Michigan Registered Agent
When You Want More
A Michigan registered agent (also known as a resident agent) is an individual or company that has a physical address in Michigan and is willing to accept legal documents on behalf of a business. Declaring a registered agent is legally required under Michigan Limited Liability Company Act (450.4207) and Business Corporation Act (450.1241). Michigan registered agent services must have a physical address—a P.O. Box will not work.
With our registered agent service, get Privacy by Default®, business address, free mail forwarding, free Phone Service for 60 days, and local Corporate Guides®—only at Northwest.
Everything You Need To Know About Michigan Registered Agents:
- Get Michigan Registered Agent Service
- What Do Michigan Registered Agents Do?
- Legal Requirements for Michigan Registered Agents
- How To Be Your Own Michigan Registered Agent
- How Do I Change My Michigan Registered Agent?
- What Makes Northwest Different From Other Services?
- Michigan Registered Agent FAQs
- How To Order Registered Agent Service

What Do Michigan Registered Agents Do?
Michigan registered agents need to have physical addresses in Michigan, be open during business hours, and accept documents on your behalf and get them to you. In other words, your registered agent’s address acts as the official place where any service of process and official mail for your Michigan LLC, Michigan corporation or Michigan nonprofit will be sent.
However, the right registered agent service can do much more. At Northwest, we go above and beyond the minimum to ensure top speed, security, privacy and support.
What Are the Legal Requirements for Michigan Registered Agents?
In accordance with Michigan Law § 450.1241 (for corporations) and Michigan Law § 450.4207 (for LLCs) your registered agent must:
- Have to be a resident or companies that provide registered agent services.
- Have a registered office address that is a physical address located within the State of Michigan.
- Be available to accept legal documents.
Note: In documents and legislation in Michigan, registered agents are sometimes referred to as resident agents. These two terms mean the same thing and the names can be used interchangeably.
How to Be Your Own Registered Agent in Michigan
In the state of Michigan you are able to be your own resident agent for your business. This means that it is you who will be answering the door when the process server comes knocking if you get served. A lot of businesses choose to hire a resident agent for this very reason, but it is completely possible for you to act as your own agent.
What does it take to be your own resident agent in Michigan?
First, you need to know that registered agents and resident agents are the same thing, but Michigan uses the term “resident agent” on some of its forms. Beyond that, you need to adhere to at least two important rules:
- You need to ensure that you maintain regular business hours (9 to 5)
- You need to maintain a physical street address in the state of Michigan where you can physically accept legal documents and official mail.
It is necessary for you to have an actual street address in Michigan because a resident agent is the person or business designated to accept your official documents and mail—and process servers need to be able to find you. This is also why it is important to maintain regular business hours. If you can’t keep regular hours at which you can be reached by the process server, you will need to look for a resident agent who can.
How do I become my own resident agent?
To become your own resident agent in Michigan, simply list your own information on the formation documents when you start your business. This means that when you file your articles with the Michigan Secretary of State, there will be a space for you to fill in your resident agent’s information—just put your own name and address here.
If you already have an established business, however, the process is a bit different. To change your Michigan registered agent, Michigan has a form called the Certificate of Change of Registered Office and/or Change of Resident Agent. Fill this out with your name and address as the resident agent information. This way all the official documents for your business, including service of process, will come to your address.
How Do I Change My Michigan Registered Agent?
There are two ways to change your registered agent in Michigan.
- Hire us and we’ll complete the change of agent form for you for free.
- Do it yourself and file a Certificate of Change of Registered Agent form with the Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs (LARA).
What Makes Northwest Different From Other Services?
At Northwest, we do business the right way. We’re dedicated to getting you your docs fast, protecting your privacy and offering you support. Here’s how:
- Same-Day Scans, Instant Notifications: We accept and scan your docs at our local office the same day. We notify you instantly and reach out to you if your essential mail goes unread.
- Privacy by Default®: We automatically minimize the exposure of and access to your personal data. If we can put our address on a public doc instead of yours, we do. If we don’t have to list your personal info, we don’t. We have tough privacy policies to keep your data safe and private. And we never sell your data.
- Free Limited Mail Forwarding: Of course we’ll get you your state and legal mail. That’s our job. But what if we get some of your regular business mail? It happens a lot—clients and businesses trying to connect with you via your registered agent. We scan 5 documents per year for FREE. We can also scan additional mail at a per document rate of $15.
- Corporate Guides®: Have questions? We have answers. Our guides are business experts whose sole job is to provide phone and email support for all your toughest business questions.
