Foreign registration · no form number

Kentucky LLC Foreign Registration in South Dakota

To do business in South Dakota, an LLC formed in Kentucky registers there on an online registration (no form number), with $750 in state fees. South Dakota also wants Kentucky's Certificate of Existence ($10). We file it with the Secretary of State using your Kentucky records and act as your registered agent there for the first year.

What Kentucky and South Dakota each ask for

	Kentucky formed here	South Dakota registering here
Document	Kentucky Certificate of Existence	Application for Certificate of Authority (Foreign LLC) (no form number)
State fee	$10	$750 at order
How it is handled	Kentucky: online as a printable certificate, or by mail or fax	Filed online with South Dakota
Paid expedite		$50
Office	Kentucky Secretary of State, Division of Business Filings	South Dakota Secretary of State
Official page	web.sos.ky.gov	sdsos.gov
Age rule	Dated when issued	Must be current
Yearly filing	Annual Report, $15, every year	Annual Report, $55, every year
Due	On or before June 30	During the entity's anniversary month each year
Agent	Your Kentucky registered agent	Our South Dakota registered agent

From Kentucky to South Dakota, step by step

Order the Kentucky certificate
The Certificate of Existence ($10) is ordered from Kentucky separately; it is not part of our South Dakota order. South Dakota wants the Kentucky 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 Kentucky name and formation date and the certificate attached. The Kentucky certificate comes first; then the South Dakota filing goes in. Once South Dakota approves it, the Kentucky company can do business there.

South Dakota costs for Kentucky companies

Item	Amount
State fees, paid at order	$750
Certificate of Existence, paid to Kentucky	$10
Our service, with a year of South Dakota registered agent service	$199
First-year total, Kentucky certificate included	$959

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

Will your Kentucky name work for South Dakota?

South Dakota accepts your Kentucky name if it includes 'limited liability company', 'limited company', or one of the abbreviations L.L.C., LLC, L.C. or LC (limited may be written Ltd. and company Co.). If the Kentucky name already ends in LLC, it meets the rule. If another South Dakota company uses the Kentucky name, an alternate name is allowed. South Dakota can hold a name for $25 before you file.

Your South Dakota agent and the Kentucky one

Kentucky and South Dakota both call it a registered agent. Your current registered agent stays for Kentucky; ours takes South Dakota's papers and notices.

Staying in good standing in Kentucky and South Dakota

Each year your LLC files Kentucky's Annual Report ($15) and South Dakota's Annual Report ($55). With our $149 registered agent renewal, Kentucky plus South Dakota comes to $219 a year. The new registration does not replace any home-state filing.

LLC or corporation, Kentucky to South Dakota

A corporation formed in Kentucky files its own registration with South Dakota ($750 in state fees, the same, plus the Certificate of Existence ($10)). After that come Kentucky's Annual Report ($15) and South Dakota's Annual Report. See the corporation filing.

The other way: South Dakota into Kentucky

An LLC formed in South Dakota that registers with Kentucky files Form FBE with $90 in state fees; no South Dakota certificate is needed. See that filing.

Common questions: Kentucky to South Dakota

Does my Kentucky company need to register in South Dakota?

Yes, once a Kentucky business operates there; South Dakota law lists 10 activities that do not count on their own.

How much does the South Dakota registration cost?

$949 at checkout plus $10 to Kentucky for the Certificate of Existence, $959 in all (checkout is $750 in state fees plus our $199).

Do I need Kentucky's certificate of good standing?

Yes: South Dakota wants Kentucky's Certificate of Existence ($10), current at filing.

How long does the South Dakota registration take?

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

What are the yearly costs for Kentucky and South Dakota?

$219 a year: our $149 registered agent renewal, $15 to Kentucky and $55 to South Dakota for the yearly reports.

Does South Dakota require a registered agent?

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

Will South Dakota accept my Kentucky name?

Yes, if no company there has it; if one does, it uses an alternate name there and keeps its Kentucky name at home. South Dakota names must include 'limited liability company', 'limited company', or one of the abbreviations L.L.C., LLC, L.C. or LC (limited may be written Ltd. and company Co.).

Can I form a new South Dakota LLC instead?

Yes, but Kentucky keeps the original, so you run two companies: the new one files South Dakota's Annual Report ($55), and the original keeps Kentucky's Annual Report.

How do I withdraw from South Dakota later?

Kentucky companies leave by filing a Notice of Cancellation of Certificate of Authority, Foreign Limited Liability Company; until then, South Dakota's report stays due alongside Kentucky's filings.

Official sources

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