Register Your Indiana Foreign Corporation
To legally do business in Indiana as a corporation formed in another state, you must file a Foreign Registration Statement with the Indiana Secretary of State, Business Services Division. You can submit this document by mail, in person or online. By submitting this form, you are applying to be an Indiana foreign corporation—an out-of-state corporation legally able to do business within Indiana. There is a $125 filing fee for the Indiana Foreign Registration Statement.
The guide below goes over the steps to registering your out-of-state corporation in Indiana. Don’t have the time to do it yourself? Hire us to do all the work for you.
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GET STARTEDHow to Register as a Foreign Corporation in Indiana
By submitting the Indiana Foreign Registration Statement you are doing something called foreign qualification. This is the process that tells the Indiana Secretary of State that you want to do business in the state and allows you to legally do so.
Foreign qualification keeps your business active in multiple states without having to dissolve one or move states entirely. Indiana does not require you to submit new Articles of Incorporation.
Here’s everything you need to do to conduct business as a foreign corporation in Indiana.
1. Name Your Indiana Corporation
The corporation name you put on the Indiana Foreign Registration Statement must be unique and available in Indiana. You can do a free business name search to see if your company’s name is available before submitting your application. If your name is taken, you can elect to do business under an alternative name or register an Indiana DBA (doing business as). Your alternative name does not have to comply with Indiana’s DBA statutes but does need to be available in the state.
Concerned your business name won’t be available for future foreign registrations? Consider applying for a federal trademark for your business name to ensure it’s available in all fifty states.
2. Designate a Registered Agent
A registered agent is a person or entity that is authorized to accept service of process on behalf of your business. Registered agents can be people or business entities. All Indiana corporations, including foreign ones, are required to have a registered agent in the state. Indiana law states that your registered agent must have a physical address in the state where they can receive legal mail. You’re in luck! Northwest offers reliable Indiana registered agent service.
3. Start Your Business Identity
Once your business is legal in the new state, you’ll want to be ready to connect with customers. Forming your business identity, or the way you present yourself to your potential clients, can help.
Now’s a prime opportunity to start a business website or get a custom business email address.
Your business should have a way to market itself in a new, well, market. Consider getting phone service that has the local area code or a local business address to use on documents where possible.
4. Get Certificate of Existence
Before you submit your Indiana Foreign Registration Statement, you’ll need to get a certificate of existence or good standing from your corporation’s formation state. Your certificate of existence must be no more than 60 days old at the time you file your application.
5. Submit Foreign Registration Statement
To submit your Indiana Foreign Registration Statement, you’ll need to include a certificate of existence from your home state. It costs $125 to file.
Your form must include the following information:
- corporation name, DBA, or alternative name
- entity type
- street address of principal office
- certificate of existence
- registered agent address and name
You can file your Foreign Registration Statement online or by mail.
By mail:
Diego Morales
Secretary of State
Business Services Division
302 West Washington Street, Room E018
Indianapolis, IN 46204
Online:
Indiana accepts foreign corporation filings by mail, online, and in person. Processing times depend on the method of filing.
- online: Indiana typically processes online filings in about 1-2 business days.
- mail: Indiana currently processes mailed filings in around 5-7 business days, but you’ll need to add time for mailing).
- in person: In person filings are processed by Indiana in about 1-2 business days.
6. Receive Copy of Your Foreign Registration Statement
Indiana does not give foreign corporation’s a certificate of authority authorizing them to do business within the state. Instead, Indiana sends back a stamped copy of your Foreign Registration Statement application.
7. File Indiana Reports and Taxes
Your foreign corporation will now have Indiana taxes and reports to file independent of the ones you file in your home state.
- Income tax: All corporations in Indiana must pay a 4.9% corporate income tax rate. Some jurisdictions in Indiana that may levy taxes against corporations operating in the area.
- Entity report: The Indiana Entity Report is filed every other year. The entity report is for updating any business information like officer or director changes or principal address updates.
- Retail merchant’s certificate: Any corporation selling personal property that gets delivered to Indiana either physically or electronically must get a retail merchant’s certificate from the Indiana Department of Revenue.
Northwest Can Register Your Indiana Foreign Corporation
If doing things on your own sounds overwhelming, boring, or generally like not a good use of your time, we’re ready to help. Our foreign qualification package is $225 + Indiana fees. This includes:
- Registering your business as an Indiana Foreign Corporation: We’ll file your paperwork and let you know when it’s approved.
- Serving as your business’ Indiana Registered Agent: We can be your RA in as many states as you want to expand into.
- Launching your business identity: We’ll get you a digital presence, including a business email address, phone service, and mail forwarding. Plus, we’ll put together a custom website with a domain, web hosting, and security in place. These will all be free for 90 days. After that, most services are $9/month.
- Sending reminders for your Indiana Business Entity Report: We can even file this for you. We’ll send you a reminder about the report 90 days before they’re due, and you can either have us file for you or opt out of the service.
Indiana Foreign Corporation FAQs
To update your Foreign Registration Statement in Indiana, you’ll need to submit the Foreign Registration Amendment application($30). Your Indiana Foreign Registration Amendment form must be accompanied by a certificate of existence dated within 60 days of submitting the application.
Indiana considers these activities as doing business within the state:
- owning or maintaining an office in the state
- storing inventory in the state
- selling or providing services and products to customers in the state
- renting or owning property in the state for business purposes
For more information, check out our resource on what it means to do business in another state.
No.
An officer or Chairman of the Board must sign the application.
County filing or publication is not necessary, unless specifically required by the county in which your registered agent resides.
Absolutely! Northwest can do more than just register your foreign corporation, too. If you need a reliable registered agent in Indiana, we can act as one, provide you with a secure business website, email, phone number, and more.