The Maine Department of the Secretary of State keeps the state's business register. The work sits in the Bureau of Corporations, Elections and Commissions, within its Division of Corporations, UCC and Commissions. The public face of the register is Interactive Corporate Services, shortened to ICRS in its web address, where you search records and file the annual report.
Two Maine habits are worth knowing early. Records are numbered by charter number, and you can search with it. And a dissolved company keeps some protection: its name stays protected for three years after administrative dissolution.
Using the Maine Corporate Search
Open the Corporate Search in ICRS and enter the company name or its charter number. The landing page offers no search by officer or by agent, so start with the name if you do not know the number.
| Official business search | apps3.web.maine.gov/nei-sos-icrs/ICRS (apps3.web.maine.gov, checked ) |
|---|---|
| You can search by | business name, entity or file number (apps3.web.maine.gov, checked ) |
The entity summary page shows the current status. You can also download a Certificate of Existence from there for companies in good standing.
Status words on Maine records
Good Standing means the company has met its filing and payment duties. Dissolved means articles of dissolution have taken effect. Administratively dissolved means the Secretary of State closed the record after notice, because a problem was not fixed within 60 days.
| Status shown | What it means |
|---|---|
| Good Standing | Entity has met filing and payment obligations; the search lets users verify status and download a Certificate of Existence (Good Standing). |
| Dissolved | Articles of dissolution have become effective (13-C). |
| Administratively dissolved | Secretary of State dissolved the entity after notice because the ground was not corrected within 60 days. Existence continues only to wind up; the name stays protected for 3 years. |
Status wording from legislature.maine.gov, checked .
An administratively dissolved company still exists, but only to wind up its affairs. If you want to bring it back, see the late filing section below. Our guide on how to dissolve an LLC covers the voluntary route.
Maine filing fees
A Maine LLC costs $175 to form. A business corporation costs $145, and a nonprofit corporation $40. Foreign LLCs and foreign business corporations each pay $250 for authority to do business in Maine.
| Form an LLC | $175 (legislature.maine.gov, checked ) |
|---|---|
| Form a corporation | $145 (legislature.maine.gov, checked ) |
| Form a nonprofit | $40 (legislature.maine.gov, checked ) |
| Register an out-of-state LLC | $250 (legislature.maine.gov, checked ) |
| Reserve a name | $20 (legislature.maine.gov, checked ) |
| Annual or biennial report | LLC: 85 domestic, 150 foreign; corporation: 85 domestic, 150 foreign business corporation; nonprofit 35 (legislature.maine.gov, checked ) |
| Good standing certificate | $30 (legislature.maine.gov, checked ) |
| Faster processing | 24 hour (next business day) $50 extra per entity; immediate (same business day) $100 extra per entity. (maine.gov, checked ) |
Rather not file it yourself? Ask our private filing service about forming or reporting in Maine. State fees are separate.
If a date is pressing, the division offers next business day handling for $50 extra per entity, or same business day for $100.
Maine annual report: January 1 to June 1
Every LLC and corporation files once a year, between January 1 and June 1. Your first one comes due in the year after formation. Domestic entities pay $85, foreign ones $150, and nonprofit corporations $35. You can file the report online in ICRS.
| Fee | LLC: 85 domestic, 150 foreign; corporation: 85 domestic, 150 foreign business corporation; nonprofit 35 (legislature.maine.gov, checked ) |
|---|---|
| When it is due | Annual report is filed between January 1 and June 1; first report is due the year after formation. (maine.gov, checked ) |
| If you file late | $50 added to the annual report fee for a late annual report (LLC and business corporation). Administrative dissolution follows after notice; name stays protected 3 years after dissolution. Reinstatement fee $150 plus back fees. (legislature.maine.gov, checked ) |
| Where to file | apps3.web.maine.gov/nei-sos-icrs/ICRS (apps3.web.maine.gov, checked ) |
| Processing time | Standard corporate filing processing time 2 to 7 business days; expedited options 24 hour or same day for extra fees. (maine.gov, checked ) |
A late report costs $50 more for an LLC or business corporation. If you ignore the notice that follows, the state can dissolve the company. Reinstating it costs $150 on top of the fees you skipped.
