Your Guide to Foreign Qualification in Florida

Florida is often deemed as a top spot for starting a new business. This stems from several key factors, including its tax-friendly environment, strategic location, business-friendly regulations, and economic incentives. However, if you have a business registered in another state and are looking to expand into Florida, you must be authorized as a foreign entity.

In this article, we’ll go over the process of foreign qualification in Florida to help you stay on top of the regulations and state requirements. We’ll also show you how Harbor Compliance can help expand your intra-state business in Florida by managing the entire foreign qualification process in your name.

When To Register as a Foreign Business in Florida

According to the Florida Department of Revenue, businesses with physical stores or offices in Florida are required to register as foreign entities. The following activities create a business connection in the state:

• Employing staff, agents, or independent contractors to engage in sales or other business operations
• Operating an office or any place of business
• Assembling, installing, servicing, or repairing products
• Owning, renting, or leasing real estate or tangible personal property
• Delivering goods to Florida customers using company-owned or leased vehicles

Documents Required for Foreign Qualification in Florida

To qualify a foreign entity to transact intrastate business in Florida, you need to obtain the following documents:

• Certificate of Authority to Transact Business in Florida
• Original certificate of existence authenticated by the Florida secretary of state (no more than 90 days old)
• Translation of the certificate of existence under the oath of the translator if it's in a foreign language
• A cover letter is included in the downloadable registration form

How To Qualify a Foreign Entity in Florida

With the necessary documents ready, you can now take the following steps to officially register your foreign corporation (for-profit and nonprofit ones), LLC, LP, LLP, or LLLP in Florida. Here’s what you need to do:
Download the application form, depending on your business’s structure, from the Florida Department of State (DOS) website.
Enter details about your business, including:

• Business name
• An alternate name, in case it doesn’t comply with Florida laws
• Name of your home state
• The mailing address of your foreign company
• Signature from your registered agent
• Name and Florida street address of your registered agent
• Date of formation of your business
• Names and business addresses of directors and officers

Once filled out, you can mail the application to the DOS along with the fee ($70 for foreign corporations, $125 for foreign LLCs, $50 for foreign LLPs, and $1,000 for foreign LPs and LLLPs).
While simple, completing the foreign qualification process comes with various risks, the most common one being having your application rejected due to errors.

This is why outsourcing the foreign qualification process to a reliable service provider, such as Harbor Compliance, is a smart move. Harbor Compliance can handle everything from submitting accurate documentation to tracking deadlines, saving you time and effort.

Let Harbor Compliance Manage Your Foreign Qualification Process

Harbor Compliance’s Foreign Qualification service streamlines the process of obtaining a Certificate of Authority for businesses looking to expand into new states. Instead of researching everything from scratch while struggling to keep up with the deadlines, you can rely on us to take care of all your filings. From obtaining the certificate or certified copies from the state to submitting your application on your behalf, we handle everything, so you can focus on the operating side of your business.

Our offices are located in every state to help you meet your state-specific requirements. As part of your package, you can also choose our Registered Agent Service, and we’ll appoint a registered agent to receive legal notices in your name.

As part of our proprietary Software Suite, you can also access our advanced Entity Manager (sold separately) to keep track of your entities and their compliance status.

How To Order Our Foreign Qualification Service

Ordering our Foreign Qualification Service is quick and easy—all you need to do is follow these steps:

1. Visit the Foreign Qualification page.
2. Click Order Online.
3. Provide the requested information.
4. Review and submit your order.

Once submitted, our team will start handling the paperwork. Once your business is registered, we’ll send you copies of the filings and your approved Certificate of Authority.

Additional Services by Harbor Compliance

In addition to Foreign Qualification, Harbor Compliance offers a range of services to help you meet legal and regulatory obligations in your state. You’ll find our list of services in the table below:

Partner With Harbor Compliance for Foreign Qualification Assistance

Filing for foreign qualification in Florida requires accurate document processing and a thorough understanding of state regulations to maintain good standing in the state.

Harbor Compliance offers excellent filing support and advanced software designed to help you obtain a Certificate of Authority and qualify as a foreign entity with ease.

To get started with our services, try our free Harbor Compliance Score™ first to assess your company’s standing with state regulations. You can schedule a demo to see how our solutions can streamline your processes.

For more details on foreign qualification requirements across the U.S., visit our Information Center and check out the table below: