Washington's Secretary of State keeps company records through its Corporations and Charities Division. Every filing, from a new LLC to the yearly report, goes through the Corporations and Charities Filing System, which everyone calls CCFS. The division has moved to Tumwater.
What differs here is the calendar and the split of duties. Your annual report follows a renewal date the state assigns, and the Secretary of State must remind you 30 to 90 days ahead. Trade names are not filed with the Secretary of State at all: they go to the Department of Revenue.
Searching Washington business records in CCFS
CCFS is both the public search and the filing system. Type the company name, then open the record you want. Several companies can share similar names, so check the full legal name, including LLC or Inc., before you rely on a result.
| Official business search | ccfs.sos.wa.gov (ccfs.sos.wa.gov, checked ) |
|---|---|
| You can search by | business name, registered agent, officer or owner name, other (data.wa.gov, checked ) |
A name search is also the usual way to test whether a name is free. No separate availability tool was found, so read the results with care and reserve the name if you want it held.
Washington Secretary of State fees
Forming an LLC, a profit corporation or registering an out-of-state profit company all cost $180. An online processing fee is added when you file in CCFS. A domestic nonprofit pays $80, or $40 if its gross revenue is under $500,000.
| Form an LLC | $180 (sos.wa.gov, checked ) |
|---|---|
| Form a corporation | $180 (sos.wa.gov, checked ) |
| Form a nonprofit | $80 (sos.wa.gov, checked ) |
| Register an out-of-state LLC | $180 (sos.wa.gov, checked ) |
| Reserve a name | $30 (sos.wa.gov, checked ) |
| Annual or biennial report | LLC: $70; corporation: $70 (sos.wa.gov, checked ) |
| Good standing certificate | $20 (sos.wa.gov, checked ) |
| Faster processing | $100 per entity, generally processed within three working days (sos.wa.gov, checked ) |
Rather not file it yourself? Ask our private filing service about forming or reporting in Washington. State fees are separate.
Expedited service costs $100 per entity, and the office says those filings are generally processed within three working days.
The Washington annual report
An LLC or profit corporation files its annual report for $70. It is due on the company's renewal date, a date the Secretary of State sets for each entity. Under RCW 23.95.255 the office must send notice 30 to 90 days before that date.
The fee, the due date, late penalties and the filing steps are in our Washington annual report guide.
Not filing, or filing without paying, leads to administrative dissolution. Nonprofit corporations pay $60, or $20 at the reduced rate. Our guide on annual report deadlines by state explains renewal date systems like this one.
Washington name rules
An LLC name must contain "Limited Liability Company", "Limited Liability Co.", "L.L.C." or "LLC". A corporation needs a word such as corporation, company or limited, or a short form like Corp., Inc. or Ltd. Words tied to banking and trust business, such as bank or trust, are limited by RCW 23.95.305.
| LLC name must include | "Limited Liability Company", "Limited Liability Co." (the abbreviation Co.), "L.L.C." or "LLC" (sos.wa.gov, checked ) |
|---|---|
| Corporation name must include | corporation, incorporated, company, limited, or abbreviations such as Corp., Inc., Co., Ltd. (app.leg.wa.gov, checked ) |
| Words that are limited | Names cannot contain words such as bank, banking, trust, cooperative, or combinations such as building, savings, loan, home, association, society, as listed in the statute (app.leg.wa.gov, checked ) |
| How different a name must be | Name may not be deceptively similar to the name of an existing domestic entity that is not administratively dissolved (text read for nonprofit corporations; LLC and corporation wording under the same section was not separately confirmed) (app.leg.wa.gov, checked ) |
| Reservation fee | $30 (sos.wa.gov, checked ) |
| Reservation lasts | 180 days (sos.wa.gov, checked ) |
| Reservation form | sos.wa.gov/sites/default/files/2023-10/Name_Reservation.pdf (sos.wa.gov, checked ) |
A reservation holds a name for 180 days and can be transferred by written notice. The reservation form lists a $30 fee for all for-profit entity types.
Registered agent rules in Washington
Entity must designate a registered agent: a commercial registered agent, or a noncommercial agent with name and address, or an office title with an address for service. The agent must consent in a record. (app.leg.wa.gov, checked )
The agent has to agree in a record to serve. If you need to switch agents, our guide on changing your registered agent sets out the order of steps.
Washington Certificate of Existence
Washington calls its proof of standing a Certificate of Existence. The short form is the good standing certificate, and the long form costs the same $20. Both are ordered in CCFS.
What it costs, where to order it and what blocks it are in our Washington good standing guide.
Trade names: the Department of Revenue
The rule applies to companies too. An LLC that trades under a different name still registers that trade name with the Business Licensing Service.
Contact the Corporations and Charities Division
| Office | Washington Secretary of State (sos.wa.gov, checked ) |
|---|---|
| Division | Corporations and Charities Division (sos.wa.gov, checked ) |
| Officeholder | Steve Hobbs (sos.wa.gov, checked ) |
| Phone | 360-725-0377 (sos.wa.gov, checked ) |
| Mailing address | PO Box 40234, Olympia, WA 98504-0234 (sos.wa.gov, checked ) |
| Street address | 243 Israel Rd SE, Tumwater, WA 98501 (sos.wa.gov, checked ) |
| Contact page | sos.wa.gov/corporations-charities/contact-us (sos.wa.gov, checked ) |
The division's street address is 243 Israel Rd SE in Tumwater, while mail goes to PO Box 40234 in Olympia. The phone line is 360-725-0377. Keep your company's details at hand when you call.
Sources
- www.sos.wa.gov/corporations-charities/contact-us: office name, division, officeholder, mailing address, street address, phone, contact page, corporation filing fee. Checked .
- ccfs.sos.wa.gov/: business search. Checked .
- data.wa.gov/api/views/f9jk-mm39.json: search fields. Checked .
- www.sos.wa.gov/corporations-charities/business-entities/limited-liability-company-llc-professional-llc-pllc-filing-resource-page: LLC name endings, LLC filing fee, report fee. Checked .
- app.leg.wa.gov/RCW/default.aspx?cite=23.95.305: corporation name endings, restricted words, name rule. Checked .
- www.sos.wa.gov/sites/default/files/2023-10/Name_Reservation.pdf: name reservation fee, name reservation term, name reservation form. Checked .
- www.sos.wa.gov/corporations-charities/frequently-asked-questions-faqs/fee-scheduleexpedited-service: nonprofit filing fee, expedite fees, certificate fee. Checked .
- www.sos.wa.gov/corporations-charities/business-entities/online-filing-instructions/register-foreign-non-wa-limited-liability-company-llc-online: foreign LLC fee. Checked .
- app.leg.wa.gov/rcw/default.aspx?cite=23.95.415: registered agent rule. Checked .