California Registered Agent
California businesses need to list an agent for service of process on their formation documents. This is a public document that lists your agent’s name and address. You can be your own agent or hire a professional agent, like us.
Want to protect your privacy and have local experts available to help with California’s business regulation and compliance laws? Hire Northwest for just $39 + state fees.
- Business Address & Mail Scanning
- Domain, Website, Email & Phone Line
- Automatic Brand Protection
- Privacy By Default®
Rated 4.7 / 5 stars by 1861 clients on Google
What Is a California Registered Agent?
Your California agent for service of process is the person or company who receives your business’s legal mail, like service of processes or lawsuits. Agent for service of processes are sometimes called registered agents. They provide an official and reliable way to contact your business.
If your business is ever sued, your agent for service of process is the person/company who will be served. Once they receive the paperwork, it is their legal duty to forward you your mail quickly and securely.
Per state statutes (CA Corp Code § 1700-1702), registered agents are legally required in California
Residency
Your business’s agent can be a registered agent service or any adult individual who is a California resident. Your corporation cannot be its own agent, and LLCs cannot be registered agents.
Street Address
The registered agent must have a physical street address (no P.O boxes).
Service
The registered agent must maintain normal business hours and be able to accept hand-delivered service of process.
How Do I Change My California Registered Agent?
Changing your registered agent is a straightforward process.
Option 1
File a Statement of Information form with the California Secretary of State. List your new registered agent on this form.
Option 2
Or hire Northwest! If you place an order with us, the form will be available instantly in your online account. We’ll even pay and file the change of agent filing for you.
Why Northwest Is the Best Registered Agent in California
Our California Registered Agent Service includes the tools you need to keep your business running without a hitch. When you hire Northwest as your registered agent, you get:
- Same-Day scans: We scan your legal docs the same day we receive them and reach out if your essential mail goes unread.
- Mail forwarding: We accept and scan all your state and legal mail, and will scan up to five personal documents for free. We also offer unlimited California mail forwarding.
- Privacy by Default®: We list our business address on public docs to keep your personal info safe. And unlike those other guys, we never sell your data.
- Corporate Guides®: Have questions? We have answers. Our guides are business experts whose sole job is to provide support for all your business questions.
- Brand Protection: Keep an eye on your business name, domains, and trademarks, with free Brand Protection. We’ll alert you to potential conflicts early, and give you simple tools to build and manage your brand all in one place.
- Identity Services. With Northwest, you get a free domain name, website, phone line, and email address so that you can start talking to potential customers on day one–without compromising your privacy.
How to Order Registered Agent Service
Step 1
You sign up online, clicking on one of the buttons or links that says HIRE US or something similar.
Step 2
We collect the first year’s fee for registered agent service up front.
Step 3
For new businesses, once your business registration filing with the California Secretary of State is complete, we’ll become your agent for service of process in California.
Step 4
About a year later, we’ll send an invoice for another year of California Registered Agent Service. If you want to keep using us, great; if you don’t, you can easily cancel.
Step 5
It’s easy to add registered agent services in other states if your business expands. We have offices in every state. We don’t farm out work (or your info) to other companies—wherever you are, WE are your registered agent.
Step 6
We make your account a real go-to resource for you, not just for Registered Agent Service or paying a bill but for keeping up with corporate paperwork formalities like your California Statement of Information reports.
Get a Registered Agent Today!
State law requires all legitimate, registered businesses to appoint one and the Secretary of State will reject your business filing if you don’t appoint a registered agent.
A registered agent requirement gives the public and the state a reliable way to contact your business.
Yes, you can be your own registered agent in California. With that said, after considering the registered agent requirements, most business owners elect to hire a registered agent service instead.
Why? Well although being your own registered agent will cost you $0, a California registered agent’s name and address becomes part of the public record. Additionally, the registered agent is required to be available to accept service of process during normal business hours five days a week.
- If your business is web-based or doesn’t have a physical presence in California, the business needs an agent of process located inside state lines.
- Some California business owners hire registered agent services because their business doesn’t keep regular business hours, so they are unable to receive notices and services of process in a timely fashion.
- Many business owners desire privacy and don’t want their home or business address listed on public record as a point of contact, so they hire a registered agent.
- Listing an employee or family member as your statutory agent could create a lot of unwanted distractions and tension. Do you really want your employee or relative knowing the intimate details your business’s lawsuits? Do you trust this person to notify you immediately if they receive a service of process? If not, you could miss a court deadline before realizing it.
- If you don’t want the added responsibility of tracking mail and notices from the state, you can hire a registered agent to track important paperwork for you. Having an online account to help maintain your business is often worth the registered agent fee.
That depends on you. Some people rest easier knowing they’ll be notified right away if something urgent arises. An agent of process should also help keep you updated on any business reports due to California.
And if you hire Northwest Registered Agent, in your online account, we’ll also provide you with great customer service, any form you could file with the state, and helpful tips for filing forms and paying the state with no additional fees.
Plus, a registered agent service will simplify your life if you plan on operating in multiple states (you’ll also receive a discount with Northwest if you have registered agent service in multiple states.)
Northwest Registered Agent doesn’t charge more for high volume clients. However, if you know you’re going to get served hundreds of times a year, we should create a custom price for you that makes sense for both of us. Our typical clients receive less than 15 lawsuits a year and never pay additional fees.
We scan all documents locally from our office in Sacramento, CA.
Yes! We’re the only national registered agent service that allows our clients to list our address for everything on a filing to help keep your address private.
Yes! Just sign up for our unlimited California Mail Forwarding option. You’ll get a unique suite number and a California business address you can use for mail, advertising, and more. While you can use our address, we are not a return depot for online or Amazon sellers, though we’d love to accept your foosball tables.
Don’t need a unique suite number? Our Registered Agent Service comes with free limited mail forwarding. We’ll list our business address (no unique suite number) on your public docs to better protect your privacy. And we’ll scan the occasional business mail we receive—up to five documents a year for FREE. You can request any additional documents to be forwarded at a per document rate of $15.
Yes. You will be unable to form your California LLC if you don’t have a designated registered agent (aka: statutory agent or agent of process) when forming your corporation or LLC.
A process server will deliver a summons form and a complaint form to the registered agent’s address. The registered agent will sign any of process server’s documents acknowledging receipt of the lawsuit. If you’ve hired Northwest, we’ll scan the documents, upload them to your account, and notify you immediately.
Only in the name. All four come with the same job description.
Registered agents aren’t required for sole proprietorships and general partnerships because those entities aren’t officially formed with the California Secretary of State. Those entities don’t offer the asset protection and potential tax benefits of an LLC or corporation, though. A California nonprofit also requires a registered agent.
You can easily look up a company’s basic details online with a California business name search.
- Type in the name of the company you’re searching for.
- In the results, you’ll find the registered agent’s name and registered office street address.
To legally notify a business, just send a certified letter directly to the registered agent name and registered office address.
In California, to resign as a registered agent, you must submit a Resignation of Agent for Service of Process form to the California Secretary of State and make sure to provide the name and address of the new registered agent if appointing a successor. It’s pretty straight forward, but for a more detailed walkthrough you can refer to our guide on how to resign as a registered agent in California.
