Paid expedite		$50
Office	Tennessee Secretary of State, Division of Business and Charitable Organizations	South Dakota Secretary of State
Official page	sos.tn.gov	sdsos.gov
Age rule	Dated when issued	Must be current
Yearly filing	Annual Report, $20, every year	Annual Report, fee set by the state, every year
Due		By the first day of the registration anniversary month each year
Agent	Your Tennessee registered agent	Our South Dakota registered agent

How Tennessee companies register with South Dakota

Order the Tennessee certificate
The Certificate of Existence ($20) is ordered from Tennessee separately; it is not part of our South Dakota order. South Dakota wants the Tennessee certificate current, so it is ordered close to the filing date.
We prepare and file the registration
It names us as your South Dakota registered agent, with your Tennessee name and formation date and the certificate attached. The Tennessee certificate comes first; then the South Dakota filing goes in. After approval, your Tennessee corporation is registered with South Dakota.

First-year cost, Tennessee to South Dakota

Item	Amount
State fees, paid at order	$750
Certificate of Existence, paid to Tennessee	$20
Our service, with a year of South Dakota registered agent service	$199
First-year total, Tennessee certificate included	$969

South Dakota's paid expedite is optional and not in the total.

Your Tennessee name and South Dakota's rules

If South Dakota's records show it taken, you can use an alternate name for the Tennessee company. South Dakota can hold a name for $25 before you file.

Your South Dakota agent and the Tennessee one

Tennessee and South Dakota both call it a registered agent. South Dakota papers come to us; Tennessee's agent is unchanged.

Yearly filings: South Dakota and Tennessee

Tennessee wants the Annual Report every year ($20); South Dakota wants the Annual Report every year. The new registration does not replace any home-state filing.

LLC or corporation, Tennessee to South Dakota

An LLC formed in Tennessee files its own registration with South Dakota ($750 in state fees, the same, plus the Certificate of Existence ($20)). After that come Tennessee's Annual Report ($300) and South Dakota's Annual Report ($55). See the LLC filing.

The other way: South Dakota into Tennessee

A corporation formed in South Dakota that registers with Tennessee files Form SS-4431 with $600 in state fees, plus the Certificate of Good Standing/Existence ($20). See that filing.

Questions Tennessee owners ask about South Dakota

Does my Tennessee company need to register in South Dakota?

Yes, once a Tennessee business operates there; South Dakota law lists 11 activities that do not count on their own.

Is this a certificate of authority?

Yes: South Dakota issues one to Tennessee corporations once the filing is approved.

How much does the South Dakota registration cost?

$949 at checkout plus $20 to Tennessee for the Certificate of Existence, $969 in all (checkout is $750 in state fees plus our $199).

Do I need Tennessee's certificate of good standing?

Yes: South Dakota wants Tennessee's Certificate of Existence ($20), current at filing.

How long does the South Dakota registration take?

South Dakota approves online filings immediately, once Tennessee's certificate is in hand. Paid expedite: $50.

What are the yearly costs for Tennessee and South Dakota?

Our registered agent renewal ($149 a year), Tennessee's report ($20) and South Dakota's report (fee set by the state).

What if I don't register with South Dakota?

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

Does South Dakota require a registered agent?

Yes: the Tennessee registered agent stays, and ours covers South Dakota for year one.

Will South Dakota accept my Tennessee name?

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

Can I form a new South Dakota corporation instead?

Yes, but Tennessee keeps the original, so you run two companies: the new one files South Dakota's Annual Report, and the original keeps Tennessee's Annual Report.

Official sources

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The same move for an LLC