Michigan Registered Agent FAQs
Why Do I Need A Michigan Registered Agent?
- To become a legitimate, registered Michigan business, the state forces you to appoint a Michigan registered agent. Sorry.
- The Department of Licensing and Regulatory affairs will reject your filing if you don’t appoint a Michigan resident agent.
- Basically, so the general public will have a reliable way to send important mail or legal notices to every registered Michigan business.
Can I Be My Own Registered Agent In Michigan?
Yes, you can be your own registered agent in Michigan. However, 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, an Michigan 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 5 days a week.
Where Is Northwest’s Registered Office In Michigan?
We provide a commercial registered office location in Okemos, MI in Ingham County.
Will You Let Me Know When My Michigan Annual Report Is Due?
Absolutely! If you own an LLC or corporation in Michigan, you’ll need to complete your MI annual report. As part of our registered agent service, we’ll not only send you a reminder, but we’ll make sure you have access to all the forms and instructions you need to stay compliant.
Can I Use Your Michigan Registered Office Address For Everything On My Business Filing?
Absolutely! We’re the only national registered agent service that allows our clients to list our addresses for everything when you’re doing a filing to keep your private addresses off of public records.
Can I Have My Business’s Mail Delivered To Your Michigan Office?
We don’t want ALL of your business mail. It’s not what we do. And it wouldn’t serve you well. You wouldn’t have unique address or suite number. Any mail we receive on your behalf would come to to Northwest Registered Agent, care of you.
But we understand that businesses and clients sometimes reach out to you through your registered agent. Through us. That’s why we give you 5 FREE scans of regular business mail a year. You can request any additional documents to be forwarded at a per document rate of $15.
Should I Hire A Registered Agent Before Or After I Start My Business In Michigan?
You should hire us first and then do your business registration filing because you can’t form an LLC or corporation without a Michigan registered agent service. You find all the forms and instructions you need to complete your filing instantly after you place an order.
How Do Michigan Registered Agents Get Served?
Service on your registered agent is legal proof that you were notified. Regardless of whether you actually receive the documents your Michigan registered agent signs for, once they accept the documents, you’ve been notified. This is a serious responsibility that we do not take lightly. This is how it works:
- A process server, the county sheriff, or any third party will walk into our office and hand us the documents (service of process), which we sign for.
- The process server then gives an affidavit (a receipt of service) to the court as confirmation that they “served” us.
Note: If you’ve hired Northwest, you’ve received your documents long before the process server hands in their affidavit to the court, because we scanned them to your online account within minutes of having been served.
How Do I Search For A Michigan Registered Agent?
You can do a Michigan 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.
If you want to legally notify a business through their Michigan registered agent service, just send a certified letter directly to the registered agent name and registered office address.
How Do I Resign From Being A Registered Agent In Michigan?
In Michigan, to resign as a registered agent, you need to submit a Resignation of Resident Agent form to the Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs (LARA). For a more detailed walkthrough, you can refer to our guide on how to resign as a registered agent in Michigan.
How To Order Michigan Registered Agent Service:
You sign up online, clicking on one of the buttons or links that says “HIRE US.”
We collect the first year of the registered agent service fee up front.
For new businesses, we’ll become your Michigan registered agent service once your business registration filing with the Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs (LARA) is complete.
About a year later, we’ll send you an invoice for another year of Michigan registered agent service. If you want to keep using us, great; if you don’t, you can easily cancel.
With offices in every state, we make it easy to add registered agent services anywhere in the country. We don’t farm out work (or your info) to other companies—wherever you are, WE are your registered agent.
We make your account a real go-to resource for you, not just for Michigan registered agent service or paying a bill but for keeping up with Michigan corporate compliance.
Information Your Michigan Registered Agent Should Help You Understand:
- In Michigan, business filings are submitted to the Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs (LARA).
- Domestic and foreign LLCs cost $50 to file.
- Foreign corporations cost $60 to register. Domestic corporations cost a minimum of $60. The fee increases if you have over 60K shares.
- Domestic and foreign nonprofits are $20 to file.
- Your business will need to file an annual report every year. Both domestic and foreign LLCs and corporations pay a $25 filing fee. Nonprofits pay a $20 fee.
At Northwest, we can also form your LLC or form your corporation in Michigan for $100 plus state fees. As part of our commitment to Privacy by Default®, we put our business address on your filings to better protect your privacy. And you always have the support of our Corporate Guides®.