Hire a Registered Agent in Texas

A registered agent is the person or company named to receive legal papers and official state mail for a Texas entity, at a physical Texas street address called the registered office. It is required by Business Organizations Code § 5.201.

Yes. Every Texas LLC, corporation and limited partnership must appoint and continuously maintain a registered agent under BOC § 5.201, from the day it files its formation document.

Yes, if you are a Texas resident at least 18 years old with a physical Texas street address where you can accept deliveries during normal business hours (BOC § 5.201(a)). Many owners hire a service instead to keep that address off the public record.

No. BOC § 5.201(c) requires the registered office to be a physical street address; a P.O. box or a standalone mailbox or answering service does not qualify.

LLC Register charges $99 a year. Commercial registered agent services generally range from about $99 to $249 a year, based on published pricing checked 9/30/2026.

File Form 401, the Statement of Change of Registered Agent/Registered Office, with the Texas Secretary of State for a $15 fee ($5 for nonprofit corporations). It can be filed online or by mail.

The Secretary of State mails a notice, and if the entity does not designate a valid registered agent by the 91st day after that notice, the state involuntarily terminates the entity under BOC § 11.251.

Yes. Since House Bill 1787 took effect in 2010, BOC § 5.2011 requires a registered agent to consent in writing or electronically before being appointed. Form 401-A is the state's form for documenting that consent.

Yes, as long as they are a Texas resident, at least 18, have a Texas street address, are available during business hours, and consent in writing under BOC §§ 5.201 and 5.2011.

Only if that company is itself registered to do business in Texas and maintains a Texas street address; an unregistered out-of-state entity cannot serve as agent under BOC § 5.201(a)(2).

A registered agent must forward any process, notice or demand to the entity's last provided address under BOC § 5.206; LLC Register scans and emails it to you the same day we receive it.

Yes. The registered agent's name and registered office address are part of the entity's public filing with the Texas Secretary of State, and appear on the annual Public Information Report.

Yes. A registered agent can file a statement of resignation with the Secretary of State, which starts the state's notice process for the entity to name a replacement before facing termination.

Yes. The Franchise Tax Public Information Report or Ownership Information Report, due May 15 each year to the Texas Comptroller, must show your current registered agent and registered office.

Yes, for every filing entity: LLCs, corporations, limited partnerships and most other entities registered with the Texas Secretary of State must appoint one under BOC § 5.201.

Yes. A foreign LLC must appoint a Texas registered agent with a physical Texas street address before the Secretary of State will approve its Certificate of Authority (Form 304, a $750 filing fee), the same as a domestic LLC.

No. Under BOC § 5.302, the registered agent designated for the parent LLC automatically serves as the agent for every series within it, so a series does not file a separate appointment of its own.

Yes. A PLLC follows the same rule as any other Texas LLC and names its registered agent directly on Form 206, the Certificate of Formation for a Professional Limited Liability Company.

At least 31 days. Under BOC § 5.204, a resigning agent notifies the entity, then notifies the Secretary of State no later than 10 days after that, and the resignation is not effective until the 31st day after the state receives the notice (Form 402).

The Texas Secretary of State can accept service on your LLC's behalf. Under BOC §§ 5.251–5.253, once a process server shows reasonable diligence trying to reach your registered agent at the registered office, they may serve the Secretary of State instead, who forwards the papers to the entity.

Yes. BOC § 5.201 applies to nonprofit corporations the same as any other filing entity, and nonprofits additionally confirm their registered agent on Form 802, the periodic report filed with the Secretary of State.

Yes. A Texas LP must maintain a registered agent just like an LLC, though the role is distinct from the general partner — Texas law allows service on an LP through either its general partner or its registered agent.

Search SOSDirect, the Secretary of State's online records portal, by entity name, filing number or registered agent name; viewing a registered agent's name and address costs $1 per search.

No, not if you're keeping the same agent. The certificate of conversion itself names the converted entity's registered agent, so a separate Form 401 change filing is only needed if you're also switching to a new agent.

Yes. Under BOC § 5.203, a registered agent can file Form 408 to update only its own name or address — it keeps serving your entity — and must give you at least 10 days' written notice before filing.

Yes. A single individual or registered agent service can be named on any number of Texas entities at once, as long as each appointment meets the residency/registration and physical-address rules under BOC § 5.201.

Yes. The IRS treats an annual registered agent fee as an ordinary and necessary business expense, deductible in the year you pay it.

Yes, as long as your attorney is a Texas resident (or a firm registered to do business in Texas) with a physical Texas street address — the same eligibility rule under BOC § 5.201 that applies to anyone else.

No. Texas's Business Organizations Code uses the term "registered agent," and "agent for service of process" describes the same role in plain language — some other states' statutes use that phrase directly.

The Secretary of State treats that the same as having no valid registered agent: it mails a notice, and under BOC § 11.251 the entity has until the 91st day after that notice to fix its agent or registered office before facing involuntary termination.

You have to name one upfront. Form 205, the Certificate of Formation, requires the registered agent's name and Texas street address before the Secretary of State will file it — you cannot leave it blank and add an agent afterward.

Your registered office is specifically where your registered agent accepts legal mail and must be a physical Texas street address; your principal office is wherever you actually run the business and does not have to be in Texas at all.

No. BOC § 5.201(c) requires a physical Texas street address where someone can personally accept delivery, and a commercial mail-receiving service or mailbox rental does not meet that rule any more than a P.O. box does.

No. Texas's public filings list only your registered agent's name and street address; no phone number or email address is required or published.

Yes. Nonprofit corporations file Form 802, the periodic report, with the Secretary of State every four years, and it must show the corporation's current registered agent and registered office.

Yes. Nothing in BOC § 5.201 prevents an owner, manager or officer from also serving as the entity's registered agent, as long as they meet the residency and physical-address requirements.

No. Texas has no licensing, bonding or registration requirement specific to registered agents beyond the residency (or Texas registration) and physical-address rules in BOC § 5.201.

No. BOC § 5.201(a) requires an individual registered agent to be a Texas resident; owning Texas real estate does not meet that requirement if you personally live elsewhere.

No. BOC § 5.206 limits a registered agent's role to receiving and forwarding legal notices and process addressed to the entity — it has no authority to sign contracts or act on the entity's behalf.

Yes. Nothing requires the two to be different — a small business commonly uses one Texas street address for both, as long as it meets the registered office's physical-address and business-hours-availability rule.