Creating Agency: Adding multiple states nightmare (PLEASE HELP!!)

[Tahoe Ray]

Anyone who isn't a licensed attorney in VA likely shouldn't be offering advice on what entity (or not) is required to sell insurance in VA and you should seek the guidance of a VA attorney. That said, it doesn't appear you have a presence in the state and as a non-resident license holder (if so), the requirement may not apply to you. I'm licensed in many states and unless you have a contract obligation to have an entity license in VA (which you may or may not have), the requirement seems highly unusual. Would be a shame to spend hundreds of dollars (potentially annually) setting it up wrong because you didn't speak with an attorney.

None of what you're saying applies to what he's trying to do.

He's trying to license his AGENCY, not himself. That requires a registered agent in the state of VA (and other states) to receive legal documents on behalf of your business (agency).

You don't have to be an attorney to tell an agent how to do this, you just had to have done it yourself.

 

[Will305]

interesting and very helpful thread as i am going through this nightmare myself.

edit: I came across some information that is going to save you THOUSANDS in fees, i'm still doing more research but I got this from Mutual of Omaha. This is for the ones doing MED SUPPS

"IMPORTANT: A corporation must hold an active license in the following states to receive override commissions in GA, MA, MS, MT, NM, PA and VA. In addition, the licenses for MT or VA must be effective at the time the application is taken to receive overrides."

I've recently created my agency (FL) and I flipped out when I tried to get my TX license and saw that I need to register it with SOS and the fee is $750 plus RA fees? significantly more than any other state, you kidding me TX?!

 

[DNicholsIns]

Maybe a registered agent would help in such cases. This list compiles the best ones. You can pick one from there.

 

[Tahoe Ray]

Maybe a registered agent would help in such cases.

You have to have one.

In about 18-20 states.

 

[WaSucks]

Does anyone know the URL for this site? Click to expand

Below is a chart that shows the states that require a registration with the SOS as indicated by each DOI.

