How to Obtain a Copy of a Certificate of Incorporation
Individuals, businesses, attorneys and others often have the need to search for a corporation's formational documents. Such certificates or articles of incorporation are filed with the state agency that handles corporate filings. Searching for such documents is relatively simple. However, the 50 states each have different procedures for requesting these filed documents.
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Things You'll Need
- Credit card or check to pay any applicable fees
- Printer to print out any necessary forms for mailing or faxing
Instructions
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Online and Hard Copy Options
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Find the state government website and search for corporations or corporate filings in the search tab. This search should bring up the agency that deals with corporate filings. Often, this agency will be called the Secretary of State or the Corporations office.
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Many state government websites offer online accounts that allow registered users to view free PDF's of corporate filings. For a credit card fee, some states offer users the ability to file an online request with the state corporation office directing the office to mail physical and certified copies of corporate files. Other states offer free online browsing of corporate filing information and PDFs of documents are sent to users' email addresses. Texas and Florida are examples of states with corporate agency offices that possess these varied computer friendly options for users.
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Other states, such as California, are not as computer friendly and they require either the mailing in or faxing of forms to request corporate filings. Describe as much of the corporation's information as possible in order to fully apprise the state corporate office of the correct entity as many corporations have similar names. Some states require checks or credit card numbers for certified copies of documents and minimal to zero fees for copies of documents. Call the corporate office to ensure the receipt of the faxed or mailed-in request form as well as to find out when to expect the office's response.
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Tips & Warnings
If one frequently needs to obtain corporate filing information and that state allows for online accounts, it is advisable to obtain such an account to avoid having to repeatedly input contact and credit card information. Often corporations have filed to obtain formal authority to do business in one state but actually have been incorporated in a different state. This allows for an additional search of corporate filings if one is not entirely sure where a company was originally formed but is sure of the state in which the company does business.
