Fact checked for accuracy by Billie Anne Grigg, a bookkeeper and Mastery Level Certified Profit First Professional.
Regardless of your reasons for quitting, your resignation as a registered agent must follow the correct procedure and all legal provisions. After all, your role as a registered agent in your Limited Liability Company (LLC) is a crucial one that entails handling confidential documents.
Failure to adhere to procedures can leave your boss or company with unprecedented consequences, including heavy fines and penalties.
Contrary to what many believe, it’s not a complicated process. You can follow some steps to avoid these consequences and be individually liable. Read on to learn how to resign as a registered agent correctly and legally.
Steps to Resign as a Registered Agent
Reasons for resigning as a registered agent vary from one person to another. It may be due to a change of location or priorities. Either way, it is essential to resign to ensure a proper transition. Of course, you’ll want to do this without inconveniencing everyone involved.
The general resignation procedure follows the following steps.
Notify the LLC
You may wonder whether or not you should break the news to your LLC.
Upon withdrawing from your responsibilities as a registered agent, there are two entities you must notify:
- The Secretary of State
- The Limited Liability Company (LLC)
After filing the Statement of Resignation with your state government, you should follow the resignation procedure under your state laws.
For instance, those in Washington State should file with Washington’s Secretary of State office and follow the procedures under RCW 23.95.445. If in Nevada, you must adhere to NRS 77.370.
In most states, the state itself will notify your LLC on your behalf. However, it’s good to inform your LLC before leaving. It allows them sufficient time to seek a replacement.
Not all states give you this option. If that’s the case, you’re obligated to notify your employer before sending an official resignation.
Submit Your Registration
As mentioned, most states require that you submit a Statement of Resignation to resign officially. Take the form to your Secretary of State’s office.
In some states, the office will provide you with an official document. Others don’t. All you have to do is fill in the spaces with the necessary contact information and signature.
If your state has no official resignation form, you have no choice but to write it yourself.
Start by listing your company’s name, followed by the representative’s address to which you’re sending the notice. Include the company’s entity number before signing at the bottom of your Statement of Resignation. The order should be as follows:
- Your name
- Your LLC’s name
- The LLC’s principal office address
- A statement of resignation
- Your signature and date
The filing or resignation requirements vary from state to state. Therefore, ensure you visit your state’s website before commencing the preparation of your document.
For instance, in Nevada, you must submit a Customer Order Form alongside the Resignation Statement. In Oregon and Florida, you must submit in person or mail a written notice to the Oregon Secretary of State and a copy of the same to the company you represented.
In Texas, after submitting a written notice of resignation to the company you represented, you have ten days to present in person or by mail a Registration Statement in duplicate to the Texas Secretary of State Corporations Division.
At the same time, some states require you to submit a copy of the Resignation Statement to both your LLC and State Secretary. Other states require that you send to the state only.
Remember, there’s a fee you need to pay to resign as a registered agent. This payment is an administration fee for resignation processing. Once again, this varies from state to state. Often, the cost depends on the number of entities from which you intend to resign.
How to Find a New Registered Agent
Of course, you expect someone else to take charge once you officially resign. Responsible resignation ensures your LLC extends its excellent form with the state and stays afloat.
You should not look for someone to succeed you by yourself. Giving your company a timely notice gives them enough time to find a replacement. Keep in mind that most states have restrictions concerning whom a company can register as an agent.
While there’s no shortage of individuals to fill your position, there are requirements your new agent must meet. These include:
- Be at least 18 years old (if an individual)
- Be authorized to conduct business in that state (if a business entity)
- Have a physical address in that state
- Have a mailing address in that state (no PO box is allowed)
- Be physically present at the registered office address during all standard office hours to receive official and legal mails.
Your LLC has two options at hand—to appoint an individual or a business entity as your successor. It’s essential to ensure that whoever replaces you complies with the abovementioned rules. More importantly, they should equal or top your registered agent performance.
It’s Not Yet Over
It’s not over yet. After you have officially resigned, you don’t leave your position immediately.
Most states require you to remain for a certain period (usually 30 days) after filing the documents. It gives your LLC sufficient time to line up your successor and orient them to the job.
Sometimes, none of the managers or members is ready to take over the role of a registered agent. What’s more, they may be unwilling to entrust a friend, family member, or third party with the responsibilities. So, what next?
The good news is that today there are registered agent services that your LLC can hire to replace you.
These reputable companies reliably assume all agent duties. They are available during all working hours to file/scan vital documents, handle the process, and forward state correspondence to the LLC. Registered agent services also handle maintenance filings such as annual reports.
When your replacement has officially taken over, you’re now free to leave.
Filed under: Advice Columns