Thanks,,

john

STATE​	SOS Registration Required by DOI for Non-Resident Agency Licensing?​	Notes​
Alabama (AL)	Yes	Yes, they will still need to register as a Foreign corp. Per Antwionne Dunklin 11/8/23
Alaska (AK)	No	Registering with the Secretary of State is not required when licensing in the State of Alaska. Kayla Erickson - 11/27/23
Arizona (AZ)	No	We do not require SOS registration in AZ for an AZ non-resident license. Olyver Quinlin - 11/6/23
Arkansas (AR)	Yes	The Arkansas Secretary of State requires non-resident business entities to register as foreign corporations for Arkansas. Brandon Looney - 11/6/23
California (CA)	No	No. Nonresident entities do not need to register with our Secretary of State. BE Unit - 11/29/23
Colorado (CO)	No	there is no requirement for a nonresident agency to register with the Colorado Secretary of State, however you may want to contact them as they would be the one to determine if you are required. James Thompson - 11/6/23
Connecticut (CT)	No	There are no requirements from our department. But you would want to check with the Secretary of the State to discuss any business you are conducting in the state. Stephanie Garrety - 11/7/23
Delaware (DE)	No	You only have to register with the State secretary if you are opening a company not an agency. Linda Bullock - 11/6/23
District of Columbia (DC)	No	We don't have a secretary of state you can hold an agency producer license in DC. You may want to check with DCRA for any requirements concerning the agency. Willie Hicks - 11/13/23
Florida (FL)	No	when applying for an agency license you must have either an FEIN, or SSN if a sole proprietor. If the agent will not be registering as a sole proprietor then he will need to apply with the division of corporations to obtain an FEIN and then apply. Kemisha Williams - 11/9/23
Georgia (GA)	No	We do not have any information to advise on your inquiry. Please contact the GA Secretary of State for more information at (404) 656-2817 or visit https://sos.ga.gov/ . Pearson VUE - 11/8/23 -- not required by DOI
Hawaii (HI)	Yes	You will need to contact the Hawaii Business Registration (BREG) – Secretary of State to find out if the agency is required to register with their office. Their phone number is (808) 586-2727 and email address is breg@dcca.hawaii.gov. The Insurance Division is a separate division from BREG so they have different requirements. Norma Beppu - 11/6/23 confirmed on state site for businesses - 1/4/24
Idaho (ID)	Yes	Yes, any and all business's must register with Idaho Secretary of State in order to get a Enity Insurance License. Katrina Mclean - 11/6/23
Illinois (IL)	No	not required per Tommy at DOI 3/21/24
Indiana (IN)	No	Registration is only required in the agency home state. Kristi Ware - 11/6/23
Iowa (IA)	No	No this is not required. Robin - 11/6/23
Kansas (KS)	Yes	Yes, please refer to the Kansas Secretary of State for additional information on this. [EXTERNAL LINK] - Kansas Secretary of State | Page Not Found Josh Faulk - 11.6.2023
Kentucky (KY)	No	Kentucky won't require the agency to hold a license if they don't want to have that license but the insurance carriers may require that the business gets a license and there is nothing we can do about that. I hope this answers your questions but if not just let us know. David Wilhoite - 11/6/23 -- not required by DOI
Louisiana (LA)	Yes	Yes, they must be registered with the La Secretary of State prior to obtaining a license. Thank you. Tay Davis - 3/15/24
Maine (ME)	No	The Maine Bureau of Insurance does not require seeing any Secretary of State filings in order to license a producer business entity. You may want to verify with the Secretary of State's office as to what their filing requirements are. Tracy Cunningham - 11/6/23 -- not required by DOI
Maryland (MD)	Yes	Yes, that is correct, a registration is required Licensing Dept - 11/13/23
Massachusetts (MA)	Yes	Confirmed on state site
Michigan (MI)	No	Secretary of State registration is not necessary to become a non-resident insurance agency. However, If your activities in Michigan constitute transacting business in Michigan, as stated in the Michigan Business Corporation Act, 1972 PA 284, then you would be required to file an application for Certificate of Authority to Transact Business or Conduct Affairs in Michigan with the Michigan Licensing and Regulatory Affairs (LARA) Corporations Division at: http://www.michigan.gov/lara/0,4601,7-154-61343_35413---,00.html. For additional information regarding this filing, please review the "Foreign Corporation Filing Information" document provided on the Corporations Division website. DIFS has provided this information as a courtesy, it cannot provide any guidance or clarification on this process. If you have any questions, please contact the Corporations Division directly at 517-241-6470. Kim Weaver - 11/7/23 (Items in bold above have links in the next cell)	http://www.legislature.mi.gov/(S(id03d445lefr2c55kd4wdczr))/mileg.aspx?page=GetObject&objectname=mcl-Act-284-of-1972 https://www.michigan.gov/lara/-/media/Project/Websites/lara/cscl/Folder4/560_08-15.pdf?rev=13b15071aad3477ebdf2036c01fea131&hash=CDB8973FAB069D65620E848E14F73A73 http://www.michigan.gov/lara/0,4601,7-154-61343_35413---,00.html https://www.michigan.gov/lara/-/media/Project/Websites/lara/cscl/Folder4/BCS_CD_268_08-15.pdf?rev=df23c3009cab4daa870cb9db9aafe451
Minnesota (MN)	No	Licensing does not require documentation from the Secretary of State to issue a non-resident insurance agency license unless we are unable to verify the agency name in the resident state or if there is a DBA entered on the application that we are unable to verify. You may wish to contact the MN Secretary of State to determine if you need to file with them to do business in our state. Cindy - 11/7/23
