Foreign registration · no form number

Wisconsin LLC Foreign Registration in South Dakota

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

What Wisconsin and South Dakota each ask for

	Wisconsin formed here	South Dakota registering here
Document	Wisconsin Certificate of Status	Application for Certificate of Authority (Foreign LLC) (no form number)
State fee	$10	$750 at order
How it is handled	Wisconsin: online, emailed as soon as it is requested	Filed online with South Dakota
Paid expedite		$50
Office	Wisconsin Department of Financial Institutions, Division of Corporate and Consumer Services	South Dakota Secretary of State
Official page	dfi.wi.gov	sdsos.gov
Age rule	Dated when issued	Must be current
Yearly filing	Annual Report (Form 5 / CORP5), $25, every year	Annual Report, $55, every year
Due	End of the calendar quarter containing the LLC's anniversary date	During the entity's anniversary month each year
Late yearly filing	$25 late fee	$50 late fee
Turnaround	Certificate issued instantly online	Online processing: immediately
Agent	Your Wisconsin registered agent	Our South Dakota registered agent

How Wisconsin companies register with South Dakota

Order the Wisconsin certificate
The Certificate of Status ($10) is ordered from Wisconsin separately; it is not part of our South Dakota order. South Dakota wants the Wisconsin 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 Wisconsin name and formation date and the certificate attached. With the certificate issued on the spot, nothing from Wisconsin delays the South Dakota filing. Once South Dakota approves it, the Wisconsin company can do business there.

First-year cost, Wisconsin to South Dakota

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

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

Your Wisconsin name and South Dakota's rules

South Dakota accepts your Wisconsin 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 Wisconsin name already ends in LLC, it meets the rule. If another South Dakota company uses the Wisconsin name, an alternate name is allowed. South Dakota can hold a name for $25 before you file.

Agents: South Dakota and Wisconsin

Wisconsin and South Dakota both call it a registered agent. South Dakota papers come to us; Wisconsin's agent is unchanged.

Yearly filings: South Dakota and Wisconsin

Each year your LLC files Wisconsin's Annual Report (Form 5 / CORP5) ($25) and South Dakota's Annual Report ($55). With our $149 registered agent renewal, Wisconsin plus South Dakota comes to $229 a year. The new registration does not replace any home-state filing.

LLC or corporation, Wisconsin to South Dakota

A corporation formed in Wisconsin files its own registration with South Dakota ($750 in state fees, the same, plus the Certificate of Status ($10)). After that come Wisconsin's Domestic Business Corporation Annual Report ($25) and South Dakota's Annual Report. See the corporation filing.

The other way: South Dakota into Wisconsin

An LLC formed in South Dakota that registers with Wisconsin files Form 521 with $100 in state fees; no South Dakota certificate is needed. See that filing.

Questions Wisconsin owners ask about South Dakota

Does my Wisconsin company need to register in South Dakota?

Yes, once a Wisconsin 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 Wisconsin for the Certificate of Status, $959 in all (checkout is $750 in state fees plus our $199).

Do I need Wisconsin's certificate of good standing?

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

How long does the South Dakota registration take?

South Dakota approves online filings immediately; Wisconsin's certificate is an instant download, so there is no wait before filing. Paid expedite: $50.

What are the yearly costs for Wisconsin and South Dakota?

$229 a year: our $149 registered agent renewal, $25 to Wisconsin and $55 to South Dakota for the yearly reports.

Does South Dakota require a registered agent?

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

Will South Dakota 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. 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 Wisconsin keeps the original, so you run two companies: the new one files South Dakota's Annual Report ($55), and the original keeps Wisconsin's Annual Report (Form 5 / CORP5).

How do I withdraw from South Dakota later?

Wisconsin 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 Wisconsin's filings.

Official sources

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