We'll talk about the importance of forming an entity and naming a professional registered agent for your new business.
So you've created your online store or applied to sell on Amazon, maybe even both. But what do you do next? The next step entrepreneurs usually take is to form their entity, which is where we can help.
While it is common to form an LLC for your dropshipping business, its is ultimately your decision on the structure you would form. You can form a Corporation (Inc.), a Limited Liability Company (LLC) or any entity structure offered by the state in which you form your entity. It is important to understand what an LLC and a Corporation is and their differences. We recommend to review more information of the differences between these structures here
There are multiple reasons why you need an entity prior to engaging in any dropshipping. First, suppliers will require you to be incorporated and have an entity. Suppliers may also require you to have other tax related documents as well. These documents need to be discussed between you and your supplier.
It is also important to understand that having an entity, such as an LLC, will provide liability protection against your personal assets. In the event of a lawsuit, your personal assets will be protected. If you were not incorporated and operating as a sole proprietor, then your personal assets would be at risk in the event of a lawsuit.
One more thing we will say about forming an entity, we would strongly recommend to form an entity in the state you physically operate in. Please also note, depending on other business activities you may have to qualify to do business in other states.
When forming an entity, you will need to list a registered agent. To learn more about what a registered agent is, please visit here. In summary, it's the physical address you need to list in the state you incorporate to accept Service of Process and this is a requirement under corporate statutes.
While you could use your own address, there are reasons why would recommend against that. To understand why, we would recommend reading more here about naming a professional registered agent
When Service Of Process (SOP) is served, its the beginning of a lawsuit. The SOP is delivered to the address you have listed as the registered agent. When using a professional company such as US Registered Agents, we accept that notice of process and notify you via email and overnight the SOP documents to you.
Let's say you operate your dropshipping business from your home and you use your home address as the registered agent address. Service of Process could be served while you're at the grocery store and it's left in your mailbox. The mailman inadvertently takes the SOP. and you have no idea you've been sued. You run the risk of loosing your case to a default judgment, all because you didn't know you were served. This is one of many examples we've seen over the past 20 years. When working with a professional registered agent, we email you and overnight a courier package to you so you can handle the SOP properly.
Naming a professional registered agent also provides a level of protection against you and your personal information. When listing yourself, you list your personal details for public record. When people search your business, the registered agent information is available. When using a company like ours, our name and address would appear, as opposed to yours.
As a foreign individual or business owner and not having a physical prescience in the United States, you are still require to list a registered agent when forming and entity.
There are many more reasons why a professional registered agent would be recommend, but these are more of the important reasons.
To speak with a representative to learn more about entity formations and registered agent service, please call us at +1-845-398-0900 or contact us and a corporate service specialist will be happy to explain more.
If you would like to utilize US Registered Agents, Inc. as your registered agent, use the discount code "DROPSHIP" when checking out for a lifetime $99 per year rate, which is discounted from $129 per year.
**Please note, US Registered Agents, Inc cannot provide and legal and/or tax advice. Information contained in this article should not be used as such. Please contact us if you have any further questions.
]]>Through one of our affiliates, we can apply our Annual Registration Management Service (ARMS) to organize and manage the time-consuming and difficult process of filing Annual Reports/Registrations – giving your employees more time for the pressing demands of daily business.
We protect the interests of many thousands of companies across every industry of every size, in the U.S. and around the world.
Find out why USRA is the smarter choice: Call USRA today, 1-888-664-6263, to speak with a knowledgeable representative.
]]>That’s why legal professionals, small and large businesses, and discerning entrepreneurs turn to US Registered Agents for expert representation in all 50 states and most foreign jurisdictions.
Don’t be left without a defense against default judgments and legal actions. USRA has been a trusted name in registered agent services for more than 15 years.
To request more information about our services, call 1-888-664-6263.
]]>Only a handful of companies have USRA’s broad range of registered agent and corporate representation capabilities – and no one is as affordable or cost-effective as USRA.
