How Do I Change My West Virginia Registered Agent?

In West Virginia, you may alter your registered agent by submitting an Application to Appoint or Change Process, Officers, and/or Addresses to the West Virginia Secretary of State.

When transferring registered agent services, when an agent resigns or goes out of business, or if they choose to function as their own registered agent, a company owner may opt to change their registered agent.

Submit an application to appoint or change the process, officers, and/or addresses.

The easiest approach to alter your registered agent is to file an Application to Appoint or Change Process, Officers, and/or Addresses with the West Virginia Secretary of State.

This may be done in person, via mail, or online.

Recommended: Online Application for Appointment or Change of Process, Officers, and/or Addresses

You may use West Virginia’s One Stop Business Portal to complete and submit an Application to Appoint or Change Process, Officers, and/or Addresses. This procedure includes the following steps:

Access the website by logging in.
Choose “Secretary of State.”
Select “Address/Officer/Agent Change” under “Other Filings.”
Look for and choose your firm.
Fill out the form and send it in with your payment.

Apply by mail or in person to appoint or change process, officers, and/or addresses.

To submit an Application to Appoint or Change Process, Officers, and/or Addresses by mail or in person, first download and fill out the form from the West Virginia Secretary of State website.

Submit the form using one of the following methods:

Mail or visit the One-Stop Business Center at 1615 Washington Street East Charleston, WV 25311.

Clarksburg, WV 26301 North Central WV Business Center 200 West Main St.

229 E. Martin Street Martinsburg, WV 25401 Eastern Panhandle Business Center

Fax:\s(304) 558-8381

Email:\[email protected]

Fee: $15

This cost may be paid by cheque, money order, or credit card. Read the change form for complete instructions.

Please expedite your order.

If you want the West Virginia Secretary of State to expedite the processing of your postal form, you must indicate this on the Customer Order Request form attached to the Application to Appoint or Change Process, Officers, and/or Addresses.

Send in an Annual Report

If you are within the filing period for your company’s West Virginia annual report, you may take advantage of this filing to change your registered agent without having to complete extra documentation. This is the most straightforward method of changing your registered agent, but it must be done during the filing time.

Make sure to include the information for your new registered agent on the report. Once you submit that report, your registered agent will be changed.

Why Should You Change Registered Agents?

A firm may choose to change its registered agent for a variety of reasons, including:

Changing from an Individual Agent to a Registered Agent Service: While people (even a company’s own executives or employees) may operate as registered agents, they will be publicly listed in the state’s database. Some individuals may see this as an invasion of their privacy. Registered agents must also be accessible at their office between the hours of 8 a.m. and 5 p.m., Monday through Friday, which might be inconvenient. These concerns are resolved by switching to a registered agent service.
Business Expansion into New States: LLCs, corporations, and other formal business formations must have a registered agent in each state where they do business. Not all registered agents are authorized to act as a registered agent in every state. Some companies would rather have the same registered agent in each state than multiple separate ones.
Customer Contentment: Some changes occur simply because a firm is dissatisfied with its present registered agent, whether the issue is one of pricing, customer service, or job quality.