WEBVTT 00:00:00.198 --> 00:00:06.358 The 5 best registered agents in Ohio in 2026 are Mainstay Filing, Northwest 00:00:06.394 --> 00:00:12.198 Registered Agent, OH Registered Agent.org, Bizee, and InCorp. 00:00:12.198 --> 00:00:15.158 This is The Business Formation Podcast. 00:00:15.286 --> 00:00:18.758 Ohio has a few quirks. What should a listener know first? 00:00:18.758 --> 00:00:23.238 First, Ohio calls it a statutory agent, not a registered agent. 00:00:23.387 --> 00:00:29.318 Second, Ohio has no annual report at all, so your agent is one of the few recurring 00:00:29.398 --> 00:00:35.398 costs you'll carry. And changing agents is Form 521, with a $25 fee. 00:00:36.815 --> 00:00:37.895 Who can be one? 00:00:37.895 --> 00:00:43.415 A natural person who lives in Ohio, or a corporation, nonprofit, LLC or partnership 00:00:43.447 --> 00:00:45.095 with a business address in Ohio. 00:00:45.362 --> 00:00:50.135 If it's an entity other than an Ohio corporation, it needs to be authorized to do 00:00:50.179 --> 00:00:53.775 business in Ohio. There's no age rule in the statute. 00:00:53.775 --> 00:00:57.415 And the address? I'm guessing a PO box won't do. 00:00:57.415 --> 00:01:02.215 Ohio is stricter than most. It has to be the agent's residence or usual place of 00:01:02.268 --> 00:01:07.335 business, which means a place that's customarily open during normal business hours, 00:01:07.367 --> 00:01:11.575 with someone generally present who's authorized to perform an agent's services. 00:01:11.815 --> 00:01:17.495 No post office box, even if the box has a street address, and Form 610 says 00:01:17.559 --> 00:01:21.095 addresses from commercial mail receiving agencies are not allowed. 00:01:21.095 --> 00:01:23.255 Not a mailbox store, then. 00:01:23.255 --> 00:01:24.855 Right. 00:01:24.855 --> 00:01:28.215 I should say, I'm Maya, and this is Dan. 00:01:28.215 --> 00:01:31.255 And I'm Dan. Now the five, in order. 00:01:33.139 --> 00:01:34.019 Who's first? 00:01:34.019 --> 00:01:40.899 Mainstay Filing, $149 a year, the same $149 at renewal. 00:01:40.899 --> 00:01:42.019 What does that buy? 00:01:42.019 --> 00:01:45.699 An Ohio address on the public record in place of your own. 00:01:45.761 --> 00:01:50.499 Anything served on your company is scanned and uploaded the same business day, and 00:01:50.526 --> 00:01:55.539 there's no fee. The first three government mailings per year are scanned free. 00:01:55.539 --> 00:01:58.019 And if I want to move my company over? 00:01:58.019 --> 00:02:01.379 Mainstay files the Form 521 for you. 00:02:01.419 --> 00:02:04.659 The $25 state fee goes through at cost. 00:02:04.953 --> 00:02:05.859 What's the trade-off? 00:02:05.859 --> 00:02:12.739 A flat $99 exists on this list, and so does a five-year prepay for less, which 00:02:12.792 --> 00:02:19.699 we'll get to. Mainstay is $149 on a year-by-year basis, with the form filed on your 00:02:19.779 --> 00:02:20.579 behalf. 00:02:21.379 --> 00:02:22.419 Number two. 00:02:22.419 --> 00:02:26.659 Northwest Registered Agent: $125 a year. 00:02:26.759 --> 00:02:31.699 Its page says it hasn't raised that price in 20 years, and it includes free scans of 00:02:31.752 --> 00:02:34.339 up to 10 pieces of regular business mail annually. 00:02:34.339 --> 00:02:36.019 And the thing to look for? 00:02:36.019 --> 00:02:42.659 The auto-enrolled annual report service, $100 plus state fees per filing, unless you 00:02:42.739 --> 00:02:46.979 cancel. Its page says you can add or cancel it at any time. 00:02:46.979 --> 00:02:49.459 But Ohio doesn't have an annual report. 00:02:49.459 --> 00:02:54.339 That's the interesting part. The state says business entities in Ohio aren't 00:02:54.401 --> 00:02:59.619 required to file one. So if you sign up in Ohio, check that enrollment and cancel it 00:02:59.672 --> 00:03:00.899 if it isn't something you need. 00:03:01.630 --> 00:03:03.230 Third? 00:03:03.230 --> 00:03:08.590 OH Registered Agent.org, at $99 a year, the same at renewal. 00:03:08.803 --> 00:03:13.630 It lists the Ohio office address, same-day scanning of legal correspondence and 00:03:13.686 --> 00:03:15.470 reminders for state deadlines. 00:03:15.470 --> 00:03:16.270 Switching? 00:03:16.270 --> 00:03:21.230 The $25 state fee plus nothing from them, according to its page. 00:03:21.390 --> 00:03:26.110 For this one, the catch the listing gives is that formation filing is a separate 00:03:26.170 --> 00:03:26.670 service. 00:03:26.670 --> 00:03:28.510 What does that tell me? 00:03:28.510 --> 00:03:31.790 If you're not forming, it might not matter. 00:03:31.870 --> 00:03:35.550 But if you also need a company filed, price that separately. 00:03:36.973 --> 00:03:37.933 Number four. 00:03:37.933 --> 00:03:41.133 Bizee, which used to be called Incfile. 00:03:41.313 --> 00:03:44.973 The agent is free for the first year with any formation package. 