And we can serve as your registered agent whether or not we originally formed your company – at an annual fee, in most cases, of just $129. And for larger companies with a multi-state presence, USRA offers volume discounts for even greater cost efficiencies.
For all our clients, USRA provides:
Although the concept of registered agent services is mostly limited to countries with an English Common Law tradition, you may still have need for an international registered agent in cases of private loan agreements or contracts.
Throughout the world – including Puerto Rico, US Virgin Islands, Guam and all Canadian provinces – USRA has a network of local registered agents or registered offices that provide dependable service at affordable rates. Call us for a complete listing of foreign countries where we can provide professional, thoroughly vetted representation: 1-888-664-6263.
USRA offers registered agent services throughout all of Canada and for Canadian federal corporations.
The Canadian provinces and territories USRA serves include Ontario, Quebec, Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Manitoba, British Columbia, Prince Edward Island, Saskatchewan, Alberta, Newfoundland and Labrador, Northwest Territories, Yukon and Nunavut.
We can form companies in every Canadian province as well as forming Federal companies which were once called Dominion Companies. Note that all companies doing business in a given province must register as an extra-provincial company (the comparable procedure in the US is qualification or filing for Authority to do Business), if they were not formed there.
Some provinces permit the formation of Limited Liability Companies. In addition, some provinces have a Resident Director requirement.
We can also retrieve almost any corporate document such as Certificates of Good Standing and copies of the formation documents from any province (or federally). We can also arrange for the legalization of Canadian documents which is often necessary when using them in another country as Canada is not a signatory to the Hague convention and does not therefore issue Apostilles.
Whatever your Canadian needs, call your USRA corporate specialist at 1.888.664.6263 and we will walk you through the process.
Many of the private securitization agreements come from the major banking centers of London, Hong Kong and New York. They are usually part of contracts for the purchase of major personal assets such as ships and aircraft. Typically the contract is between the financing bank and several private parties. The contract contains provisions for notification in case of a default or breach and a registered agent who notifies all parties (if they are so named) of the default or breach at the behest of the bank (usually). The Bank will usually require their local law to apply, which is why London, Hong Kong and New York are favored because of their status as major banking centers. USRA can serve as registered agent almost anywhere but demand is highest in the above locations.
Filing of the securitization may be required to ensure prioritization such as UCC 1s in the United States. USRA can assist with any UCC filing in the US, PPSA in Canada and the equivalents, if they exist, in other countries.
Call your USRA corporate specialist today at 1.888.664.6263 for procedures and rates.
Utilizing our network of legal professionals, we can extend your reach globally, allowing you to create any type of entity in any country. We use reliable local counsel, all expert in local procedures, statutes and compliance regulations.
We can assist with the formation of foreign entities such as:
USRA services legal professionals including attorneys and paralegals who are involved in corporate law. USRA will obtain any necessary forms, offer assistance in completing them and file them in any jurisdiction. USRA services include the formation of any new entity, the filing of an Application for Authority to do Business and a myriad of other ancillary needs such as mergers, dissolutions, withdrawals, etc.
Business and Securitization legal professionals rely on us to service their financing agreements quickly and cost-effectively.
Banking legal professionals rely on USRA for special agreements which are often used by offshore entities when a tax-neutral jurisdiction is required. USRA provides registered agent services as required for specific statutes such as the USA Patriot Act which mandates registration by foreign correspondent banks.
For legal professionals in corporations we offer customized solutions such as specific SOP instructions for different groups or divisions. USRA also offers numerous cost-effective solutions and features addressing corporate compliance issues that typically fall to Chief Financial Officers. This might include handling a company’s on-line corporate structure in a secure environment.
USRA’s services are not just for large corporations and law firms but cover small businesses as well as do-it-all entrepreneurs who often need help negotiating the maze of corporate compliance issues.
]]>US Registered Agents understands the implications of the USA Patriot Act, works closely with the US Treasury Department, and can serve as your registered agent under the Act for business transaction in the United States. Any relevant communication received under the Act will be forwarded immediately to our clients here or abroad.
