Michigan Corporation

You can get an EIN directly from the IRS. The application is free, and most businesses can apply online. However, if you don’t have a social security number, you’ll need to submit a paper application form. Can’t bear to fill out yet another application? Hire Northwest to get your EIN for you. Just add on EIN service during checkout when you sign up for our incorporation service.

Corporate bylaws cover basic policies and procedures for issues such as company finances and management. Bylaws should cover a range of topics, answering key questions like those below:

• Meetings: When and where will meetings for shareholders and directors be held? How many attendees are required to transact business? What are the procedures for voting or proxy voting? How do you call a special meeting? What actions can be taken without a meeting?

• Stock: How are stock certificates issued and transferred? How is voting affected by issues such as corporate stock owners or fractional shares?

• Directors and officers: How many directors must there be? Which officer positions are required? What powers do they have? How do you fill a vacancy or remove a director or officer?

• Finances: What are the procedures for retaining profits, issuing dividends, and paying bills? Who can withdraw money from the corporate bank account or sign checks?

• Records: Where is the corporate book to be kept? What information will be maintained? How are requests for review or access honored? Can records or copies be kept or distributed digitally?

• Amendments and emergencies: Who can amend bylaws and how? Can emergency bylaws be adopted in the case of disaster?

Michigan bylaws can make other provisions as well, assuming additions are in accordance with state law. For example, MI Comp L § 450.1501 (2019) states that bylaws can prescribe the qualifications required for a member of a corporation’s board of directors.

Creating bylaws can be overwhelming—where do you start? Northwest can help. We give you free corporate bylaws when you hire us to form your Michigan corporation. We know what kinds of topics and questions corporations need to address, and we’ve spent years refining and improving our forms. We offer many other free corporate forms as well, including templates for resolutions and meeting minutes.

The fee to file an annual report in Michigan is a flat $25, regardless of the size or net worth of your corporation.

When is the Michigan Annual Report due?

The filing is due by May 15, beginning the year after your corporation was formed. Michigan will send out a pre-printed report to your registered agent 90 days ahead of the due date—either by mail or to the agent’s email address of record. There is an additional $10 fee for each month a corporation’s report is delinquent. The maximum late fee tops out at $50—but if a corporation is delinquent for two years, it will be dissolved by the state 60 days later.

These filings can be easy to forget—which is why we send our clients automatic reminders for your Michigan Annual Report filings. Or better yet, let us file for you. With our business renewal service, we can we can complete and submit your annual report for you for $100 plus the state fee.

The Michigan corporate net income tax rate is a flat 6%. Note that several Michigan cities impose an additional income tax as well. Detroit, for example, places a separate 2% income tax on residents.

The state’s sales tax rate is also a flat 6%. Cities and counties can’t add on additional local sales taxes, so you’ll pay the same 6% across the state.

Yes, if your business has employees or sells tangible personal property in Michigan, you’re required to register with the state’s Department of Treasury. You can register via Michigan Treasury Online (MTO). You’ll need your EIN before you can register.

At least $60. The base filing fee is $60, but the amount of authorized shares your company has at incorporation can affect your total fee. If you want 60,000 shares or fewer, you’ll pay the base fee. The fee increases from there to $110 for up to a million shares, $310 for more than one million and up to five million shares, and $510 for more than five million and up to 10 million shares.

More than 10 million shares? You’ll pay a $510 fee for the first 10 million, plus $1000 for each additional 10 million share unit—or any portion of one. As such, 10,000,001 shares will still require the same $1510 total fee as 20 million shares would.

Hire us for a one-time fee of $285, including the state filing fees, a year of registered agent service, and more.

Standard processing takes 3 days for online filings and around 10 days for mailed filings. Need it faster? Expediting options are available. File online or in person and you could even have your articles processed in an hour or two—if you’re willing to pay an extra $500-$1000. 24 hour expediting is available for the more reasonable fee of $50.

Technically, you can also expedite mailed filings—but bear in mind that normal postage times still apply, and that mailed filings must first be sent to a receipts processing location before being forwarded to the Corporations Division. Expedited service for mailed filings is based on the day the Corporations Division finally receives the Articles of Incorporation, not when it is received at the processing location.

There’s no general, statewide business license required in Michigan, but some cities and counties have local requirements. For example, Detroit only licenses specific business activities, but the adjacent suburb of Sterling Heights requires all businesses to pay a $50 fee for a license and renew it each year.

For some license applications you may need an EIN or a certified copy of your Articles of Incorporation. At Northwest, we can streamline the process and get these for you—simply add on these items during checkout.

A corporation formed outside of Michigan—but which conducts business in the state—is considered a foreign Michigan corporation. For example, if you incorporated in Wisconsin but decide to open a storefront in Michigan, you would be a foreign Michigan corporation. This also means you would need to register with the state by filing an Application for Authority with the Michigan Secretary of State. Foreign corporations are required to file the Michigan Annual Report each year as well.

Absolutely! We’re happy to start a nonprofit corporation for you. Note that incorporating a Michigan nonprofit requires a different form. The filing fee is lower than the fee for incorporating a for-profit corporation, only $20. Michigan nonprofits must also file an annual report each year, along with a $20 fee.

It’s a conundrum: you need a local number to display on your website and give to customers, but you don’t want to make your personal number quite so…public. We get it. And we’ve got you covered with Northwest Phone Service. We can provide you with a virtual phone number in any state—plus unlimited call forwarding and tons of easy-to-use features. You can try Phone Service free for 60 days when you hire us to form your corporation, and maintaining service is just $9 monthly after that. No contract required.