Foreign registration · no form number

Pennsylvania LLC Foreign Registration in South Dakota

An LLC formed in Pennsylvania that wants to do business in South Dakota files an online registration (no form number), with $750 in state fees. South Dakota also wants Pennsylvania's Subsistence Certificate ($40). We file it with the Secretary of State using your Pennsylvania records and act as your registered agent there for the first year.

What Pennsylvania and South Dakota each ask for

	Pennsylvania formed here	South Dakota registering here
Document	Pennsylvania Subsistence Certificate	Application for Certificate of Authority (Foreign LLC) (no form number)
State fee	$40	$750 at order
How it is handled	Pennsylvania: online through Business Filing Services, or by mail on the copy and certificate request form	Filed online with South Dakota
Paid expedite		$50
Office	Pennsylvania Department of State, Bureau of Corporations and Charitable Organizations	South Dakota Secretary of State
Official page	file.dos.pa.gov	sdsos.gov
Age rule	Dated when issued	Must be current
Name endings	the term company, limited or limited liability company, an abbreviation of one of those terms, or words of like import used in the home state	'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.)
Yearly filing	Annual Report, $7, every year	Annual Report, $55, every year
Due	September 30	During the entity's anniversary month each year
Agent	Your Pennsylvania registered office	Our South Dakota registered agent

From Pennsylvania to South Dakota, step by step

Order the Pennsylvania certificate
The Subsistence Certificate ($40) is ordered from Pennsylvania separately; it is not part of our South Dakota order. South Dakota wants the Pennsylvania 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 Pennsylvania name and formation date and the certificate attached. Once Pennsylvania's certificate is in hand, South Dakota's filing goes in. After approval, your Pennsylvania LLC is registered with South Dakota.

South Dakota costs for Pennsylvania companies

Item	Amount
State fees, paid at order	$750
Subsistence Certificate, paid to Pennsylvania	$40
Our service, with a year of South Dakota registered agent service	$199
First-year total, Pennsylvania certificate included	$989

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

Will your Pennsylvania name work for South Dakota?

South Dakota accepts your Pennsylvania 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.). Pennsylvania's list (the term company, limited or limited liability company, an abbreviation of one of those terms, or words of like import used in the home state) is not the same, but an ending such as “limited liability company” works in both states. If another South Dakota company uses the Pennsylvania name, an alternate name is allowed. South Dakota can hold a name for $25 before you file.

Your South Dakota agent and the Pennsylvania one

South Dakota calls it a registered agent; Pennsylvania says registered office. Your current registered office stays for Pennsylvania; ours takes South Dakota's papers and notices.

Staying in good standing in Pennsylvania and South Dakota

Each year your LLC files Pennsylvania's Annual Report ($7) and South Dakota's Annual Report ($55). With our $149 registered agent renewal, Pennsylvania plus South Dakota comes to $211 a year. The new registration does not replace any home-state filing.

LLC or corporation, Pennsylvania to South Dakota

A corporation formed in Pennsylvania files its own registration with South Dakota ($750 in state fees, the same, plus the Subsistence Certificate ($40)). After that come Pennsylvania's Annual Report ($7) and South Dakota's Annual Report. See the corporation filing.

Registering a South Dakota company in Pennsylvania

An LLC formed in South Dakota that registers with Pennsylvania files Form DSCB:15-412 with $250 in state fees; no South Dakota certificate is needed. See that filing.

Questions Pennsylvania owners ask about South Dakota

Does my Pennsylvania company need to register in South Dakota?

Yes, once a Pennsylvania 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 $40 to Pennsylvania for the Subsistence Certificate, $989 in all (checkout is $750 in state fees plus our $199).

Do I need Pennsylvania's certificate of good standing?

Yes: South Dakota wants Pennsylvania's Subsistence Certificate ($40), current at filing.

How long does the South Dakota registration take?

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

What are the yearly costs for Pennsylvania and South Dakota?

$211 a year: our $149 registered agent renewal, $7 to Pennsylvania and $55 to South Dakota for the yearly reports.

Does South Dakota require a registered agent?

Yes: the Pennsylvania registered office stays, and ours covers South Dakota for year one.

Will South Dakota accept my Pennsylvania name?

Yes, if no company there has it; if one does, it uses an alternate name there and keeps its Pennsylvania 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.); “limited liability company” works in both states.

Can I form a new South Dakota LLC instead?

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

How do I withdraw from South Dakota later?

Pennsylvania 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 Pennsylvania's filings.

Official sources

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