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LLC Q and AOne question, one reply, one source.

Glossary

Registered agent, defined

The person or company your LLC names to accept lawsuits and official state mail on its behalf, using a street address located inside the state where the LLC is registered.

LLC Q and A editorial team ·

Snapshot

Alias
Statutory agent, resident agent, agent for service of process

Takeaways

The agent has to be reachable at the listed address during ordinary business hours, because that is where lawsuits and state letters arrive and where someone must sign for them. A commercial service keeps a person on site every weekday, and it also keeps your home address out of the public file, which many owners value.

State differences

46 states require every LLC to name an agent. The other 4:

  • Minnesota: A Minnesota LLC must keep a registered office in Minnesota; naming an agent there is optional.
  • New York: The Secretary of State is the agent for service of process for every New York LLC; naming a registered agent is optional.
  • Pennsylvania: Pennsylvania requires a registered office (a Pennsylvania street address or a Commercial Registered Office Provider), not an agent.
  • West Virginia: The statute says an LLC "may" keep an agent; the Articles ask for one "if any".

Where it applies

Applies in these answers: LLC formation by state, Registered agent rules by state, What does each state want from a foreign LLC?.

Sources

  1. Reference line for Alabama registered agent statute, drawn from alisondb.legislature.state.al.us and confirmed October 2026, as noted by our editors
  2. Reference line for Alaska registered agent statute, drawn from akleg.gov and confirmed October 2026, as noted by our editors
  3. Reference line for Arizona registered agent statute, drawn from azleg.gov and confirmed October 2026, as noted by our editors
  4. Reference line for Arkansas registered agent statute, drawn from arkleg.state.ar.us and confirmed October 2026, as noted by our editors
  5. Reference line for California registered agent statute, drawn from leginfo.legislature.ca.gov and confirmed October 2026, as noted by our editors
  6. Reference line for Connecticut registered agent statute, drawn from cga.ct.gov and confirmed October 2026, as noted by our editors
  7. Reference line for Delaware registered agent statute, drawn from delcode.delaware.gov and confirmed October 2026, as noted by our editors
  8. Reference line for Florida registered agent statute, drawn from flsenate.gov and confirmed October 2026, as noted by our editors
  9. Reference line for Georgia registered agent statute, drawn from sos.ga.gov and confirmed October 2026, as noted by our editors
  10. Reference line for Hawaii registered agent statute, drawn from capitol.hawaii.gov and confirmed October 2026, as noted by our editors
  11. Reference line for Idaho registered agent statute, drawn from legislature.idaho.gov and confirmed October 2026, as noted by our editors
  12. Reference line for Illinois registered agent statute, drawn from ilga.gov and confirmed October 2026, as noted by our editors
  13. Reference line for Indiana registered agent statute, drawn from faqs.in.gov and confirmed October 2026, as noted by our editors
  14. Reference line for Iowa registered agent statute, drawn from legis.iowa.gov and confirmed October 2026, as noted by our editors
  15. Reference line for Kansas registered agent statute, drawn from ksrevisor.gov and confirmed October 2026, as noted by our editors
  16. Reference line for Kentucky registered agent statute, drawn from apps.legislature.ky.gov and confirmed October 2026, as noted by our editors
  17. Reference line for Louisiana registered agent statute, drawn from legis.la.gov and confirmed October 2026, as noted by our editors
  18. Reference line for Maine registered agent statute, drawn from legislature.maine.gov and confirmed October 2026, as noted by our editors
  19. Reference line for Maryland registered agent statute, drawn from mgaleg.maryland.gov and confirmed October 2026, as noted by our editors
  20. Reference line for Massachusetts registered agent statute, drawn from sec.state.ma.us and confirmed October 2026, as noted by our editors
  21. Reference line for Michigan registered agent statute, drawn from legislature.mi.gov and confirmed October 2026, as noted by our editors
  22. Reference line for Minnesota registered agent statute, drawn from revisor.mn.gov and confirmed October 2026, as noted by our editors
  23. Reference line for Mississippi registered agent statute, drawn from sos.ms.gov and confirmed October 2026, as noted by our editors
  24. Reference line for Missouri registered agent statute, drawn from revisor.mo.gov and confirmed October 2026, as noted by our editors
  25. Reference line for Montana registered agent statute, drawn from mca.legmt.gov and confirmed October 2026, as noted by our editors
  26. Reference line for Nebraska registered agent statute, drawn from nebraskalegislature.gov and confirmed October 2026, as noted by our editors
  27. Reference line for Nevada registered agent statute, drawn from leg.state.nv.us and confirmed October 2026, as noted by our editors
  28. Reference line for New Hampshire registered agent statute, drawn from gc.nh.gov and confirmed October 2026, as noted by our editors
  29. Reference line for New Jersey registered agent statute, drawn from pub.njleg.gov and confirmed October 2026, as noted by our editors
  30. Reference line for New Mexico registered agent statute, drawn from nmonesource.com and confirmed October 2026, as noted by our editors
  31. Reference line for New York registered agent statute, drawn from nysenate.gov and confirmed October 2026, as noted by our editors
  32. Reference line for North Carolina registered agent statute, drawn from sosnc.gov and confirmed October 2026, as noted by our editors
  33. Reference line for North Dakota registered agent statute, drawn from ndlegis.gov and confirmed October 2026, as noted by our editors
  34. Reference line for Ohio registered agent statute, drawn from codes.ohio.gov and confirmed October 2026, as noted by our editors
  35. Reference line for Oklahoma registered agent statute, drawn from sos.ok.gov and confirmed October 2026, as noted by our editors
  36. Reference line for Oregon registered agent statute, drawn from oregonlegislature.gov and confirmed October 2026, as noted by our editors
  37. Reference line for Pennsylvania registered agent statute, drawn from legis.state.pa.us and confirmed October 2026, as noted by our editors
  38. Reference line for Rhode Island registered agent statute, drawn from webserver.rilegislature.gov and confirmed October 2026, as noted by our editors
  39. Reference line for South Carolina registered agent statute, drawn from scstatehouse.gov and confirmed October 2026, as noted by our editors
  40. Reference line for South Dakota registered agent statute, drawn from sdlegislature.gov and confirmed October 2026, as noted by our editors
  41. Reference line for Tennessee registered agent statute, drawn from sos-prod.tnsosgovfiles.com and confirmed October 2026, as noted by our editors
  42. Reference line for Texas registered agent statute, drawn from sos.texas.gov and confirmed October 2026, as noted by our editors
  43. Reference line for Utah registered agent statute, drawn from le.utah.gov and confirmed October 2026, as noted by our editors
  44. Reference line for Vermont registered agent statute, drawn from legislature.vermont.gov and confirmed October 2026, as noted by our editors
  45. Reference line for Virginia registered agent statute, drawn from law.lis.virginia.gov and confirmed October 2026, as noted by our editors
  46. Reference line for Washington registered agent statute, drawn from app.leg.wa.gov and confirmed October 2026, as noted by our editors
  47. Reference line for West Virginia registered agent statute, drawn from code.wvlegislature.gov and confirmed October 2026, as noted by our editors
  48. Reference line for Wisconsin registered agent statute, drawn from docs.legis.wisconsin.gov and confirmed October 2026, as noted by our editors
  49. Reference line for Wyoming registered agent statute, drawn from wyoleg.gov and confirmed October 2026, as noted by our editors