Connecticut Registered Agent (Statutory Agent for Service of Process)

Responsibilities of a Connecticut Registered Agent

If your organization is involved in litigation, it’s your registered agent’s duty to accept service of process on your behalf. The same goes for other government correspondence, which the agent must then forward to you so that you can take appropriate action.

Your agent also needs to maintain a physical address in Connecticut, known as the registered office. Process servers will deliver all notices to this address and must do so in person, so P.O. boxes are not allowed.

If your agent performs their duties responsibly, you can respond to any legal action without delays. In case they miss a notice or fail to deliver it timely, you might miss a court hearing and face default judgment—a ruling made in the plaintiff’s favor as a result of you not appearing in court.

Connecticut Registered Agent Requirements

Section 33-660 of the Connecticut Code allows the following to act as registered agents:

1. Individuals residing in the state
2. Domestic organizations (a corporation, LLC, LLP, or statutory trust)
3. Foreign organizations (including the above) authorized to transact in Connecticut

According to the above, you can appoint any individual over the age of 18 as your registered agent—an employee, friend, family member, or even yourself. Alternatively, you can choose another organization, preferably one that specializes in providing registered agent services.

Like several other US states, Connecticut differentiates between commercial and noncommercial agents. The main difference between the two is that commercial agents register with the secretary of state by filing a listing statement.

While both individuals and organizations can register as commercial agents in some states, this isn’t the case with Connecticut—individuals can’t serve as commercial registered agents.

With this in mind, not all organizations are commercial registered agents, but all commercial agents are organizations. It’s important to keep this in mind because appointing an individual means you might miss out on the benefits of commercial agents, some of which we’ll mention in the following section.

Appointing and Changing a Registered Agent in Connecticut

Appointing an agent is obligatory for all legal entities that file annual reports. This only excludes a few organization types, as outlined in Section 33-954 of the Connecticut Code:

• Trust companies
• Banks
• Public service companies
• Savings and loan associations
• Insurance or surety companies

All entities besides the above are required to appoint a registered agent in their formation filings (Articles of Incorporation for profit and nonprofit corporations or Articles of Organization for LLCs). If you’re expanding to Connecticut from another state, you’ll appoint the agent in your foreign qualification filings.

To appoint an organization (commercial or not), you’ll need their:

• Name
• Signature
• Business address
• Mailing address (which can be a P.O. box)

If you want to enlist an individual, you’ll also need their residence address. Not everyone is comfortable with this, as the address would enter the public record.

To change your Connecticut agent, you need to submit the Change of Agent form. The secretary of state must also be notified if your current agent’s address changes, which can be done through the Change of Agent’s Address form.

If your agent’s name and registered address aren’t kept current, you run the risk of administrative dissolution, which means your rights to operate in Connecticut are revoked. A significant advantage of commercial agents is that they can update their address directly with the secretary of state for all represented entities, relieving you of this responsibility.

Connecticut Registered Agent Services by Harbor Compliance

To confidently meet Connecticut’s registered agent requirement and ensure your notices are delivered efficiently, consider partnering with Harbor Compliance. We offer a Registered Agent Service that checks all the necessary boxes, offering you the following benefits:

• Same-day electronic delivery of time-sensitive notices—We process your correspondence as soon as we receive it, and we’ll call you in case of a lawsuit to ensure you don’t miss court summons or other notices.
• Local office in Glastonbury—Our office is open during regular business hours, and our team is always on-site to receive your notice.
• Secure Client Portal—You can access your correspondence and pre-filled state forms from the dedicated Client Portal, which lets you manage notices regardless of your location.

Harbor Compliance is far more than a registered agent service provider—our portfolio includes various other services:

Individual Registered Agents in Connecticut vs. Harbor Compliance

We already mentioned some disadvantages of individual registered agents, such as residence address requirements and a more complex approach to address changes. Besides eliminating these issues, Harbor Compliance offers the following benefits:

• Privacy—When you appoint us, our details are listed with the secretary of state, and there’s no risk of receiving service of process in front of your team or clients (which would be the case if you appointed someone from your organization).
• Security—We use cutting-edge security protocols to keep your data safe, such as strong encryption and cloud monitoring. These measures may not be available to individual agents, so engaging with us gives you more peace of mind..
• Security—We use strong encryption, advanced cloud monitoring, and numerous other industry-standard security protocols typically unavailable to an individual agent.
• Convenience—An individual from Connecticut can’t serve as your registered agent in other states, which is limiting if you run a multistate organization. Instead of appointing a separate individual in every state, you can leverage our nationwide presence and have notices from different states delivered to your Client Portal.
• Reliability—An individual agent might be absent for many reasons (personal time off, sickness, emergencies, etc.), putting you at risk of missing a notice. By contrast, someone is always there to receive your notice in our Glastonbury office.

How To Appoint Harbor Compliance as Your Connecticut Registered Agent Service Provider

There are three scenarios in which you can partner with us:

1. Forming a new organization
2. Expanding to Connecticut through foreign qualification
3. Changing your registered agent

The steps to appointing us in each of these situations are outlined below.

Registering a New Organization in Connecticut

Harbor Compliance lets you form a new legal entity effortlessly through the following three services:

1. Nonprofit Formation
2. Incorporation
3. LLC Formation

Choose your preferred service, and we’ll complete the entire registration process—including the appointment of Harbor Compliance as your registered agent.

If you wish to complete the registration independently, you can appoint us by following these steps:

1. Order our Registered Agent Service.
2. Find the address of our Glastonbury office in the Client Portal and use it in the corresponding section of your formation filings.
3. Submit the filings to the Connecticut secretary of state.

Expanding Your Organization

You must meet various requirements to expand your operations to Connecticut. Our Foreign Qualification Service package leaves no stone unturned and lets your organization start operating as quickly as possible. All you need to do is complete the wizard, and we’ll help you qualify without setbacks.

Besides obtaining your Connecticut certificate of authority, we’ll appoint Harbor Compliance as your agent and provide the service at no extra cost for a year.

Changing Your Connecticut Agent

Besides filing the aforementioned Change of Agent form, you can switch to Harbor Compliance in a single click while ordering our Registered Agent Service.

Right before checking out, you’ll see the option to add the Change of Agent service. Select it, and we’ll complete the change on your behalf.

Let Harbor Compliance Be Your Connecticut Registered Agent

By combining extensive industry experience with innovative software, Harbor Compliance provides a reliable registered agent service that ensures your notices reach you timely. Order the service today, and we’ll create an efficient communication channel from the secretary of state to your organization.

If you don’t want to navigate Connecticut’s complex regulatory framework alone, feel free to:

• Inquire about our other services.
• Get a free Harbor Compliance Score™ to see if your organization is on top of its obligations.
• Schedule a demonstration of our award-winning compliance platform.

As your organization grows, you might need a registered agent in other states. Refer to the following table to learn about registered agent services in every state we cover: