Users get one year of registered agent service free with any of Incfile’s plans. This service receives legal proceedings, documents, and IRS mail correspondence on behalf of your company.
Incfile also offers bookkeeping services and entrepreneurs guides for a low monthly cost. Its Gold plan also includes a lifetime company alert feature that sends courtesy notifications for upcoming state compliance deadlines.
How to Get Started with Incfile
Incfile provides business registration services that are highly cost-effective. Its packages start at $0 plus state fees and include a year of registered agent service. They can register LLCs, C-corporations, S-corporations and nonprofits. They also offer foreign qualification services for businesses that want to expand into other states.
Additionally, they can help you file business taxes and provide bookkeeping services. They can also assist you in changing your company’s address, name or membership and dissolve your entity if necessary.
Despite being one of the most inexpensive business registration service providers, many of their customers have reported poor customer support. They are known to upsell their services and add-ons during the process of registration. This can cause frustration for entrepreneurs who may end up paying for unnecessary services.
LLCs
Founded in 2004 out of Houston, Texas, Incfile claims to be the “leading business formation service.” They provide a lighthearted approach to what can sometimes be a stressful process. The company says it has helped entrepreneurs form over 800,000 businesses.
Their silver package costs $0 and only requires state filing fees. They also offer one year of registered agent services for free. Their Gold and Platinum packages include an operating agreement, banking resolution and EIN acquisition, as well as lifetime company alerts, sales tax calculators and a 30-minute tax consultation.
An EIN is a unique nine-digit number that acts like a social security number for your entity. They will file the appropriate IRS paperwork to obtain this on your behalf. They will also prepare and file your articles of organization.
Corporations
Users can use Incfile to register all four types of corporations, including C-corporations and S-corporations. They can also register nonprofits, such as public charities, foundations and social advocacy organizations. Additionally, they can register professional and trade associations, as well as school districts, hospitals, museums and homeless shelters.
All business entities must have a registered agent, which Incfile provides for one year for free with any plan. This service is important because it allows the company to receive legal proceedings, documents and IRS correspondence.
Other features include business contract templates, a no-obligation tax consultation and lifetime alerts. The Silver package starts at $0 and includes state filing fees. Gold is $199 a year and Platinum is $299. All plans except for Silver include a business website domain and email hosting.
Nonprofits
The company isn’t only about business formations but also helps entrepreneurs through various other services. For instance, they provide a library of free resources for entrepreneurs that cover topics like how to measure business success and define your business idea. They can also aid with filing paperwork to register your nonprofit, as well as help you obtain an EIN or tax ID number.
They can also file to establish all four types of nonprofits, including public charities, foundations, social advocacy organizations, and professional or trade groups. Nonprofits can also receive a bookkeeping service to keep track of monthly reports and invoices, at an affordable price.
Though they offer a similar feature set to LegalZoom, Incfile’s packages include more valuable services such as an operating agreement for LLCs and corporate bylaws for corporations. They also include a full year of registered agent service.
Foreign Qualification
When a business expands into a new state, it may need to foreign qualify in order to legally operate there. Incfile offers a foreign qualification service that helps businesses meet each state’s requirements.
A key requirement is providing an Employer Identification Number or EIN. This is a unique number that every business uses to open bank accounts, file taxes and pay employees. Incfile can help obtain an EIN for your business or LLC.
The service is priced well compared to other competitors, starting at $0 and including the state filing fee. However, the service often up-sells customers to additional services, some of which may not be necessary for their business. Also, their Learning Center resources are sometimes outdated. This is not a deal-breaker, but it should be noted.
