FAQ - How To Start A Business - Foreign Business

Has the business previously been registered with the Office of the Secretary of State?

· Yes: See our Administratively Dissolved/Terminated page here.

· No: Continue to the steps below.

Has the business been issued a UBI through the Department of Revenue?

· Yes: Provide the UBI when submitting the required document to register with our office.

· No: A new UBI will be issued by our office upon completion of the registration. The UBI issued will then be used when the business registers with the Department of Revenue.

Step one:
Obtain a Certificate of Existence/Good Standing from the business entity’s home jurisdiction. This is a document issued from the office that registered your business and will reflect that the business is in good standing. You may review where to receive the document depending on your home jurisdiction here.

Step two:
Once the Certificate of Existence/Good Standing is received the business entity will need to submit a Foreign Registration Statement and select the correct business entity type. There are three separate forms: one for for-profit business entity types, one for nonprofit corporations, and one for banks/credit unions. You can submit the Foreign Registration Statement through the following ways:

Through the online filing system Corporations and Charities Filing System “CCFS”.
- Generally processed within 5 business days upon submission.

*Currently online submission can only be completed by for-profit business entity types.

Mail in the Foreign Registration Statement document and the Certificate of Existence/Good Standing.
- Standard processing: generally within 10 business days upon receipt.
- Expedited processing: generally within 3 business days upon receipt.
In-person services by coming to our office. The same day service fee applies and is in addition to the required filing fees.
- You will leave our office with your documents filed and the UBI issued to the business.

Step three:
Once your Foreign Registration Statement has been filed and the UBI has been issued your next step is to go to the Department of Revenue and apply for the business license.