North Carolina requires every LLC and corporation to keep a registered agent with a North Carolina street address. You can be your own agent (the registered agent must be an individual who resides in the state with a business office..., full wording under the statute below). Changing your agent costs $5 for an LLC and $5 for a corporation. The Annual Report is due April 15. If you have no agent: The Secretary of State may administratively dissolve an LLC if it has not paid fees within 60 days after they are due, does not deliver its annual report within 60 days after it is due, or has been without a registered agent or registered office for 60 days or more.. Hiring an agent costs $125 to $249 a year at renewal on the providers' own sites, read 2026-09-08; first-year offers run lower.
This page is general information, not legal advice. State fees, forms and deadlines change. Every fact is quoted from the state filing office or statute with the date we read it. Confirm on the official page before you file. Terms of use.
How to change your registered agent in North Carolina
Three steps. Most owners finish online in under fifteen minutes.
- Choose the new agent. You can be your own agent (the registered agent must be an individual who resides in the state with a business office..., full wording under the statute below). Or hire a service from the price table below; they give you their North Carolina street address to put on the form.
- Or file the paper form. Statement of Change of Registered Office and/or Registered Agent (Form BE-06), from the North Carolina Secretary of State, Business Registration Division. The mailing address is printed on the form. Open the North Carolina filing office Direct PDF
- Pay the fee. Changing your agent costs $5 for an LLC and $5 for a corporation. Keep the confirmation; the new agent is effective when the state records it.
What a registered agent costs in North Carolina
Yearly fee from each provider's own site on the date shown: what a new customer pays the first year, and what it renews at. Sorted by renewal price, because that is what you pay every year after. "No link" means we have no agreement with that provider; it is listed on the same terms. Best is not always the one we earn from, and we say which is which.
| Provider | First year | Renews at | Terms and what is included |
|---|---|---|---|
| Northwest Registered Agentno link, no agreement | $125 | $125 | Same price every year, per its page
|
| Harbor Complianceno link, no agreement | $99 | $149 | Renews at 149 per year after the first
|
| Bizeeno link, no agreement | $149 | $149 | 149 per year standalone or on renewal; first year free only with a bizee formation
|
| ZenBusinessno link, no agreement | $99 | $199 | Renews at 199 per year
|
| LegalZoomno link, no agreement | $249 | $249 | Auto-renews; renewal rate subject to change, per its page
|
What switching to the cheapest renewal saves
| If you renew with | Renews at | Saved per year | Over 3 years |
|---|---|---|---|
| LegalZoom | $249 | $124 | $372 |
| ZenBusiness | $199 | $74 | $222 |
| Harbor Compliance | $149 | $24 | $72 |
| Bizee | $149 | $24 | $72 |
Compared with Northwest Registered Agent at $125 a year, prices read 2026-09-08. Switching costs the state change fee shown above, once.
Type your current renewal price to see the saving.
Advertising disclosure. Some provider names on this page are links to that provider's site through an affiliate network. If you buy through one of those links we may earn a commission. The price you pay does not change. Providers we have no agreement with are listed without a link and ranked by the same rules. Disclosed under the US FTC Endorsement Guides and the Norwegian Marketing Control Act.
North Carolina at a glance
Fees, forms and deadlines
| Item | North Carolina |
|---|---|
| Filing office | North Carolina Secretary of State, Business Registration Division sosnc.govSource: sosnc.gov/forms, read 2026-09-08 |
| Registered agent statute (LLC) | N.C.G.S. § 57D-2-40Source: law.justia.com/codes/north-carolina/2013/chapter-55d/article-4/section (secondary source), read 2026-09-08 |
| Registered agent statute (corporation) | N.C.G.S. § 55D-30Source: law.justia.com/codes/north-carolina/2013/chapter-55d/article-4/section (secondary source), read 2026-09-08 |
| Change of agent form | Statement of Change of Registered Office and/or Registered Agent (Form BE-06) (online filing available)Source: sosnc.gov/forms, read 2026-09-08 |
| Change of agent fee, LLC | $5Source: sosnc.gov/forms, read 2026-09-08 |
| Change of agent fee, corporation | $5Source: sosnc.gov/forms, read 2026-09-08 |
| Annual Report due | April 15 (due annually by April 15 following the calendar year of formation, per sources citing sosnc.gov)Source: sosnc.gov/divisions/business_registration/annual_report_due_dates, read 2026-09-08 |
| Annual report fee, LLC | $200Source: sosnc.gov/divisions/business_registration/annual_report_due_dates, read 2026-09-08 |
| Annual report fee, corporation | not publishedSource: sosnc.gov/divisions/business_registration/annual_report_due_dates, read 2026-09-08 |
| Late fee | not publishedSource: sosnc.gov/divisions/business_registration/annual_report_due_dates, read 2026-09-08 |
| No agent on file | The Secretary of State may administratively dissolve an LLC if it has not paid fees within 60 days after they are due, does not deliver its annual report within 60 days after it is due, or has been without a registered agent or registered office for 60 days or more. N.C.G.S. § 57D-6-06Source: ncleg.gov/EnactedLegislation/Statutes/PDF/BySection/Chapter_57D/GS_57D, read 2026-09-08 |
| Be your own agent | You can be your own agent (the registered agent must be an individual who resides in the state with a business office..., full wording under the statute below)Source: law.justia.com/codes/north-carolina/2013/chapter-55d/article-4/section (secondary source), read 2026-09-08 |
What the statute says
A registered agent is the person or company the state and the courts send legal papers to. The agent must have a street address in North Carolina, not a PO box, and be available during business hours. You can be your own agent (the registered agent must be an individual who resides in the state with a business office..., full wording under the statute below).
Annual report and what happens without an agent
The Annual Report is due April 15. Fee: $200 for an LLC, not published for a corporation. Late fee: not published.
Without an agent on file: The Secretary of State may administratively dissolve an LLC if it has not paid fees within 60 days after they are due, does not deliver its annual report within 60 days after it is due, or has been without a registered agent or registered office for 60 days or more. (N.C.G.S. § 57D-6-06). In practice that means missed lawsuits and a company that can lose its good standing.
Sources and dates
- https://sosnc.gov/forms, read 2026-09-08
- https://law.justia.com/codes/north-carolina/2013/chapter-55d/article-4/section-55d-30/, read 2026-09-08
- https://www.sosnc.gov/divisions/business_registration/annual_report_due_dates, read 2026-09-08
- https://www.ncleg.gov/EnactedLegislation/Statutes/PDF/BySection/Chapter_57D/GS_57D-6-06.pdf, read 2026-09-08
- https://www.northwestregisteredagent.com/registered-agent, read 2026-09-08
- https://www.harborcompliance.com/registered-agent-service, read 2026-09-08
- https://bizee.com/business-management/registered-agent, read 2026-09-08
- https://www.zenbusiness.com/registered-agent-service/, read 2026-09-08
- https://www.legalzoom.com/business/business-operations/registered-agent-overview.html, read 2026-09-08
This page is general information, not legal advice. State fees, forms and deadlines change. Every fact is quoted from the state filing office or statute with the date we read it. Confirm on the official page before you file.
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Advertising disclosure. Some provider names on this page are links to that provider's site through an affiliate network. If you buy through one of those links we may earn a commission. The price you pay does not change. Providers we have no agreement with are listed without a link and ranked by the same rules. Disclosed under the US FTC Endorsement Guides and the Norwegian Marketing Control Act.