How To Incorporate In Alaska
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1. Choose a Name for Your Alaska Corporation
Check on Available Names in Alaska: After you decide to incorporate your small business in Alaska, you will need to register a name for your corporation. Before you can register a name, you must be sure that the name that you have in mind for your corporation is unique from other corporation names registered with the state. You should conduct a thorough search of the Internet and corporate records to determine that the name that you would like to register is not already in use. If you go to Alaska Corporation, you can search the Corporations Database to see if you’re the name you would like to register is in use. The Alaska official state website provides further guidelines for choosing a unique corporate name online at Alaska Corporation Registration.
Reserve a Corporate Name: You can reserve a corporate name by submitting an application, available to download online at Submitting Alaska Corporation. Your reservation will be valid for a period of 120 days. There is a $25.00 fee to reserve a corporate name in the state of Alaska.
Filing Trademarks and Doing a Corporate Name Search: Although the corporate name that you have chosen may be available in Alaska according to your search results, it is possible that another company outside of the state may be using the same name. You might encounter other restrictions on the name that you have chosen to use to incorporate your business. See the article on how to choose a name for your corporation.
Alaska Corporate Name Requirements: When you incorporate a small business in the state of Alaska, your corporation’s name must include the word “corporation,” “incorporated,” “company,” or “limited.” If you do not want to use the full word you may also choose to use an abbreviation of one of these words.
2. Find a Registered Agent in Alaska
After registering the name of your corporation, you will need to choose a registered agent in Alaska to act as an agent for service of process. A registered agent will be responsible for receiving your corporation’s legal and tax documents. Your registered agent could be a resident of Alaska or a registered Alaska corporation. Your corporation cannot act as its own registered agent. There are some companies that offer registered agent services.
3. File Articles of Incorporation with the Alaska Secretary of State
Minimum Requirements: To incorporate your small business as a normal stock corporation, you must file Articles of Incorporation with the Alaska Secretary of State. The Articles of Incorporation that you file must provide the name of your corporation, your corporate purpose, the name and address of your registered agent, and the number of shares that your corporation is authorized to have. The document must be signed by all the incorporators.
Other Alaska Legal Provisions: Besides the minimum requirements, the Articles of Incorporation may include other legal provisions. Examples of some of these provisions are listed in the Articles of Incorporation document available to download online at Articles of Incorporation for Alaska. You will probably want to consult an attorney when you are preparing the Articles of Incorporation document. An attorney will be able to advise you on the additional legal provisions that may apply to your company.
Where to Submit Form: The completed Articles of Incorporation should be submitted, along with the filing fee, to State of Alaska, Corporations Section, PO Box 110806, Juneau, AK 99811-0806.
Filing Fee: The filing fee in Alaska is $250.00.
4. Create Other Alaska Incorporation Documents (Corporate Kits)
After submitting your Articles of Incorporation, your corporation will need to take certain actions such as appointing officers and directors, adopting corporation bylaws, issuing stock certificates, obtaining a tax ID number and preparing to pay taxes. You will also need to obtain a business license and find out if your corporation will require a professional license.
It is a good idea to consider other types of corporate documents such as buy-sell agreements, shareholders agreements to determine when stock can be sold, and documents that explain what will happen if an owner leaves the company. If your corporation has multiple owners, these types of documents are especially important. It is best to get an attorney to help you to draft these documents. An attorney will help you to make sure that you are following all the state legal requirements that apply to your corporation.
There may be corporate service companies that can assist you in preparing many of these legal documents. Corporate service companies exist that can make all of the filings and provide all the form documents that you need for a fee.
5. Qualify Your Alaska Corporation to Do Business in Other States
If your main corporate office is not in Alaska, you will need to find out if you need to register or qualify your corporation to do business in other states. Most other states require some kind of qualification and will require you to pay taxes in your home state. You can learn more about how to obtain this qualification at Doing Business in other states.
6. Make Annual Filings and Pay Annual Fees and Taxes in Alaska
All corporations that are registered in the state of Alaska are required to file a biennial report. This report is due January 2nd every two years after your initial filing. You will be able to provide updated officer, director and registered agent information for your corporation in this report. The filing fee is $100.00. You can file your biennial report online at Filing your Biennial Report in Alaska.
You will also need to file tax documents and pay an annual tax. You should contact the Alaska Department of Revenue for more information on what tax laws apply to your corporation. You can write to the Alaska Department of Revenue, Tax Division, PO Box 110420, Juneau, Alaska, 99811-0420 and request information and tax forms. You can also call (907) 465-2320 for information. You can also visit the Alaska Department of Revenue official website at Alaska Department of Revenue.
It is a good idea to consult an accountant when you are preparing your company’s taxes. An accountant can help you to avoid mistakes that could cost you extra taxes.
It can be complicated to incorporate a small business, especially if there are multiple owners, but if you consult an attorney and an accountant when you are forming your corporation you can be more confident that all your paperwork will be processed correctly.
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This site is for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal, financial or tax advise. The information on this site should not be relied upon as an official source of information and should be independently verified.