Mississippi (MS)	Yes	In order to obtain an entity license in the state of Mississippi, the entity must first be registered with the Mississippi Secretary of State office. -Licensing Division 11/6/23
Missouri (MO)	No	Due to the fact, that you do not have a Business Entity in Missouri, you're not required to register with the Missouri Secretary of State's Office. Danielle Anyanwu - 11/6/23
Montana (MT)	Yes	Yes you will need to register with secretary of state to be eligible for an agency license. Brittany Highland - 11/6/23
Nebraska (NE)	No	We do not require this to obtain a license; however, you may want to contact the SOS office to see what they require to do business in NE. Gina Goodro - 11/7/23
Nevada (NV)	No	All businesses are required to register with the Nevada Secretary of State (NV SOS) even if they do not have a physical location in NV. However, you may also request an exemption if you obtain a license with the Nevada Division of Insurance (DOI) first. You do not need to register with the NV SOS before applying for a non-resident producer firm license with the DOI. https://www.nvsos.gov/sos/home/showpublisheddocument/2037/636409801030970000 Jennifer Richardson - 11/6/23
New Hampshire (NH)	Yes	Yes the registration is required. 603-271-2964 is their phone, www.sos.nh.gov Joan LaCourse - 11/6/23
New Jersey (NJ)	No	We do not require this to obtain a license; however, you may want to contact the SOS office to see what they require to do business in NJ. Per phone message from Heather Hogrebe - 11/21/23
New Mexico (NM)	No	You may want to check with SOS to see if registration is needed and if so it is not information you would need to provide to us. Regina Ramirez - 11/8/23 -- not required by DOI
New York (NY)	Yes	confirmed on state licednsing site Required Documents checklist: Department of State filing receipt
North Carolina (NC)	No	No as a Non-Resident is required to have the Business Entity registered in their Resident (Home) State. Only our Resident Business Entities in North Carolina are required to register. Per Pearson VUE - 11/6/23
North Dakota (ND)	Yes	A business entity does not need to register with the North Dakota Secretary of State prior to obtaining a license with the Department. However, registration is required with the North Dakota Secretary of State in order to be compliant with North Dakota corporate laws. Cindi Offerman - 11/6/23
Ohio (OH)	Yes	Confirmed on state site
Oklahoma (OK)	No	The answer is no, it does not need a registration with Okla Sec of State in the situation you describe. Max Worrell - 11/6/23
Oregon (OR)	Yes	If you wish to have a business entity license here, the business will need to be registered with the Oregon Secretary of State. This applies to both resident and non-resident business entities. Zachary Lock - 3/15/23
Pennsylvania (PA)	No	While I cannot say whether registration of the agency with the PA Dept. of State will be required generally (as that is outside of the authority of the PA Insurance Department), I can state that registration is not a requirement for the approval of an application for a PA Non-Resident Producer Agency. Licensing Dept - 11/6/23
Rhode Island (RI)	No	No registration needed. Vianka Brown - 11/6/23
South Carolina (SC)	No	You would need to speak with the secretary of states office to verify you are following their requirements. Emily Knight - 11/6/23 -- not required by DOI
South Dakota (SD)	No	The Division of Insurance does not check for this registration. I cannot speak to any of SOS laws though. Penney Wagoner - 11/6/23
Tennessee (TN)	No	You will just need a FEIN number in order to apply for a business license. You need to contact the secretary of state and far as what you need for a business in TN. Licensing Dept - 11/6/23
Texas (TX)	Yes	Confirmed on state site
Utah (UT)	No	Not if they have it in their resident state. All they need to apply is a name and EIN. Royalyn Andrus - 11/6/23
Vermont (VT)	Yes	We do require that foreign agencies obtain the necessary registration upon applying with the state. Calley Rock - 11/6/23
Virginia (VA)	Yes	Confirmed on state site
Washington (WA)	No	Resident Only: A WA resident business entity would need to be able to provide a copy of the Articles of Incorporation from the WA Secretary of State's office to obtain a WA resident BE insurance license.
West Virginia (WV)	No	This should be directed to our Secretary of State. You can reach them at (304) 558-6000 or (866) 767-8683. You can also email them at Licensing@wvsos.gov. Licensing Dept - 11/7/23 -- not required by the DOI
Wisconsin (WI)	No	Our office does not verify that individuals/entities are registered with the Secretary of State prior to issuing an insurance license. Licensing Dept - 11/8/23
Wyoming (WY)	No	No this is not a requirement for licensure. You will need to check with the Secretary of State on their specific requirements. Licensing Dept - 11/7/23

 

[Todd King]

Probably NIPR.com, or at least they will have that info.

 

[WaSucks]

Probably NIPR.com, or at least they will have that info.

Wrong, but nice advertisement.

 

[Todd King]

Wrong, but nice advertisement.

4 Times Your Insurance Agency Should Register With The Secretary Of State | AgentSync

You don’t always have to register with a state’s secretary of state office, but here are four times you do, plus a roadmap of other pitfalls to look for.

agentsync.io

 

[marindependent]

Anyone who isn't a licensed attorney in VA likely shouldn't be offering advice on what entity (or not) is required to sell insurance in VA and you should seek the guidance of a VA attorney.

Really?