Texas

Foreign registration · Form 301

Wisconsin Corporation Foreign Registration in Texas

To do business in Texas, a corporation formed in Wisconsin registers there on Form 301, with $767.13 in state fees and a $50 required expedite. Texas may ask for Wisconsin's Certificate of Status ($10). We file it with the Texas Secretary of State using your Wisconsin records and act as your registered agent there for the first year.

What Wisconsin and Texas each ask for

	Wisconsin formed here	Texas registering here
Document	Wisconsin Certificate of Status	Form 301, Application for Registration of a Foreign For-Profit Corporation
State fee	$10	$767.13 at order (filing fee $750 plus charges collected at filing)
How it is handled	Wisconsin: online, emailed as soon as it is requested	Filed with Texas
Required expedite		$50 at order (Texas Express)
Faster options		next-day $500, same-day $750
Office	Wisconsin Department of Financial Institutions, Division of Corporate and Consumer Services	Texas Secretary of State
Official page	dfi.wi.gov	sos.state.tx.us
Yearly filing	Domestic Business Corporation Annual Report, $25, every year	Franchise Tax Report + Public Information Report, no fee, every year
Due	End of the calendar quarter containing the anniversary of the articles' effective date	May 15 each year
Late yearly filing	$25 late fee	$50 late fee
Turnaround	Certificate issued instantly online	Required expedite processing: typically 2 to 3 business days
Agent	Your Wisconsin registered agent	Our Texas registered agent

From Wisconsin to Texas, step by step

We prepare and file Form 301
It lists us as your Texas registered agent, next to your Wisconsin name and formation date. If Texas wants the Wisconsin certificate, it is ordered first. After approval, your Wisconsin corporation is registered with Texas.

Will your Wisconsin name work for Texas?

Texas accepts your Wisconsin name if it includes corporation, incorporated, company, limited, or an abbreviation of one of them. If another Texas company uses the Wisconsin name, an alternate name is allowed. We search Texas's records for Wisconsin's name on file before anything is filed.

Your Texas agent and the Wisconsin one

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

Staying in good standing in Wisconsin and Texas

Each year your corporation files Wisconsin's Domestic Business Corporation Annual Report ($25) and Texas's Franchise Tax Report + Public Information Report (no fee). With our $149 registered agent renewal, Wisconsin plus Texas comes to $174 a year. Both states' filings stay current side by side.

LLC or corporation, Wisconsin to Texas

An LLC formed in Wisconsin files Form 304 with Texas ($767.13 in state fees and the $50 required expedite, the same; no home-state certificate is needed). After that come Wisconsin's Annual Report (Form 5 / CORP5) ($25) and Texas's Public Information Report + Franchise Tax Report. See the LLC filing.

Registering a Texas company in Wisconsin

A corporation formed in Texas that registers with Wisconsin files Form 21 with $100 in state fees, plus the Certificate of Fact - Status ($15) dated within 60 days. See that filing.

Questions Wisconsin owners ask about Texas

Does my Wisconsin company need to register in Texas?

Yes, once a Wisconsin business operates there; Texas registers it as a foreign corporation.

Is this a certificate of authority?

Texas calls it registration for Wisconsin corporations; other states say certificate of authority.

How much does the Texas registration cost?

$1,016.13 at checkout, including the $50 required expedite; Texas may also want Wisconsin's Certificate of Status, at extra cost.

How long does the Texas registration take?

Typically 2 to 3 business days with Texas's required expedite, plus time for Wisconsin's certificate if Texas asks for it. Faster state options: next-day $500, same-day $750.

What are the yearly costs for Wisconsin and Texas?

$174 a year: our $149 registered agent renewal, $25 to Wisconsin and nothing to Texas for the yearly reports.

Does Texas require a registered agent?

Yes: the Wisconsin registered agent stays, and ours covers Texas for year one.

Will Texas accept my Wisconsin name?

Yes, if no company there has it; if one does, it uses an alternate name there and keeps its Wisconsin name at home. Texas names must include corporation, incorporated, company, limited, or an abbreviation of one of them.

Can I form a new Texas corporation instead?

Yes, but Wisconsin keeps the original, so you run two companies: the new one files Texas's Franchise Tax Report + Public Information Report (no fee), and the original keeps Wisconsin's yearly report.

How do I withdraw from Texas later?

Wisconsin companies leave by filing Form 608; until then, Texas's report stays due alongside Wisconsin's filings.

Official sources

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