]]>Maintain current and historical information for your company. Some of the data fields include:
If you would like more information about our Corporate Records Manager service, or to receive a price quote, call one of our client specialists at 1-888-664-6263.
]]>Many federal and state statutes require the appointment of a registered agent to accept Service of Process or other official communications in conjunction with certain statutes.
Now finance lawyers, securitization attorneys, and corporate counsel can benefit from the convenience and cost-efficiencies of consolidating representation under the statutes of most federal, state, local and foreign jurisdictions with one highly-qualified registered agent – USRA.
We can handle all your Specialty Representation needs (also referred to as Special Agency Agreements, Special Representation Services, Special Loan Agreements, or Private Agreements) reliably, efficiently and with a simple, affordable fee structure that helps you manage costs. This applies to special agreements not specialty rep.
Many agreements, such as contracts and loan agreements, require the appointment of an agent to promptly and expeditiously deliver process or other notice from one party to another. Service under a loan agreement, shareholder agreements, leases and other legal contracts are critical correspondence that should be handled by a professional agent promptly. You can trust USRA to represent your interests pursuant to the terms of your specific agreements.
We can also serve as your agent in international agreements in most jurisdictions at a savings similar to that on our domestic registered agent services. In many foreign jurisdictions that have non-Common-Law traditions, the concept of a statutory registered agent is unknown. However, USRA can often provide agent services in these situations by engaging qualified local counsel whom we have often worked with in the past to represent your interests.
Since 1998, US Registered Agents has provided our clients with reliable registered agent services under the following selected statutes, as well as many others:
US non-residents often form companies in the United States; some companies operate within the US, while others operate entirely outside. For example, many web-based companies are formed in the US even though their owners have no tangible connection to the US other than the registration of their companies.
In general, there are no citizenship or residency requirements to form a company in the US. However, there are several factors that should be considered.
NOTE: Most states will not require disclosure of Director information at the time of formation but many may ask for this information when filing the next year's Annual Report. Please ask about our Nominee Services if appropriate.
For many clients, pass-through taxation, or the ability to have their entity treated as a non-tax-paying (transparent) entity is important. For US non-residents, creation of an S Corporation is not possible because all S Corporation shareholders must be US residents. Instead, pass-through taxation can be achieved by forming a Limited Liability Company (LLC) instead of a corporation.
The LLC can, with the filing of its Application for Employer Identification Number (TaxID), elect to be taxed as either a partnership or a corporation. This selection, with certain restraints, may be changed in subsequent years.
For a corporation formed in the US, there is an absolute requirement that it file a US tax return regardless of whether there is US income. However, the LLC is taxed as a partnership and the partners (principals) must file and pay individual US taxes only if they operate a trade or business in the US or if they have US-source (effectively-connected) income.
In this situation, it will usually be more advantageous to form a Limited Liability Company instead of a corporation. The global income of a US corporation is taxable whereas the LLC will be taxed as discussed above.
An Apostille is a seal legalizing a public document for use in international transactions, in accordance with the Hague convention. Many countries require that official documents created in another country bear an Apostille as evidence that they are what they purport to be. We can easily have your formation documents Apostilled if need be.
In the US, you can form your company in any state you choose. If you plan, at some point, to open an office in the US, it may be cost-effective to form your company in the state where you foresee basing your company. The majority of US non-residents without a strong reason to form in any given jurisdiction choose Delaware or Nevada because of their business-friendly environments and easy compliance requirements.
Every state will require a Registered Agent/Registered Office with an address in that state for receipt of service of process or other official communications. We will serve as your Registered Agent / Registered Office. However, this is not your business address or mailing address which can generally be anywhere you wish. Please remember NOT to use your RA/RO address for anything other than official purposes as described above.
NOTE: In many cases, you may have compelling factors which require the formation of a corporation instead of a Limited Liability Company. For example, you may want to establish unequivocal tax residency in the US. Or you may be planning to sell stock to investors or file an Initial Public Offering (IPO).
