Incorporating a corporation in Rhode Island

If you want to incorporate a corporation, Company Express will research the availability of chosen company name, prepare for you and file with the Secretary of State office all required corporate paperwork and obtain certified copy of filed documents, if it will be requested by the client.  We also will appoint registered agent for your corporation, as required by the state law, and will help with many of your follow-up corporate needs such as amendment filings, written consents, and annual report preparation and filing. You can find below some of the State incorporation requirements:

Corporate Name Requirements

Name of Rhode Island corporation  must not be deceptively similar to the name of any other entity, reserved or registered name. Company Express will research your company name to make sure it meets Rhode Island’s standards.

Permitted designations: Rhode Island’s corporate names must contain one of the following words at the end of the name:

• Co.
• Company
• Corp.
• Corporation
• Inc.
• Incorporated
• Limited
• Ltd.
• P.C.
• PC

Restricted designations: The use of the following words in corporation’s name will require approval by the state:

• Architect
• Banking
• College
• Engineering
• University

Filing Requirements

Please note, that we, at Company Express, will handle all required incorporation filing for you. The following information is presented for your information only.

Required documents: Articles of Incorporation filed with the Secretary of State.

Turnaround time: About 5-7 business days.

Follow-up filings: Not required.

Officers/Directors Information

Required officers: Corporations must have one or more directors.

Appearance in articles: Director names and addresses are not required to be listed in the Articles of Incorporation.

Principal office location / Registered Agent:

Corporation’s principal office has to be located in Rhode Island, local registered agent is also required.

Annual Reports

Time to file: Corporations must file annual reports with the Rhode Island Secretary of State by March 1. The state filing fee is $50. There is also a franchise tax, due before the 15th day of the third month following the close of the corporation’s tax year. The amount due varies based on the number of authorized shares of stock, but the minimum is $250.

Signatures: Signatory must be an authorized representative of the corporation. Emailed or faxed signatures are accepted.

Filing extensions: Permitted.