[0:00] The short answer Dan: The 5 best registered agents in Washington in 2026 are Mainstay Filing, Northwest Registered Agent, WA Registered Agent.org, Bizee, and InCorp. Maya: Welcome to The Business Formation Podcast. Washington sounds like it has a few unusual rules, doesn't it? Dan: It does. Changing your agent has no filing fee, the new agent has to sign a consent, and going thirty days without an agent can get a company dissolved. [0:30] Commercial or noncommercial Maya: First, what kinds of agents are there? Dan: Washington sorts them into two. A commercial registered agent is one listed with the Secretary of State. A noncommercial agent is, in the state's words, any person or business with a Washington address who agrees to accept legal mail for your company. Maya: Could that be a job title instead of a person? Dan: Yes, that's a Washington feature. A business can appoint an office, like president, secretary, treasurer or member, to act as agent no matter who holds the position. The statute has no residency or age rule. Maya: Address rules, I assume? Dan: A physical address in Washington, and the state says PO boxes and private mailboxes are prohibited. A PO box can be added only as a separate mailing address. The agent also has to be at the office during business hours, and an email address is required on the form. Maya: Do they have to agree to it? Dan: They do. The agent must give prior consent, and the form says the consent must be signed, regardless of the type of agent. Someone named without consent can file a notarized statement and the name comes off immediately. Maya: Before we go on, I'm Maya, and this is Dan. Dan: Good to be here. The five, then. [1:54] Mainstay Filing Maya: Where do we begin? Dan: Mainstay Filing: $149 a year, and the same $149 when it renews. Maya: What do you get? Dan: A Washington address on the public record in place of yours. Papers served on the company are scanned and uploaded the same business day with no fee, and the first three government mailings each year are scanned free. Maya: What about the changeover? Dan: Mainstay files the Statement of Change for you, and Washington charges no state fee. Maya: The one catch? Dan: Cost, compared with the two cheaper flat options. The pitch is that the price stays put and the paperwork is handled. [2:34] Northwest Registered Agent Maya: Second. Dan: Northwest Registered Agent at $125 a year. Its page says that price is unchanged in 20 years, and it scans up to 10 pieces of regular business mail annually for free. Maya: What should I watch for? Dan: You're automatically enrolled in its annual report service, $100 plus state fees per filing, unless you cancel it. Its page says you can add or cancel any time. Maya: And Washington's report is $70. Dan: So a filing with the service would be the $100 service fee plus $70 to the state, or $170. Without it, you do the $70 report yourself. [3:11] WA Registered Agent.org Maya: Third place. Dan: WA Registered Agent.org: $99 a year, same at renewal. The address used on your filings, same-day scanning of legal mail and compliance reminders. Maya: Moving to them? Dan: No state fee, and none from them either. As with the others at this price, annual report filing is a separate service. Maya: Over three years? Dan: $297, against $447. [3:40] Bizee Maya: Four. Dan: Bizee, which used to be Incfile. Its agent is free the first year with a formation package. After that it's $149 a year, renewed automatically. Maya: Do I have to form with them to get the free year? Dan: Yes. If your Washington LLC is already formed, the free year isn't on the table, and you start at $149. [4:02] InCorp Maya: And the fifth? Dan: InCorp: $129 a year, flat, every state. It says that rate has risen once since 1998. Maya: And the deal? Dan: Five years prepaid brings it to as low as $87 a year, which is $435 total. Maya: Compared to Mainstay? Dan: $149 times five is $745, so the difference is $310 in InCorp's favor on paper. Maya: But? Dan: You're paying for five years at once. If you might change agents, the $129 yearly rate is the honest comparison. [4:43] Dollars and dates Maya: What does Washington itself charge? Dan: The Certificate of Formation is $180 plus an online processing fee. The annual report is $70, due by the end of your anniversary month, with a $25 delinquency fee after that. Maya: What if I need to change the agent partway through the year? Dan: Inside the 180-day window before the due date, you can put the new agent on the annual report. Outside it, you file an Amended Annual Report for $10, or the Statement of Change. And an initial or annual report naming a different agent counts as a statement of change. Maya: Run the first-year total with Mainstay. Dan: The $180 plus $149 is $329, plus the online processing fee. After that, $70 plus $149 is $219. [5:44] Changing and resigning Maya: How does the change work? Dan: The Statement of Change or Designation of Registered Agent. There's no filing fee, and you can file online at the Secretary of State's corporations system, or mail it to Olympia. Expediting costs $100 more. And the new agent signs the consent on page 2. Maya: What about if my agent resigns? Dan: The Statement of Resignation is also free. The agent has to notify you in a record of the date it was filed. It takes effect on the earlier of the 31st day after filing or the day a new agent is designated. Maya: And if I just ignore it? Dan: The state can administratively dissolve an entity that has no agent for thirty consecutive days. After the notice, you get 60 days to cure it. Maya: What about lawsuits in the meantime? Dan: If the agent can't be served, the entity can be served by registered or certified mail at its principal office. Failing that, the papers can be handed to the person in charge of a regular place of business. As a last resort, the Secretary of State is the agent. Maya: So the state is the safety net, not a plan. Dan: Exactly, and the dissolution clock is the real risk. [6:57] Notices and email Maya: One thing I noticed: you keep saying email. Dan: Washington requires an email address on all documents submitted to the office. Existing addresses are used for notifications unless you replace them in a filing. Maya: So that's where reminders go? Dan: That's the idea. Keep it current, because it's how the state reaches you about the annual report and anything else on file. Maya: And the agent's duty? Dan: The statute says an agent must forward to the entity, at the address most recently supplied, any process, notice or demand that's served on or received by the agent. So the quality of the forwarding matters. Maya: Same-day scanning, then. Dan: Right. A company that scans the same business day gives you a head start on any deadline, and that's part of what you're paying for. [7:45] Picking one Maya: What's your Washington rule of thumb? Dan: Make sure someone signed the consent, the price is the same next year, and nobody is adding a report service you can't use. Maya: And the pick? Dan: Mainstay Filing. Our pick for Washington, at $149 a year. [8:02] The five in a row Maya: Say all five once more. Dan: One, Mainstay Filing: $149 a year, same at renewal. Two, Northwest: $125, with the report enrollment to cancel. Three, WA Registered Agent.org: $99 flat. Four, Bizee: free the first year with a formation order, then $149. Five, InCorp: $129 a year, or $87 a year if you prepay five. Maya: The links are in the show notes. Thanks for listening to The Business Formation Podcast.