Company Incorporation Services

Once your small business has reached a certain point, it is time to start looking to the next stage of its development.  There are several advantages and disadvantages when moving forward and filing the legal paperwork needed to make your business and Inc. or an LLC.  If your company has grown to the point where it can easily stand on its own, then its time to start looking for company incorporation services. 

Once growth has reached a certain level, there are three different types of business structures you can choose to take your small business into.

• Limited Liability Company - The ever popular LLC, this company allows for limited liability for the owners.  When a small business is just getting started, the owner will have to settle the debts, even if it means using personal assets.  Establishing an LLC means the owners personal assets are safe.  It also allows for certain tax restrictions and benefits, but the company is not allows to be a publicly traded company.
  
  
• C Corporation - This is your standard Inc., or C Corp.  Like the LLC, this type of company has limited liability specialities, tax benefits for the business, and the options to be publicly traded, should the owner and the managers be willing to do so.  C Corps will have shareholders double taxed, meaning the company is taxed for the earnings and the shareholders will be taxed for the dividends their stocks pay out.
  
  
• S Corporation - An S Corp. is highly similar to the C Corp., only they are governed by more lenient tax laws.  In addition to this, the shareholder are responsible for taxes on profits instead of the company.

If you are ready to move forward, you should understand the process of incorporation, which is not an easy process.  Using a company incorporation service will help streamline this process since they will be more familiar with the process that the average small business owner.

1. Organize your soon-to-be corporate assets, and get all of your paperwork together.  You should go over all the standards with both your attorney and your accountant to ensure the business will be able to survive without your financial attachment.
2. You will need to formally select the name of your corporation, for paperwork, charter, and official reasons.  The name of your corporation should be reflective of the business you are engaging in.  At this time, you will need to decide which are of the country your corporation will be located in.  Most times, this is the state the majority of its business is conducted in.  The reason for this is that the business will be taxes based on that states standards.
3. Get the necessary paperwork to file for incorporation through the Secretary of State Office for your state.  There is a lengthy list of papers to fill out regarding your business, who will be on the board of directors, who the investors will be, if any, and what the business itself will be in the business of doing.
4. These papers will need to be filled out and sent to the Secretary of State's office.  Once there, they will create the charter for the company, if everything is accepted. 
5. Once the company has received its charter, all the member of the board of directors must sign the charter, then be formally elected to the position.  Once the board of directors has been establish for the corporation, the shareholder can be informed of all developments.
6. Create and adopt corporate by-laws for the company, and inform the shareholders of them once they have been agreed upon by the board of directors.

The cost of filing for an incorporation ranges from between $50 and $800 depending on the state your are filing in.  Using a company incorporation service will help to mitigate the amount of work you personally have to do with the legal aspects and the filing of paperwork.

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