Alabama

Foreign registration · Form 635_0010

Alabama LLC Foreign Registration in Iowa

Iowa registers an LLC from Alabama as a foreign LLC on Form 635_0010, with $100 in state fees. Iowa also wants Alabama's Certificate of Existence ($25), dated within 90 days. We file it with the Secretary of State, Business Services from your Alabama records, then serve as your registered agent there for year one.

What Alabama and Iowa each ask for

	Alabama formed here	Iowa registering here
Document	Alabama Certificate of Existence	Form 635_0010, Limited Liability Company Foreign Registration Statement
State fee	$25	$100 at order
How it is handled	Alabama: online as an instant printable certificate with a seal and authentication number	Filed with Iowa
Paid expedite		5-business-day $15, 2-business-day $50
Office	Alabama Secretary of State, Business Entities Division	Iowa Secretary of State, Business Services
Official page	sos.alabama.gov	sos.iowa.gov
Age rule	Dated when issued	Accepted if dated within 90 days
Yearly filing	Form PPT — Alabama Business Privilege Tax Return and Annual Report, fee set by the state, every year	Biennial Report, $30, every two years
Due		April 1 of odd-numbered years
Agent	Your Alabama registered agent	Our Iowa registered agent

How Alabama companies register with Iowa

Order the Alabama certificate
The Certificate of Existence ($25) is ordered from Alabama separately; it is not part of our Iowa order. Ordered from Alabama on filing day, it easily meets Iowa's limit of 90 days.
We prepare and file Form 635_0010
It lists us as your Iowa registered agent, next to your Alabama name and formation date, with the certificate attached. Alabama issues the certificate instantly, so the Iowa filing can go in the same day. Once Iowa approves it, the Alabama company can do business there.

First-year cost, Alabama to Iowa

Item	Amount
State fees, paid at order	$100
Certificate of Existence, paid to Alabama	$25
Our service, with a year of Iowa registered agent service	$199
First-year total, Alabama certificate included	$324

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

Your Alabama name and Iowa's rules

If Iowa's records show it taken, you can use an alternate name for the Alabama company. We search Iowa's records for Alabama's name on file before anything is filed.

Your Iowa agent and the Alabama one

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

Staying in good standing in Alabama and Iowa

Alabama wants the Form PPT — Alabama Business Privilege Tax Return and Annual Report every year; Iowa wants the Biennial Report every two years ($30). Both states' filings stay current side by side.

LLC or corporation, Alabama to Iowa

A corporation formed in Alabama files Form 635_0110A with Iowa ($100 in state fees, the same). After that come Alabama's Business Privilege Tax return (Form CPT) and Iowa's Biennial Report ($60). See the corporation filing.

Registering an Iowa company in Alabama

An LLC formed in Iowa that registers with Alabama files Alabama's registration (no form number) with $184 in state fees; no Iowa certificate is needed. See that filing.

Common questions: Alabama to Iowa

Does my Alabama company need to register in Iowa?

Yes, once an Alabama business operates there; Iowa law lists 11 activities that do not count on their own.

How much does the Iowa registration cost?

$299 at checkout plus $25 to Alabama for the Certificate of Existence, $324 in all (checkout is $100 in state fees plus our $199).

Do I need Alabama's certificate of good standing?

Yes: Iowa wants Alabama's Certificate of Existence ($25), no more than 90 days old at filing.

What are the yearly costs for Alabama and Iowa?

Our registered agent renewal ($149 a year), Alabama's report (fee set by the state) and Iowa's report ($30, every two years).

What if I don't register with Iowa?

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

Does Iowa require a registered agent?

Yes: the Alabama registered agent stays, and ours covers Iowa for year one.

Will Iowa accept my Alabama name?

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

Can I form a new Iowa LLC instead?

Yes, but Alabama keeps the original, so you run two companies: the new one files Iowa's Biennial Report ($30), and the original keeps Alabama's yearly report.

How do I withdraw from Iowa later?

Alabama companies leave by filing a Statement of Withdrawal ($10); until then, Iowa's report stays due alongside Alabama's filings.

Official sources

People also search

LLC into Iowa, by home state (48)

Alabama into other states (47)

The same move for a corporation