Registered agent requirements in Connecticut

Who can be a registered agent in Connecticut?

A Connecticut resident, a Connecticut corporation or one of the other entities named in the statute may act, as long as the agent has a place of business in the state (Conn. Gen. Stat. § 34-243n).¹

The statute's list opens with a "Natural person who is a resident of this state" and a "Corporation formed under the laws of this state". The list goes on past those two, and the full text of the chapter on the General Assembly's site gives every category.¹

A second test applies to everyone on that list. Subsection (e) of the same section says the agent "shall have a place of business in this state". So residency alone is not the whole question for a person, and being on the list is not the whole question for a company. Both need a Connecticut place of business to put on the record.¹

Here are some common cases, worked through against those two tests.

• A business partner who lives in Westchester County, New York, cannot be your agent as an individual, because they are not a Connecticut resident.
• A cousin in Hartford or New Haven can be your agent if they agree and have a place of business in the state you can list.
• An accounting firm in Massachusetts can act only if it is one of the entities the statute names and it has a Connecticut location.
• A commercial agent service qualifies on the same terms: it has to fit the list and keep a Connecticut address.

The job is to accept service of process (formal delivery of lawsuit papers) and other official notices on the LLC's behalf. The plain-English explainer on what a registered agent does covers the duties that apply nationwide, and the glossary defines the legal terms used here.

What address can a Connecticut registered agent use?

The agent's address must be a place of business in Connecticut (Conn. Gen. Stat. § 34-243n), which points to a real location where papers can be handed to someone.

The Secretary of the State's forms page describes the Certificate of Organization as including appointment of statutory agent, which is why the state's fee table says "statutory agent" where the statute says registered agent. Both names mean the same role.²

Common choices line up against that phrase as follows.

1. A shop, office or studio in the state works if it is the agent's place of business and someone is there to accept papers.
2. A home address raises a question of fit. The statute says place of business, and the sources behind this guide don't say whether the Secretary treats a residence as one. If you plan to list a home, ask the Business Services Division first.
3. A P.O. box. The sources for this guide include no statement from the Secretary on boxes. A box is not a place where a process server can hand papers to anyone, so check with the Division before relying on one.
4. A virtual office or mail drop needs the same check. Whether it counts as the agent's place of business is a question for the Division, not something the statute answers on its face.

Naming a commercial agent puts that company's address in the agent field instead of yours. Every provider works this way, so it is no reason to pick one service over another. The other names and addresses the Certificate of Organization asks for are a separate matter, and this guide's sources don't list which fields Connecticut shows publicly. If you want a business address for those fields, some providers sell one apart from the agent service: doola lists a US business address included in Starter, Northwest Registered Agent lists Mail Forwarding $20/month (24 select states), so confirm whether Connecticut is one of them, and Tailor Brands lists a virtual address product (price not published). Our page on what an agent can and can't keep off the record explains the limits.^{3, 4, 5}

Can you be your own registered agent in Connecticut?

Yes, if you are a Connecticut resident and have a place of business in the state to list (Conn. Gen. Stat. § 34-243n). You enter your own details in the Certificate of Organization.

Whether it suits you comes down to where you spend your days. A process server can turn up during normal business hours, and Connecticut's rule ties the agent to a place of business, so you need to be reachable there. Owners who commute into New York City, work on client sites, or travel for long stretches may find that hard to promise.

Privacy is the other trade-off. Whatever address you list as agent goes on the LLC's record with the Secretary. A sole owner running the business from home may not want that.

Owners who live in Rhode Island, Massachusetts or anywhere outside Connecticut can't fill the role themselves. They need a Connecticut resident who agrees to it, or a business that meets the statute. This guide's sources don't say whether an LLC may name itself as its own agent, so ask the Division before trying that route.

If you would rather hand the role to a service, the list of Connecticut registered agent services compares published prices and terms, and our page on why an LLC needs an agent at all covers the reasons owners give for paying one.

How do you name a registered agent when you form a Connecticut LLC?

The agent goes into the Certificate of Organization, the filing that creates the LLC, for $120. The Secretary's fee table lists that filing as one including appointment of statutory agent, so no separate appointment form is needed at formation.²

You can file online or on paper (Online (recommended); paper forms by mail or hand delivery), though the same page calls paper filing "strongly discouraged as it is the slowest option" and says it requires a check or money order (no credit cards). Online filing also opens the faster route: expedited service costs $50 per transaction, but "Expedited service is not applicable for filings by mail". The Secretary doesn't publish a standard processing time for this filing; its expedite page notes that most online filings are accepted automatically.^{6, 7}

Before you file, check these points.

1. The agent fits the statute's list and has a Connecticut place of business.
2. The agent knows they are being named and has agreed. The sources behind this guide don't describe a separate consent step at formation, so read the form's instructions for any signature the agent must give.
3. The spelling of the agent's name and address matches what they will use to receive papers.

If you want to hold the LLC's name first, a name reservation costs $60. The step-by-step guide to forming a Connecticut LLC covers the rest of the Certificate, and the cheapest ways to form a Connecticut LLC adds up the fees.²

How do you change your registered agent in Connecticut?

