Having a Virginia registered agent is a requirement of every registered business in the state.
You can’t complete the formation of your LLC (or other company structure) in Virginia (and other states) without having designated a registered agent.
A registered agent provides:
- An official registered office address for the business
- A postal address to receive correspondence
- A physical address for receiving any service of process (in a lawsuit for example)
Who Can Be a Virginia Registered Agent?
In simple terms, a Virginia registered agent is a person or business entity that has a physical address in the state (a post office box is not sufficient).
So that means that you can:
- Serve as your own registered agent (if you are resident in Virginia)
- You can designate a friend or family member – or your lawyer or accountant – as your registered agent
- OR … you can do what most people do and hire a reputable online business services company to provide registered agent service.
Requirements of a Virginia Registered Agent
There a number of requirements to be a registered agent in Virginia, which is why most people choose to go with a registered agent service.
Virginia sets out these requirements for registered agents:
- The individual is a resident of Virginia
- The individual is a member of the Virginia State Bar or is a part of the management of the business entity (e.g. an officer or director of a corporation, a member or manager of a limited liability company, a trustee of a business trust, a general partner of a limited partnership, or a partner of a registered limited liability partnership)
- The individual agrees to serve as the business entity’s registered agent.
- A Virginia business entity or a foreign business entity that is authorized to transact business in Virginia may also serve as the registered agent of another business entity if it agrees to serve in the capacity. A business entity may not, however, serve as its own registered agent.
No matter who you choose to be your registered agent, they need to be physically present at the address provided to the state during standard business hours.
What will my Virginia Registered Agent do For Me?
Aside from allowing you to form your LLC or other company structure in the state of Virginia, your Virginia registered agent service supports your business in three main ways: administrative, legal and compliance. It also offers a couple of advantages in terms of privacy and discretion, which we will detail below.
Administrative
Your Virginia registered agent service will receive all your mail and either forward it on to you, or scan it and upload it to a portal where you can view it.
This includes all correspondence with the state of Virginia relating to your business.
Legal
The registered agent provides a physical address to receive hand-delivered service of process (SOP) paperwork regarding any legal action being taken against your company. We all hope this doesn’t happen, but it is always a possibility and a registered agent is required to fulfil this function for your company. If your registered agent receives any legal documents, they will let you know and forward the documents to you promptly.
Compliance
Your registered agent helps ensure that your business files any required paperwork on time. Each state has its own schedule of required corporate filings – annual reports, tax payments or documents etcetera.
A registered agent service keeps track of these dates (which are subject to change) and emails you to remind you when filings are due. This ensures your business remains in good standing and doesn’t receive any fines or other actions including dissolution.
In Virginia, LLCs must file an annual registration with the State Corporation Commission with a $50 fee. This filing is due by the last day of the month in which the business was originally registered in Virginia. You can file your annual registration through the State Corporation Commission’s online portal.
Privacy & Discretion
Having a registered agent service as opposed to using your own address gives you more privacy. For example, if you use your home or private office, that will become publicly available on the state’s Business Entity Search Page.
There’s also the additional discretion that a registered agent service provides – no one wants their neighbour, employees or clients to be present when a business has to accept service of process in the event of legal action.
National Coverage
The other key advantage using an online registered agent service (we reviewed our favourites below) as opposed to going it alone or using a local company is that a national firm allows for expansion to other states.
If you are setting up in another state, then you’ll need a registered agent there too. Doing it with a service means you can pay a little extra and add that state to your account and they will deliver documents for that entity via the same online account dashboard that you are familiar with.
Our Top Virginia Registered Agent Services Reviewed
We recommend choosing one of the four national registered agent services below to be your Virginia registered agent (hint, sometimes it is simplest and best to choose the same service to form your Virginia LLC and be your Virginia registered agent as there are savings to be made and it is simpler that way).
Each service has it’s own pros and cons, which we have summarized below. Once you have chosen, click on the Get Started link on the corresponding service and get the best available price to set up your Virginia Resident Agent.
| Image | Product | Features | Price |
|---|---|---|---|
Best value  | Price: $99 per year
| 9.4 | Visit site |
Best customer service  | Price: $125 per year
| 9.3 | Visit site |
Great value  | Price: $119 per year
| 9.1 | Visit site |
Best no frills  | Price: $99 per year
| 9 | Visit site |
Strong brand  | Price: $299 per year
| 8.9 | Visit site |
Forming a Business (LLC) in Virginia
Of course choosing a registered agent is just one part of forming a business entity in Virginia.
We’ve summarised the other main steps for forming an LLC (the appropriate entity for most situations) well as showing you where appointing a registered agent fits in the process.
- Choose a business name. Be sure to choose something that’s unique to your business, is easy to pronounce (helps with word of mouth) and fits with your business. It also needs to not be an business name that is already in use in Virginia. You can check this with the state’s Business Entity Search.
- Appoint your registered agent. We discussed this throughout so won’t repeat ourselves here other than to say we recommend a registered agent service.
- File your formation documents: The main document you need to file initially is the Articles of Organization. Annual filings will include the annual report, but you don’t have to do that until your LLC (Limited Liability Company) is up and running.
Virginia Business Fast-Facts
- Size of Virginia economy: $486bn in Gross Domestic Product Business Formation Speed: 2-3 business days (online), 2 weeks (by mail)
- Cost (state fees) to Form a Business: $100 for LLCs
- Annual Reports: annual for a fee of $50
Virginia Registered Agent Service FAQs:
How much does a Registered Agent Service Cost?
A registered agent service is typically around $100 per year (although some can cost several hundred dollars per year).
What about a Virginia-only (as opposed to national) registered agent service?
There are local firms that offer a registered agent service and they are perfectly fine for some people. The only area in which these local firms suffer in comparison to the four services that we prefer is their dashboards are usually not as user friendly and these firms can’t service your needs if you need to expand into another state.
How to Change Your Virginia Resident Agent?
It is possible of course to change your Virginia registered agent if you have an existing service. To do this you need to fill out the correct Appointment of New Registered Agent form and submit it to the Secretary of State.
Can I Be My Own Registered Agent in Virginia?
Yes, if you are physically resident in Virginia but there are drawbacks to this, particular if you use your home address as the registered address of the business.
Are There Other Options For Registered Agent Services?
Yes, for sure. We’ve included what we think are the best, but in this post we’ve reviewed the 11 main national registered agent services.
