Moving to a new state is stressful enough. It’s even more stressful if you’re a small business owner! Not only do you have to worry about moving yourself, your family, and aaaaallllllll of the things, now you have to deal with moving your business too?!

There are a few different ways to move your business to a different state. Some are easy but may not yield the result that you’d want, while others are more complicated but may give a better result for your business.

How to Move Your Business to a Different State

Option #1: Foreign entity registration.

If your business is registered in one state and you move to a different state, you can register and qualify to do business as a foreign entity in the new state. This option does not technically “move” your business to the new state as it would still be registered as a domestic entity in the first state. Keep in mind that you would need to stay compliant to keep your business in good standing, including having a registered agent appointed in each state.

Option #2: Dissolve the old entity and form a new one.

Instead of registering as a foreign entity, you can instead dissolve the entity in the first state and form a new entity in the new state. But again, this does not really move your business to a different state since your actually just forming a brand new entity in the new state.

Option #3: Entity conversion/domestication.

This is usually the preferred method to move your business to a different state. Through a conversion or domestication (some states use different terminology for it), you are essentially just transferring your business from one state to another. Compared to easy option #2, a conversion/domestication is preferred because you’re not starting a brand new business. Everything in your business stays the same, it’s just registered in a different state! But the drawback is that not all states permit entity conversions/domestications.

Option #4: Merge the old entity into a new entity.

If you want the benefits of a conversion/domestication but it’s not permitted, you can instead form a new entity in the new state and merge it with the old entity. This is kind of a combo of options 2 and 3. You’re still forming a new business, but it can result in a continuation of the old entity similar to doing a domestication or conversion.

Tune in to this week’s episode of All Up In Yo’ Business to learn how to move your business to another state. The easy(ish) ways and the not-so-easy ways. And be sure to subscribe to our YouTube channel for more All Up In Yo’ Business! 

Want more information to help with your business? Check out: Employee or Independent Contractor: What the States Say About It.