My LLC is a licensed business entity in the state where I reside. I also have producer/surplus lines producer licenses in other states that I do business in. Does my business entity need to also be licensed in all of these states?
My LLC is a licensed business entity in the state where I reside. I also have producer/surplus lines producer licenses in other states that I do business in. Does my business entity need to also be licensed in all of these states?
Being a LLC in multiple states I can say that you need to establish the entity in the other state and then get a license for it. Obviously I'm not an attorney, verify with the states you are going in to, yada yada yada to cover my ass.
Basically, here are a few things to keep in mind:
You need to establish the LLC with the secretary of the state of the state you want to be in. The only exception to that I have found thus far is GA where you only do it if the regulatory body (for you the DOI) requires it (DOI does NOT or did NOT for me doing standard P&C and L&H).
In order to establish the LLC with the secretary you need an agent acting on your behalf to be IN THE STATE to receive mail and etc. You can pay certain companies to do this for you (this is all they do, it's probably like 100-200 bucks a year if I recall). This is a REQUIREMENT usually to get into the state, with GA being the exception to me thus far because of the above.
Once you do that (or sometimes simultaneously) you need to get a license with the DOI of the state for the agency and/or the agent, depending on the state. Check with the state DOI for differences- GA requires you do a legal affidavit that is notorized while VA requires *certified* articles of incorporation for the state you reside in, for example, for the secretary of state. What complicates it even further is some states farm out licensing to a third party like Pearson Vue or something, so make sure that if you aren't sure about something you check with both parties since I sometimes got the impression there was a disconnect.
After that, you are all set to go. Once you have the license, you can get appointments ASAP. Some states will allow you to go to the DOI and get a license without the secretary of state registration BUT you pay a penalty to the state if you do it with the state later, I think MD is one of those for example. So make sure you ask if you NEED to do it and if there is a penalty if you don't do it NOW.
