Kentucky Foreign LLC Certificate of Authority: Form FBE

Kentucky LLC certificate of authority at a glance

Filing

Form FBE, Certificate of Authority (Foreign Business Entity)

State fee

$90 filing fee

Total with us

$289, first year of Kentucky registered agent service included

Standard processing

up to 3 business days

Home-state certificate

Not required

Kentucky yearly filing

Annual Report, $15, every year

Filed with

Kentucky Secretary of State, Division of Business Filings

What Form FBE asks for

For Form FBE, Kentucky needs:

• The exact name of your LLC as formed
• The state it was formed in and its date of formation
• A Kentucky registered agent with a street address there; we fill in ours
• A principal office address

LLC into Kentucky, by home state

Every home state pays the same $289 at checkout for Kentucky.

When Kentucky expects an LLC to register

Kentucky law lists 11 activities that do not, on their own, count as doing business in Kentucky (KRS 14A.9-010); the list gives examples and is not the full test. A one-off transaction completed within 30 days, and not one of a series, does not count either. 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 Kentucky without registering

An unregistered LLC doing business there cannot start a lawsuit in Kentucky courts until it registers. Its contracts stay valid, and it can still defend a case brought against it. Kentucky penalties for unregistered business: $2 a day.

Kentucky registered agent rule

Kentucky requires every registered foreign LLC to keep a registered agent there. Kentucky allows an individual who lives in Kentucky and whose business address is the registered office, or an entity authorized to transact business in Kentucky whose business address is the registered office to serve. The agent must agree to serve before Kentucky 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 Kentucky registered agent service, then $149 a year.

Kentucky yearly filings

Once registered, your LLC files the Kentucky Annual Report every year, at $15, due on or before June 30. The Kentucky filing window opens January 1 and closes June 30. From year two, keeping the Kentucky registration costs $164 a year with our registered agent service.

How long Kentucky takes

We file Form FBE with the Kentucky Secretary of State. Kentucky standard processing: up to 3 business days.

Leaving Kentucky later

If your LLC stops doing business there, it ends the registration by filing a Certificate of Withdrawal (Foreign Business Entity) ($40). Until that is filed, Kentucky's yearly filing stays due.