Register a Connecticut Foreign LLC
A Connecticut Foreign LLC is an LLC formed in another state or jurisdiction that has registered in Connecticut to transact business there. Register a foreign LLC in Connecticut by submitting a Foreign Registration Statement to the Connecticut Secretary of State and paying the $120 state filing fee.
Northwest can do it for you for just $225 + state fees. We'll handle the paperwork, provide a full year of registered agent service, a custom domain, local phone number, email, web hosting, and a local Connecticut business address. Everything your business needs to get going in Connecticut.
$225 Foreign Registration
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How To Register a Foreign LLC in Connecticut
To register a foreign LLC in Connecticut, you must submit a Foreign Registration Statement to the Connecticut Secretary of State. Registering a foreign LLC in another state or jurisdiction is called foreign qualification. Here’s how it works:
Every LLC that does business in Connecticut needs a Connecticut registered agent. Your registered agent’s job is to accept important legal mail on behalf of your business. Your registered agent must have a physical address in Connecticut where they maintain regular business hours.
Normally, your first step in forming an LLC would be picking a name, but since your foreign LLC already has a name all you have to worry about is making sure it is available. You can check your LLC’s name availability on Connecticut’s Secretary of State. If your name isn’t available, you’ll need to file for a DBA in Connecticut.
To officially register your Connecticut foreign LLC, you’ll need to fill out and submit a Foreign Registration Statement to Connecticut’s Secretary of State. Make sure your application includes the following information:
- Entity name. This will be the one you use in your home state.
- Alternate name to be used in Connecticut. This is only necessary if your original name is not available. A Business Records Search can tell you if a name is currently in use.
- The state where your LLC was originally formed
- Date the business formed
- Date your foreign LLC began or will begin conducting business in Connecticut
- Principal office address (street address only)
- Principal office mailing address (street address or P.O. Box)
- Address in your home state
- Email address. If you want, you can check the box for none and skip
- NAICS code (a number used for categorizing businesses)
- Registered agent name and address
- A signature from your registered agent showing that they accept the duties of this role
- Manager or member information. You’ll need to list a name, title, home and business address of at least one manager or member.
- Signature of person preparing form. This can be someone outside of your LLC.
Ready to get started? Register your foreign LLC in Connecticut with Northwest.
Once your business is up and running in the new state, you’ll want to be able to connect with the new market of consumers. Having a robust and localized digital presence can help build your business’s identity, which in turn will make your business seem more trustworthy and professional, even if you’ve only just started offering services/products.
We can help you build a custom website that is securely hosted with an unique domain, plus give you a local phone number and a professional email address to help establish your business in Connecticut.
Learn more about how to launch your business identity in a new state.
Once your application is accepted by the Secretary of State’s office, you’ll receive a verification certificate in the mail that authorizes your LLC to legally transact business in Connecticut as a foreign LLC.
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A foreign LLC is not necessarily an LLC from another country, at least not in this case. Instead, it’s an LLC that formed in another state or jurisdiction and then expanded to at least one additional state or jurisdiction. Once a foreign LLC has registered in Connecticut it will be granted a certificate of authority and can do business just like any Connecticut LLC.
No. Your formation documents stay in the state in which you initially formed your LLC, and your LLC will continue to be regulated by that state. Registering as a foreign LLC in another state means you can do business in that state. It’s not the same thing as domestication, which is the process of moving your business to another state entirely.
The state doesn’t say. Conn. Gen. Stat. § 33-920 talks more about what doesn’t count as transacting business than what does. The definition of not doing business includes activities like the following:
- Maintaining, defending, or settling a court proceeding
- Maintaining bank accounts
- Selling products or services through independent contractors
- Conducting a single transaction that is completed within 30 days
- Holding board of directors or shareholders meetings
So what are some activities that count as doing business in Connecticut? If you’re doing things like hiring employees, purchasing property, or opening a location in Connecticut, there’s a good chance you should register your foreign LLC with the state.
Still not sure? Read more on what counts as doing business in another state.
Submit an Amendment of Foreign Registration Statement to the Connecticut Secretary of State and pay a $120 filling fee.
Yes. The Connecticut annual report must be filed between January 1 and March 31 of every year. Submitting a report costs $80. If you don’t meet the deadline, though, you run the risk of losing your good standing. And after a year of noncompliance, Connecticut can opt to dissolve your foreign LLC entirely.
File a Statement of Withdrawal of Registration with the Secretary of State. The cost is $120.
To act as your own registered agent in Connecticut, you must live the state. Most people who register foreign LLCs in Connecticut don’t live there. So what should you do instead? In this situation, many businesses opt to hire a registered agent service to accept important notices. Connecticut also offers another option: designating the Secretary of State as your registered agent. Not many states allow this, but Connecticut permits it for foreign LLCs.
There are significant benefits to hiring a registered agent service, including speed and privacy protection. For example, at Northwest, we scan and upload legal mail to a secure account the same day it arrives in our office. This way, you can see it right away, even if you’re traveling.
The state filing fee is $120. You can pay online with a credit card. You also have the option of mailing your paperwork, or you can deliver it by hand if you live nearby, though Connecticut discourages filing this way.