00:03:45.093 --> 00:03:49.134 After that, it's $149 and renews on its own. 00:03:49.922 --> 00:03:52.733 So once the free year is over, it's the same as Mainstay. 00:03:52.733 --> 00:03:59.533 Yes. Over three years, free plus $149 plus $149 00:03:59.773 --> 00:04:05.373 is $298, against $447 at Mainstay. 00:04:05.593 --> 00:04:08.413 But only if you formed with Bizee to begin with. 00:04:09.011 --> 00:04:10.771 And a surprise at number five. 00:04:10.771 --> 00:04:16.331 InCorp: $129 a year, flat, in every state. 00:04:16.441 --> 00:04:21.251 Its page says that price has gone up exactly once since 1998. 00:04:21.251 --> 00:04:23.971 That's not in the $99 club. 00:04:23.971 --> 00:04:30.771 No. But there's a multi-year deal: as low as $87 a year if you prepay five 00:04:30.838 --> 00:04:31.251 years. 00:04:31.251 --> 00:04:32.931 What's that in total? 00:04:32.931 --> 00:04:39.731 $87 times five is $435. Mainstay over the same five years 00:04:39.811 --> 00:04:46.371 is $745, so on paper, the prepay is $310 less. 00:04:46.831 --> 00:04:48.371 And the catch? 00:04:48.371 --> 00:04:52.291 It's in the name. The lowest rate means paying years up front. 00:04:52.531 --> 00:04:58.611 If you'd rather not tie up $435 at once, or you might change agents, the 00:04:58.659 --> 00:05:01.731 year-by-year price is $129. 00:05:02.987 --> 00:05:05.627 Back up. No annual report in Ohio. 00:05:05.787 --> 00:05:06.907 Is that really true? 00:05:06.907 --> 00:05:12.747 The Secretary of State's FAQ says business entities in Ohio are not required to file 00:05:12.827 --> 00:05:13.147 one. 00:05:13.147 --> 00:05:15.627 Then what's the state actually asking for? 00:05:15.627 --> 00:05:19.067 Mostly the original filing and any updates. 00:05:19.174 --> 00:05:25.707 Articles of Organization on Form 610 are $99, and that form includes the original 00:05:25.760 --> 00:05:29.947 appointment of the statutory agent and the agent's acceptance. 00:05:30.014 --> 00:05:32.267 There's no fee for the original appointment. 00:05:32.267 --> 00:05:36.427 So a first year is $99 for the state plus an agent. 00:05:36.427 --> 00:05:43.467 With Mainstay, $99 plus $149 is $248. 00:05:43.707 --> 00:05:50.587 In year two the state charge is zero, so it's just the agent: $149. 00:05:50.587 --> 00:05:54.347 Compare that with a state that has a $200 annual report. 00:05:54.347 --> 00:05:58.427 That's the case for hiring an agent in Ohio with a long view. 00:05:58.547 --> 00:06:01.307 There's nothing else to rack up every year. 00:06:02.532 --> 00:06:04.372 Walk me through Form 521. 00:06:04.372 --> 00:06:09.412 It's called the Statutory Agent Update, and it handles three things: a subsequent 00:06:09.452 --> 00:06:13.092 appointment of an agent, a change of address, and a resignation. 00:06:13.305 --> 00:06:19.092 It's $25 for any of those. The company files a written appointment of the new agent 00:06:19.124 --> 00:06:22.852 with their acceptance, and a statement that the former agent's appointment is 00:06:22.932 --> 00:06:24.052 revoked. 00:06:24.052 --> 00:06:25.892 What about the agent resigning on me? 00:06:25.892 --> 00:06:31.492 The agent files written notice and mails a copy to your LLC's principal office no 00:06:31.559 --> 00:06:36.772 later than the filing date. The agent's authority ends 30 days after the filing. 00:06:36.772 --> 00:06:38.692 And with no agent? 00:06:38.692 --> 00:06:43.892 Someone suing you can file an affidavit with the Secretary of State and pay $5 for 00:06:43.972 --> 00:06:48.372 four copies, and the state forwards the papers to you by certified mail. 00:06:48.559 --> 00:06:54.132 Separately, if you fail to keep an agent, the state sends notice, and if it isn't 00:06:54.172 --> 00:06:58.532 fixed within 30 days after the mailing, the articles can be canceled without further 00:06:58.612 --> 00:06:59.092 notice. 00:07:00.245 --> 00:07:02.645 If I'm in Columbus and I want a rule of thumb? 00:07:02.645 --> 00:07:07.765 Ask whether the price is the same next year, whether anything is added that Ohio 00:07:07.805 --> 00:07:12.005 doesn't need, and whether somebody files Form 521 for you. 00:07:12.005 --> 00:07:14.085 And the name that clears all three? 00:07:14.085 --> 00:07:19.525 Mainstay Filing. Our pick for Ohio, at $149 a year. 00:07:20.714 --> 00:07:22.154 One last pass through them. 00:07:22.154 --> 00:07:27.194 One, Mainstay Filing: $149 a year, same at renewal. 00:07:27.394 --> 00:07:33.914 Two, Northwest: $125, and cancel the report service you won't need. 00:07:34.061 --> 00:07:39.034 Three, OH Registered Agent.org: $99 flat. 00:07:39.258 --> 00:07:46.474 Four, Bizee: free the first year with a formation order, then $149. 00:07:46.570 --> 00:07:53.554 Five, InCorp: $129 a year, or $87 a year if you prepay five. 00:07:53.554 --> 00:07:55.674 The links are in the show notes. 00:07:55.834 --> 00:07:59.514 Thanks for listening to The Business Formation Podcast.