[0:00] The short answer Dan: The 5 best registered agents in Michigan in 2026 are Mainstay Filing, Northwest Registered Agent, MI Registered Agent.org, Bizee, and Michigan Registered Agent.co. Maya: Welcome to The Business Formation Podcast. Michigan has its own wording for this, I think? Dan: It does. Michigan says resident agent, and it pairs the agent with a registered office. Changing the agent is Form 520, and the fee is $5. [0:36] Resident agent and registered office Maya: Is that two things or one? Dan: Two. A Michigan LLC has to keep both a registered office and a resident agent. The office may be the same as your place of business, but it doesn't have to be. Maya: What does the agent actually do? Dan: Receives documents, notices or demands served on the company. And the Corporations Division puts the agent's name on the public record. Maya: Who qualifies? Dan: A Michigan resident, a Michigan corporation or LLC, or a foreign corporation or LLC authorized to do business in Michigan. There's no age rule that we found. One firm limit: a business can't be its own resident agent. Maya: And the address, can that be a post office box? Dan: Not for the registered office. Form 520 says a P.O. box may not be designated, though a separate mailing address on the articles can be one. I didn't find a business-hours rule in the statute or on the state's pages. Maya: I should say, I'm Maya, and this is Dan. Dan: And we'll go through the five now. [1:43] Mainstay Filing Maya: First on the list? Dan: Mainstay Filing, $149 a year, and the renewal is $149 as well. Maya: What's in it? Dan: Its Michigan address goes on the public record instead of yours. Anything served on your company is scanned and uploaded the same business day, with no fee. Your first three government mailings each year are scanned for free. Maya: If I already have an agent? Dan: Mainstay files the change for you. The $5 state fee is passed through at cost. Maya: And the catch? Dan: Price, mostly. There are two $99 options below it, so if the number on the sticker decides everything, Mainstay won't win. [2:25] Northwest Registered Agent Maya: Number two. Dan: Northwest Registered Agent, $125 a year. Its page says the price hasn't moved in 20 years, and it scans up to 10 pieces of regular business mail annually at no charge. Maya: What's the catch there? Dan: Enrollment in its annual report filing service, $100 plus state fees for each filing, unless you cancel. Its page says you may add or cancel any time. Maya: Michigan's own statement is $25, right? Dan: It is, and you file it yourself online. So with the service on, you'd pay $100 on top of the state's $25 in a given year. Cancel it, and you're at $125 for the agent alone. [3:09] MI Registered Agent.org Maya: And three? Dan: MI Registered Agent.org, $99 a year, unchanged at renewal. It covers the registered office address, same-day scanning of legal documents and alerts before state deadlines. Maya: To switch? Dan: Only the $5 state fee. The thing to know: annual report filing isn't in the plan. Maya: Compared with Mainstay? Dan: $99 against $149 is $50 a year, which makes $150 over three years. [3:39] Bizee Maya: Number four. Dan: Bizee, which used to be called Incfile. Its agent is free in year one with a formation package, and $149 a year after that, renewing automatically. Maya: So after year one, it matches Mainstay. Dan: Yes. Over three years, free plus two years at $149 is $298. Just remember that the free year is tied to forming with Bizee. [4:08] Michigan Registered Agent.co Maya: And the last one? Dan: Michigan Registered Agent.co, at $99 flat. The registered office, same-day scanning of court papers and reminders before state deadlines. Maya: Anything to tell it apart from number three? Dan: Not from what the listings say. The same catch applies: the annual statement is something you file separately. [4:32] The annual statement Maya: Let's stay on that. When is Michigan's yearly filing due? Dan: February 15, and it costs $25. It's filed online only, through the state's MiBusiness Registry Portal. Maya: Does it mention the agent? Dan: It does. The annual statement contains the name of the resident agent and the address of the registered office. The state sends email reminders about 90 days before the due date. Maya: So the agent on file matters every year. Dan: It does, so make sure what the statement shows matches what you've filed. Maya: What did formation cost? Dan: The Articles of Organization, Form 700, are $50, with the agent and office in Article IV. So with Mainstay, the first year is the $50 filing plus the $149 agent. After that, each year is the $25 statement plus the $149 agent, which is $174. Maya: And with one of the $99 agents? Dan: $25 plus $99 is $124 a year, as long as you file the statement yourself. [5:37] Changing and resigning Maya: Walk me through Form 520. Dan: The Certificate of Change of Registered Office and/or Change of Resident Agent. It's $5. You file it online at the state's corporation portal, or mail it to the Bureau in Lansing. Maya: Anything unusual about who signs? Dan: The form says the resident agent may sign if only the registered office is changing. Maya: And if my agent wants out? Dan: That's Form 521, also $5 for LLCs. The notice goes to a member or manager. The resignation is effective when a successor is appointed, or 30 days after the Bureau receives it, whichever comes first. Maya: Whichever comes first. So not a long runway. Dan: Right. The statute says the company shall promptly appoint a successor. [6:24] If there's no agent Maya: What if I don't have one at all? Dan: Michigan lets the other side deliver a summons and complaint to the state administrator, by delivery or registered mail. That applies where you've failed to appoint an agent, or the agent can't be found or served with reasonable diligence. Maya: So it still gets to me eventually. Dan: Through the state, yes. I didn't find a missing agent listed as a ground for administrative dissolution in the LLC sections we read, but having your lawsuit routed through the state is still not where you want to be. [6:57] Where you do the filing Maya: Can all of this be done online? Dan: Most of it. Form 520 and the resignation form can be filed online, by mail or, for the resignation, in person. The annual statement is online only. Maya: So a founder who dislikes the portal has no paper option for that one. Dan: Not for the statement, no. That's one more reason some owners pay an agent that sends reminders ahead of state deadlines. Maya: What would I need handy before I start? Dan: The new agent's name and a Michigan street address for the registered office, plus the exact name of your company as it's on file. [7:31] Picking one Maya: How should a founder in Detroit or Grand Rapids decide? Dan: Look at three things: whether the price repeats next year, whether the business address is a real street address, and whether somebody files Form 520 for you. Maya: And the answer? Dan: Mainstay Filing. Our pick for Michigan, at $149 a year. [7:55] The five in a row Maya: Run them one more time. Dan: One, Mainstay Filing: $149 a year, same at renewal. Two, Northwest: $125, and cancel the report service if you won't use it. Three, MI Registered Agent.org: $99 flat. Four, Bizee: free the first year with a formation order, then $149. Five, Michigan Registered Agent.co: $99 flat. Maya: The links are in the show notes. Thanks for listening to The Business Formation Podcast.