A Change of Agent filing with the Secretary, for $50, replaces the agent on record. The Secretary lists it among the forms you can file online.²

Follow the steps in this order to avoid a gap.

1. Pick the replacement and confirm it is a Connecticut resident or a qualifying entity with a place of business in the state.
2. Get the replacement's agreement to act, and their exact name and address as they want them filed.
3. File the Change of Agent online if you can. Online filings can be expedited for $50 per transaction; mailed ones cannot.⁷
4. Check the Secretary's record to confirm the new agent shows on file.
5. Cancel the old service last. Dropping it before the change is on record can leave the LLC with no agent, and that is the condition the forfeiture rule below is aimed at.

Commercial agents each set their own exit terms, so read yours before the switch.

• ZenBusiness: Cancel by contacting customer support by phone.⁸
• Rocket Lawyer: Any time by phone, before renewal date.⁹
• InCorp Services requires one of its cancellation conditions, such as appointing a new agent, to be met before annual fee is due.¹⁰
• Swyft Filings lists its agent price as $149 per quarter, auto-renews until cancelled, so check where your switch falls in its billing cycle.¹¹

The steps that work the same way in every state are in our walkthrough on changing a registered agent, and the guide to cancelling an agent service covers the provider side.

What happens if your Connecticut registered agent resigns?

An agent can step down, and the Secretary's fee table has a line for it: Resignation of agent, 'no form available', $50.²

The sources behind this guide don't state when a resignation takes effect in Connecticut or how the agent must notify the LLC. What they do show is the cost of ignoring it. An LLC that has failed to maintain a registered agent for service can lose its existence by forfeiture, after a notice period described in the next section.¹²

Agents resign for plain reasons. A relative takes a job out of state and no longer qualifies. A bookkeeper who agreed to help retires. A paid service drops a client whose renewal went unpaid. In each case the first sign may be a letter or email sent to whatever contact details the agent holds, which is why keeping those current with your agent pays off.

If you think your agent has stopped acting for you, look up your LLC on the Secretary's business records and see who is listed. Then file a Change of Agent naming someone new, rather than waiting for a formal notice.

What happens if a Connecticut LLC has no registered agent?

The Secretary of the State can dissolve the LLC by forfeiture if it has failed to maintain a registered agent for service (C.G.S. 34-267g(c)), though the LLC first gets a notice and a window to appoint a new agent.¹²

Forfeiture is not immediate. Under the statute the Secretary first sends a notice, and the LLC avoids forfeiture by appointing an agent within three months of the sending of such notice. In practice that means filing a Change of Agent during that window and confirming it was accepted.¹²

An LLC dissolved by forfeiture no longer has good standing. Lenders, landlords and licensing offices that ask for proof of standing will see the problem. A lawsuit served while no agent is on file may also move ahead without you hearing about it in time.

Getting back into good standing goes through reinstatement. The Secretary's paper-filings page lists a fee line reading "Certificate of Reinstatement $120", and the state notes that its combined form includes the annual report, so an overdue report is brought current in the same filing. To reinstate online, the Secretary's knowledge base says the Business Agent must be a Connecticut resident. The Connecticut compliance guide covers reinstatement and the other ways an LLC can fall out of good standing.¹³

What does a Connecticut LLC file each year to stay in good standing?

The annual report is the recurring filing that keeps a Connecticut LLC current. The fee is $80, and the Secretary takes it online in the window that runs January 1 to March 31 each year.^{2, 14}

The statute words the deadline as filing "after January first and before April first", and the first report is due the year after formation. Because every LLC shares the same window, the deadline doesn't move with your formation date.²

The report is also a yearly chance to catch an agent problem early. If the agent listed on your record has moved away or stopped answering, you will see it when you file. Some providers list reminders among their agent features: LegalZoom lists Email reminders about annual report deadlines via Compliance Calendar, and Tailor Brands says its agent can file the annual report if instructed. A reminder doesn't file the report for you unless the plan says so.^{5, 15}

The Connecticut compliance calendar sets out the first and second year in order, and annual reports explained covers how these filings work across states.

Do out-of-state LLCs need a Connecticut registered agent?

Yes. An LLC formed elsewhere registers in Connecticut by filing a Foreign Registration Statement, for $120, and the statute's location test names registered foreign LLCs directly: a "registered foreign limited liability company shall have a place of business in this state" (Conn. Gen. Stat. § 34-243n).^{1, 16}

Your home-state agent doesn't carry over. A Delaware or New York LLC that expands into Stamford or Hartford needs an agent with a Connecticut place of business, even if its agent at home is a national company. Ask your current provider whether it acts in Connecticut and how it bills an additional state.

Changing that agent later uses the same Change of Agent filing. If you also operate next door, compare New York's rules, Massachusetts's rules and Rhode Island's rules for the registered agent requirements in each.

Connecticut registered agent services and their published prices

If a paid agent fits better than acting yourself, the table shows each provider's published agent price and renewal. Providers appear by our score, highest first, with ties in editorial order. Full terms are in the comparison of Connecticut registered agent services, and individual reviews cover Tailor Brands, ZenBusiness, LegalZoom and Northwest.