Every limited liability company operating in the United States needs to designate a registered agent. Even after you identify your initial registered agent in your formation paperwork, there are several reasons for why you may need to change the registered agent for your LLC in Maine.
Your registered agent could be moving out of state, or they could be a former co-owner or employee who no longer works for your organization. Maybe you want to switch from an individual registered agent to a professional service that operates in all 50 states, or perhaps you’re simply unsatisfied with your current registered agent’s service.
Whatever the reason may be, each state allows you to change your registered agent at any time, and in most states the process is both simple and inexpensive. Let’s dive into the specifics of how to change your LLC’s registered agent in Maine.
NOTE: If you need help changing registered agents, the same services that are known for offering business formation services — like LegalZoom and Zen Business — can also take over registered agent duties and file the needed paperwork.
Who Can Be a Maine Registered Agent?
A Maine registered agent is a person or business entity that has a physical address in the state. You or one of your co-owners can serve as your own registered agent, you can designate a friend or family member for this role, you can hire a lawyer or accountant as your agent, or you can hire an online business services company to provide registered agent service.
No matter who you choose to be your registered agent, they need to be physically present at the address provided to the state during all standard business hours. This person or entity does not need to have any prior experience being a registered agent, but it’s wise to choose a registered agent who is familiar with the serious responsibilities that come with this role.
There is no minimum age requirement to serve as a registered agent in Maine. When it comes to the rules and regulations regarding who can be a registered agent, Title 5, Section 106 of the Maine Revised Statutes gives the following guidelines regarding the role in this state:
“An individual or a domestic or foreign entity may become listed as a commercial clerk or commercial registered agent by filing with the Secretary of State a commercial clerk or commercial registered agent listing statement signed by or on behalf of the person that states:
- The name of the individual or the name, type and jurisdiction of organization of the entity;
- That the person is in the business of serving as a commercial clerk or commercial registered agent in this State; and
- The address of a place of business of the person in this State to which service of process and other notice and documents being served on or sent to entities represented by it may be delivered.”
For more general information regarding the role of a registered agent with a Maine LLC, we encourage you to check out our full guide on the topic.
What Is the Procedure for Changing Your LLC Registered Agent in Maine?
While the role of the registered agent is vitally important for any American business entity, this role can always be changed, and there are different rules for how to change your agent depending on which state your business operates in.
LLCs in the state of Maine can change their registered agent by filing a Statement of Appointment or Change form, or by amending their Certificate of Formation.
Option 1) Filing a Statement of Appointment or Change Form
The most common way to change an LLC’s registered agent in Maine is to file a Statement of Appointment or Change form. This form has two different versions depending on whether your business uses a commercial or noncommercial registered agent. Each form costs $35 to file, and they must be submitted via mail or in person.
Option 2) Filing a Certificate of Amendment Form
LLCs in Maine can also change their registered agent by filing a Certificate of Amendment form. There are separate forms for domestic and foreign LLCs, and the domestic form has a $50 fee compared to the foreign form’s $90 fee. Both forms can be used for either commercial or noncommercial registered agent changes. Like the Statement of Appointment or Change forms, these can also only be filed via mail or in person.
Processing Times
The standard processing time for these forms is 5-10 business days. Forms can be expedited for 24-hour service ($50 additional fee) or immediate service ($100 additional fee).
Prefer to Have a Registered Agent Service Handle Your Requirements?
A registered agent service is a company that specializes in being a registered agent for a wide variety of businesses across the country, bringing tons of expertise and a healthy dose of reliability to the role.
Most professional registered agent services operate on a national basis, meaning there’s no restrictions on which states you can operate your business in. They also tend to charge affordable rates, as you can find several registered agent services that charge around $10/month or even less for this service. In addition, most of these companies will also offer to handle the process of changing a registered agent for you.
If you’re interested in this option, we highly recommend Northwest Registered Agent.
The Law for Changing Your LLC Registered Agent in Maine
It’s always important to be well-informed regarding the specific laws for changing your registered agent. The laws regarding changing an agent in Maine apply to all entities and classifications of businesses, and the information in these laws is quite barebones, providing a framework but with few details.
Title 5, Chapter 6-A of the Maine Revised Statutes states that an entity may change their registered agent at any time by filing a statement of change that includes the following information:
- The name of the entity, and
- The information that is to be in effect as a result of the filing of the statement of change.
The law goes on to say that the interest holders of the entity do not need to approve the filing, and that the appointment of a registered agent through the filing of this form is “an affirmation that the clerk or agent has consented to serve as such.”
Conclusion
If you operate a limited liability company in the state of Maine, you need to designate a registered agent to receive important government document deliveries on your behalf. If you decide at any time that you would rather change your registered agent to a different individual or business entity, it’s important to know what that process looks like.
In Maine, an LLC can change its registered agent either by filing a Statement of Appointment or Change form, or by amending its Certificate of Formation. Both options are rather simple, and they both have reasonable filing fees as well, but if you’d rather have a registered agent service handle this task for you, you certainly have that option.
We hope this article helped you improve your understanding of changing a registered agent in Maine, and as always we thank you for choosing Registered Agent Ready!