Should I Assign an Individual as a Registered Agent?

Another option for startups is designating another member of your LLC or corporation as your registered agent. This option is best if you don’t have a street address in the state of your business.

The advantage to having another person act on your behalf as your registered agent is it provides an extra layer of privacy since the registered agent's name and contact information will be made publicly available, not yours. 

By using an individual as your registered agent, you should strongly evaluate the following issues. 

Delayed Delivery - An individual registered agent is not a professional service and the delivery times may be significantly delayed. Delayed deliveries could cause you to incorrectly rush time sensitive legal action and information. You may also miss important legal deadlines.

Trust & Credibility - It is important to trust the individual that you are assigning as your registered agent. The individual you assign as a registered agent must be reliable, available at the location during normal business hours, and have expertise in compliance and legal matters.

Compliance Risks - The individual that you are assigning as your registered agent should be knowledgeable in this area. If they are not experienced in compliance rules and regulations, then inaccurate handling or processing failures are a high risk for your business.

Tracking - The individual you assign as your registered agent should be able to track and notify you when annual reports are due with compliance. If you hire a registered agent service, then your registered agent should have a system in place to track and notify you when annual reports are due to keep your business in compliance with the state, so you don’t have to worry about it.

While it is legally possible to serve as your own registered agent or assign an individual as your registered agent, it is advisable to designate a commercial registered agent service to perform this important role.

For LLCs and corporations, a registered agent service is essential to maintaining good standing and keep your business running without encountering compliance issues.

Compliance requirements can be both time and labor intensive, often requiring the completion of lengthy and sometimes confusing forms using information from various sources. By using a registered agent service for your business, you will be confident that you can avoid risk of non-compliance so you can avoid penalties and fees by the state as well as save time to run your business. 

A registered agent service also provides many benefits of privacy, convenience, and staying on top of all legal and government documentation in a timely manner for your business.