For you to operate your business anywhere, be it in Texas or any other region, you must register with the authorities. This registration enables the authorities to understand who is behind an operation and who will be held liable for any harm that accrues from your business operations. It also enables the authorities to know what kind of business you wish to conduct and to grant or reject your registration based on this. Different forms are required to register a business, and it depends on the entity you have in mind. Today, we will look at the certificate of formation, which all LLCs must file before they can commence their operations. We will also delve into how you should fill and file this document.
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What is a certificate of formation in Texas?
This document is what enables the authorities to go through your proposed business and either give you a license, recommend changes or reject the proposal. Without filing the Texas certificate of formation, you cannot start your business and conducting business without approval surmounts to breaking the law. It is thus a requirement you cannot do without.
How to create certificate of formation LLC for Texas?
There are various ways you can generate this document.
- For one, you can go to your attorney who can walk you through the steps or even fill out the paperwork on your behalf. This option will cost you a pretty dime.
- Secondly, you can do the filing online where you follow the given prompts and make payments as guided in the steps that follow. We will touch on this later.
- Thirdly, you can download PDF form from the secretary of state which you must fill and deliver either in person or by mail to the state.
- Fourthly, you can use generation services to get the work done easily. These certificate of formation Texas examples often offer customized documents based on the state.
Here is how you can use the fourth option to cut your work in half and avoid using attorneys who would charge you an arm and a leg for this simple exercise:
- Choose the state where you would like to register your company. In this case, it will be Texas.
- Next, you must decide if your company will offer professional services during the dispensing of your duties. Keep in mind that any companies that allude to offering such services must have the necessary paperwork. You must get this from the appropriate licensing body before applying to register your company. If such services will not be in play, you can move on to the next step.
- You must also include who will act as the primary point of contact between you and the state. This includes their name, and physical address within the state. Please note that this person or individual must meet the state’s requirements such as being at least 18 years old and having an address within the state.
- The management of the company will also be important and you must state whether members will take over or you will hire a manager to undertake this role. Details of the designated person should be indicated on the form.
- The state must understand why you wish to form the entity. You might wonder why this is important. The simplest way to explain this would be that the state must protect its residents by ensuring that business activities are in line with the law. You can be general or specific with the details, as long as it is clear that you will operate within the bounds of the law.
- You should also state how long you would like to operate the entity. For most people, the duration is perpetual as you can always leave the company to your beneficiaries or transfer it when you can no longer operate it. However, if you would like to terminate the operations at some point, you should go with the limited option.
- Supplemental provisions are also available if you would like to include more information about the entity. These are only important if you find that there’s additional information necessary in your registration that is not well-covered in the given document. The statements given should be simple and easy to understand. Using complex language and lengthy sentences can further complicate the process, delaying the approval.
- Electing an organizer is also important, as this is the individual who signs the documents, stating that they contain factual information. This individual must be a natural person who is aged at least 18 years and should be capable of entering into a contractual agreement. Alternatively, it can be a legal entity with the organizer being an authorized member of the said entity. Only one person needs to sign the documents.
- You should also be clear on when you would like the approval to take effect. You can decide that you want to start operating immediately you get the approval or at a later time.
These steps are pretty much what you will follow in other modes of filing.
Where can I get a certificate of formation in Texas?
If you choose not to use generation services for certificate of formation templates, you can access the Texas LLC certificate of formation form online where you can fill it directly online or download a PDF version that you can manually fill.
Online
Access the secretary of state website where you can create an account. Once you have filled in the required details and logged in, find the ‘business organizations’ option in the toolbar and select the ‘LLC’ option under the ‘registration documents’ option.
Offline
You can as well download the form directly from the website. In this case, you will get a PDF form which you must fill manually and deliver to the state in person or by mail.
Do I have to file Texas certificate of formation?
The only way you can legally operate your entity is if you have approval from the state and the only way to get this is by filing this document called certificate of formation. Without it, you would risk getting penalized for your activities or worse. It is thus important that you do not skip this step.
Where to file articles of organization of a Texas LLC
The mode of filing depends on how you accessed the documents. For online accounts, you can file the documents directly through your account. For hard documents accessed from generation services or from the state website, you must deliver these as follows:
By Mail
Fill certificate of formation and send it to:
Secretary of State
P.O. Box 13697,
Austin, Texas 78711-3697
In Person Delivery
James Earl Rudder Office Building,
1019 Brazos, Austin, Texas 78701
By Fax
Send a certificate of formation to (512) 463-5709
Download the Texas LLC Certificate of Formation (Form 205)
Each certificate of formation LLC Texas filing will set you back a non-refundable fee of $300 and you should thus work on ensuring the document is correct. Else, you will end up paying another amount the next time you make a filing. Please note that online filings incur a convenience charge, bringing the total to $308.
Is certificate of filing the same as certificate of formation?
No. A certificate of filing confirms that the state has received your LLC certificate of formation Texas and that the latter meets the requirements. The Texas secretary of state certificate of formation, on the other hand, is what you send to the state to register your documents. Once you get approval to start your business operations, the state will send you these documents alongside a welcome letter.
What language to be needed to obtain tax-exempt status in certificate of formation in Texas?
The document contains limited information on tax-exempt status and it would thus be necessary to file form AP204 to get such exemptions.
How long process file the certificate of formation for a domestic LLC in Texas?
Filing for a domestic LLC Texas online is immediate and you should get an approval sent via email in two to three business days. Mailing takes seven to ten business days for approval to take place. Please keep in mind that this timeline does not include the time taken for the mail to get to the state, which could be another week.