Nonprofit organisations in Georgia will almost certainly need to designate and have a registered agent.
A registered agent receives any official documents from the State of Georgia, as well as any service of process filed on a firm in a lawsuit.
The second step in our comprehensive tutorial, How to Start an Organization in Georgia, is to choose a registered agent for your 501(c)(3) nonprofit.
A registered agent is a professional who will represent your organisation to the Georgia Secretary of State while you do business. Registered agents are sometimes known as resident agents, statutory agents, or service of process agents in certain jurisdictions.
Typically, your registered agent will receive mail on your behalf, such as compliance information and tax notices. Registered agents are also in charge of receiving process paperwork. This simply implies that your registered agent will receive court summons and paperwork on your nonprofit’s behalf if it is sued.
In Georgia, registered agents must meet the following requirements:
As long as they complete the qualifications outlined above, anybody may act as your nonprofit’s registered agent. You may choose to be your nonprofit’s registered agent, or you can designate a member of your board of directors or a trustworthy friend.
If you decide to serve as your organization’s registered agent, you must grasp the significance of the role. If you miss a filing date or lose a document, your nonprofit’s compliance status may be jeopardised, and the Secretary of State may revoke your nonprofit’s corporate registration.
Many organisations and other companies prefer to use a professional registered agent service to guarantee that their organisation is always in compliance.
Before you choose a Georgia registered agent service, think about the benefits and drawbacks of this technique.
There are various reasons why you should consider employing a registered agent service for your nonprofit organisation. This strategy, in particular, can:
The sole downside of using a registered agent service is that it is expensive, while you may serve as your own registered agent for free.
While employing a professional registered agent service is a good idea for many reasons, in other cases it is required. If you answered “yes” to any of the following questions, your organisation should use a registered agent service.
When you submit your nonprofit’s Articles of Incorporation, you must choose a Georgia registered agent. In Georgia, the fundamental nonprofit creation document is the Articles of Incorporation.
Use the Georgia eCorp website to create your Georgia nonprofit online and submit the Articles of Incorporation together with the $100 filing fee. You will be able to choose your registered agent while completing the Articles of Incorporation online.
Download the Articles of Incorporation Filing Procedures and use it as a reference to create your own Articles of Incorporation to incorporate your Georgia nonprofit by mail. To the Georgia Secretary of State, submit your Articles of Incorporation, a Transmittal Information Form, and the $110 filing fee. Within your Articles of Incorporation, you will provide the name and address of the registered agent.
Include this update on your Georgia nonprofit’s Annual Registration or Amended Annual Registration (if you’ve previously filed your nonprofit’s Annual Registration) to officially alter your registered agent.
Annual Registration for your organisation may be accomplished online via the Secretary of State’s website, or you can submit a paper copy after printing your completed form online. Paper filings cost $40, while online filings are $30. Annual Registration Amendments cost $20 online and $30 in physical copy.
When you work at a charity, you have more essential things to worry about than monitoring the mail, submitting legal paperwork, and remembering compliance deadlines. A registered agent can help you with that. When you engage a professional registered agent service, you can put these responsibilities in their skilled hands and completely concentrate on what is most important to your firm.