]]>To start, Delaware has a very long history of corporate friendly laws and a friendly corporate environment. Delaware offers numerous benefits in terms of convenience, tax liability and legal protection for businesses. Its laws are generally favorable to businesses, and unlike other states, it has a separate Court of Chancery that hears cases involving corporate law. Chancery judges have a background in corporate law, and can decide cases relatively quickly, without the need for a jury.
Delaware’s business statutes generally provide a number of advantages to international businesses. The law also permits and provides efficient procedures for business combinations and other transactions, including mergers, transfers, and conversions.
Investors often prefer to invest in a company that is registered in Delaware. In fact, more than half of all publically traded companies are incorporated in Delaware.
Some of the main reasons foreign companies and foreign individuals choose Delaware are:
Below are some of the advantages of forming an LLC and a Corporation, versus each other.
Advantages of a Limited Liability Company (LLC)
Advantages of a Corporation (Inc.)
Please note, USRA cannot and does not provide legal and/or tax advice. The information contained here should not be used as such.
To form your company today, please Contact Us and one of our experienced Corporate Specialist will contact you directly.
]]>Where S Corporations have limits on the number of shareholders who also must be US residents, LLCs have no restrictions in these regards. This makes the LLC a particularly suitable vehicle for non-US residents. An LLC can have more flexibility in management because this is controlled by the Members Agreement not by the Business Corporation Act of the state.
WHAT STRUCTURE IS RIGHT FOR ME?
Not all businesses are created equal, and your requirements aren’t the same as the business next door. When creating your business plan and strategy, consider some of the differences each structure offers and what suits you best. If you are unsure, please call us at +1-845-398-0900 and speak directly with a Corporate Service Specialist
]]>A Company must list a registered agent when forming and/or qualifying an entity with the Secretary of State’s office. The registered agent, also referred to as a resident agent, must have a physical address (a PO Box will not be accepted) within the state the entity is conducting business. The function of the registered agent is to accept and forward legal service of process.
The registered agent can be an individual or a company authorized to conduct business within the state. Just remember, a company cannot act as its own registered agent.
But why should you hire a professional registered agent? Here are 3 Reasons why you should hire a professional registered agent.
1.) In some cases, it provides a level of privacy. As a small business owner, you may not want to have your personal address listed as public record. With a professional Registered Agent, this information is already public knowledge. Any legal papers would be professionally delivered to you and you won’t have to worry about process servers showing up disturbing family time or delivering during your business operations in front of clients.
2.) It’s a requirement. Maintaining a Registered Agent is a requirement to keep your status with the Secretary of State’s office. In addition to maintaining an active registered agent, registered agent providers such as USRA can file State annual reports on your behalf. Professional providers will also keep copies of corporate documents (or can obtain Certified Copies) in the event the originals are lost or mis-placed.
3.) It provides versatility. You may want to expand your business into additional states, but you don’t a physical address. Professional Registered Agent providers, such as USRA, have a physical address to use in every state. Additionally, if your business operates outside of the traditional 9-5 business operation hours, you can rely on a professional service provider to accept any legal papers on your behalf during these hours.
Disclaimer: any information taken from this blog should not be taken as legal and/or tax advice.
For more information, please contact us at clientsupport@usregisteredagents.com or call us at 845.398-0900.
]]>Many agreements, such as contracts and loan agreements, require the appointment of an agent to promptly and expeditiously deliver process or other notice from one party to another. Service under a loan agreement, shareholder agreements, leases and other legal contracts are critical correspondence that should be handled by a professional agent promptly. You can trust US Registered Agents to represent your interests pursuant to the terms of your specific agreements.
Since 1998, US Registered Agents has provided our clients with reliable registered agent services under the following selected statutes, as well as many others:
For Any questions or for representation under a special agreement, please contact us today at clientsupport@usregisteredagents.com or call us at 845-398-0900
]]>US Registered Agents, Inc. provides company formation and registered agent services in Guam. We can also help you register (qualify) to do business there if you are already operating in the U.S. . Our other Guam services include, but are not limited to, lien searches and document retrievals.
Please contact our corporate specialists for more information. Please email us at Clientsupport@usregisteredagents.com or call us 1-845-398-0900!
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