Operating in Kentucky with Delaware LLC or Corporation

When it comes to incorporating a business, Delaware is the popular choice due to the superiority of the Delaware corporate law structure. Delaware is known for protecting the Directors and Officers of the Corporation and the members of an LLC better than any other state. For this reason, it attracts clients from all over the world. When incorporating in Delaware, your business is domestic to Delaware, and foreign to every other state. As a Delaware Corporation, there are steps you must take in order to do business in your home state, or you put the protection of your company at risk.

The process in which another state gives your Delaware Company the authority to operate in their state is called foreign qualification. Each state has a process by which to foreign qualify. This blog will focus on operating a Delaware LLC or Corporation in Kentucky.

Kentucky, like many other states, has an application process and a state fee in order to qualify to do business there as a foreign entity. The form you file with Kentucky is called a Certificate of Authority, as it is the way that Kentucky grants your Delaware business the authority to operate in Kentucky. The Certificate of Authority applies whether you have a Delaware LLC or a Delaware Corporation, and the nature of the business does not typically matter.

Kentucky, unlike many other states, does not require you to present a Certificate of Good Standing from Delaware in order to apply for the Kentucky Certificate of Authority. However, Kentucky does require that your Delaware Company have a Kentucky Registered Agent, with a physical address in Kentucky. The Registered Agent’s job is to forward any service of process, legal documents, or annual notices from the State of Kentucky. The Registered Agent has a physical address and someone should be there during business hours in order to receive any possible service of process for the company.

Harvard Business Services, which is mainly known for Delaware Registered Agent Services helps clients to register to do business in Kentucky all the time. We prepare the documents, email them to you for a signature, and then file them with Kentucky in a timely fashion. We will act as the Kentucky Registered Agent for $99/year.

The typical turnaround time for approval in Kentucky is 10-15 business days. This process should be started before you do any business or banking in Kentucky using your Delaware Company.

If you have additional questions about registering your Delaware Company to do business in Kentucky, please call Harvard Business Services, Inc. at 1-800-345-2677 x6130 or email devin@delawareinc.com.