Business name rules in Maine
An LLC name must carry a designator such as "limited liability company", LLC, L.L.C., L.C. or LC. Low-profit LLCs use L3C. Your name must be distinguishable on the Secretary of State's records from other corporations, LLCs and partnerships, and from assumed, fictitious, reserved and registered names.
| LLC name must include | limited liability company, limited company, L.L.C., LLC, L.C., LC, L3C (low-profit) (legislature.maine.gov, checked ) |
|---|---|
| Words that are limited | Name may not state or imply a purpose other than the one permitted; Secretary of State may refuse names that are obscene, promote unlawful activity, or falsely suggest an association with public institutions. (legislature.maine.gov, checked ) |
| How different a name must be | Name must be distinguishable on the records of the Secretary of State from names of corporations, LLCs, LLPs and LPs authorized in Maine, and from assumed, fictitious, reserved and registered names (31 MRS 1508; 13-C section 401). (legislature.maine.gov, checked ) |
| Reservation fee | $20 (legislature.maine.gov, checked ) |
| Reservation lasts | 120 days, cannot be renewed (the same name may be reserved again after expiry) (legislature.maine.gov, checked ) |
The office can refuse names that are obscene, promote unlawful activity or falsely suggest a link to a public institution. A reservation costs $20 and holds the name for 120 days. It cannot be renewed, though you may reserve the same name again once it lapses.
Maine Certificate of Existence
Maine's good standing document is the Certificate of Existence, available in a short form or a long form. It costs $30 for LLCs and business corporations, and $10 for nonprofit corporations.
| What the state calls it | Certificate of Existence (Good Standing), short form or long form (apps3.web.maine.gov, checked ) |
|---|---|
| Fee | $30 (legislature.maine.gov, checked ) |
| Where to order | apps3.web.maine.gov/nei-sos-icrs/ICRS (apps3.web.maine.gov, checked ) |
Assumed names in Maine
An LLC or corporation that trades under another name files an assumed name with the Secretary of State. The fee is $125 for corporations and LLCs. An LLC fictitious name costs $40, and ending an assumed name costs $20.
Contact the Maine Division of Corporations
| Office | Maine Department of the Secretary of State (maine.gov, checked ) |
|---|---|
| Division | Bureau of Corporations, Elections and Commissions, Division of Corporations, UCC and Commissions (apps3.web.maine.gov, checked ) |
| Officeholder | Shenna Bellows (legislature.maine.gov, checked ) |
| Phone | 207-624-7752 (maine.gov, checked ) |
| Hours | Monday to Friday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.; phone hours 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. (maine.gov, checked ) |
| Mailing address | 101 State House Station, Augusta, ME 04333-0101 (legislature.maine.gov, checked ) |
| Street address | Ballard Center, 6 E Chestnut St., 5th Floor, Augusta, ME 04333 (maine.gov, checked ) |
| Contact page | maine.gov/sos/about-us/contact-us (maine.gov, checked ) |
Post to 101 State House Station in Augusta. Put your charter number on any letter, so staff can match it to the right record.
Sources
- www.maine.gov/sos/: office name. Checked .
- apps3.web.maine.gov/nei-sos-icrs/ICRS: division, business search, search fields, online filing, good standing certificate, certificate ordering. Checked .
- legislature.maine.gov/house/HouseActivities/HouseCalendarDetails/678: officeholder. Checked .
- legislature.maine.gov/doc/6956: mailing address. Checked .
- www.maine.gov/sos/about-us/contact-us: street address, phone, contact page, hours. Checked .
- legislature.maine.gov/statutes/31/title31sec1508.html: LLC name endings, name rule. Checked .
- legislature.maine.gov/statutes/13-C/title13-Csec401.html: restricted words. Checked .
- legislature.maine.gov/statutes/13-c/title13-csec402.html: name reservation fee. Checked .
- legislature.maine.gov/statutes/31/title31sec1509.html: name reservation term. Checked .
- legislature.maine.gov/statutes/31/title31sec1680.html: LLC filing fee, foreign LLC fee, report fee, late penalty, certificate fee. Checked .
- legislature.maine.gov/statutes/13-c/title13-Csec123.html: corporation filing fee. Checked .
- legislature.maine.gov/statutes/13-B/title13-Bsec1401.html: nonprofit filing fee. Checked .
- www.maine.gov/sos/corporations-commissions/incorporating-resources/corporations-commissions/filing-requirement-reminders: report due date. Checked .
- www.maine.gov/sos/corporations-commissions/incorporating-resources/corporations-commissions/miscellaneous-service-lists-and-bulk-data: expedite fees. Checked .
- www.maine.gov/sos/corporations-commissions/corporations-business-services/business-corporations: processing time. Checked .
- legislature.maine.gov/statutes/13-c/title13-Csec1421.html: status terms. Checked .