Business Filings

The Secretary of State’s office cannot advise you on how to handle your finances.

The U.S. Small Business Administration provides a simple guide for managing business finances. To access the guide, visit https://www.sba.gov/business-guide/manage-your-business/manage-your-finances.

Iowa Workforce Development provides an Employer Handbook with more detailed information. 

You may also visit Iowa Workforce Development's webpage titled 'Duties and Responsibilities of Employers, Insurance Carriers and Self-Insured Employers' for more information.

The Secretary of State’s office does not handle licenses and permits. Visit https://www.iowa.gov/business/licenses-and-permits for more information.

The taxes your business has to pay depends on a variety of factors, including the type of business structure you formed (LLC, Corporation, Nonprofit, etc.). The U.S. Small Business Administration provides a starting guide for paying taxes, which can be found here. You can also visit https://tax.iowa.gov/businesses for information localized to Iowa.

A business is considered “domestic” when it conducts business in the state it was formed. A business is considered “foreign” when it originated in another state but would like to conduct business in Iowa. All businesses outside of Iowa must register their foreign entity with the Iowa Secretary of State before they can do business in Iowa.

A registered agent is an individual or entity designated to receive legal documents on behalf of your business. An owner or employee of a company may act as the registered agent so long as the individual resides in Iowa, has attained the age of 18 years and has an office within the boundaries of the State of Iowa.

Biennial reports must be filed and delivered to the Secretary of State between January 1 and April 1. If you miss the deadline, you will receive a notification of delinquency from the Secretary of State. If you still have not filed your Biennial Report by August, you will be either dissolved (domestic entity) or revoked (foreign entity). You will then have to apply for reinstatement.

A principal office is the primary location where a business operates.

When a business is “Not in Good Standing”, it means that the business entity is noncompliant with one or more Iowa laws that apply to businesses and their responsibilities in this State. There are a few risks associated with having a business that has lost its Good Standing: