Montana Registered Agent Service, Listed Commercial or Named Direct

Montana's agent rules sit in Title 35, chapter 7 of the Montana Code Annotated, the Model Registered Agents Act, which the LLC Act points to. Business Services at the Secretary of State's Helena office keeps the record, and Montana files Articles of Organization online only, for a $35 fee.

The Secretary of State's help center says a registered agent receives legal documents and state notices on behalf of your business. Under 35-7-114 the agent has to forward to the entity any process, notice or demand that is served on it, and under 35-7-105(3) the Secretary of State notifies the agent of filings that contain the agent's name.

The Act and the LLC Act are written for LLCs here, and the same agent service is open to corporations, LPs, LLPs and nonprofits.

An LLC names either a commercial registered agent that is listed with the Secretary of State, or a noncommercial registered agent, in which case the filing gives that agent's name and address. Naming a listed commercial agent is a matter of selecting it.

The Articles also state the principal office mailing address and whether the LLC is manager-managed or member-managed, with the names and business mailing addresses of the managers or initial members.

Chapter 7 adds no residency or age rule. The Montana address and the agent's consent are what count.

Under 35-7-104, a filing must state an actual street address or rural route box number in this state, and a Montana mailing address if that is different. A P.O. box can be the mailing address but not the street address. The help center adds that the registered agent must have a physical address in Montana, not a P.O. box, and be available during business hours to accept documents.

Consent is an affirmation. Section 35-7-105(2) says appointing an agent is an affirmation by the represented entity that the agent has consented to serve. Writing a name into the Articles without asking makes that statement untrue.

For a noncommercial agent, the filing states the agent's name and address, so a home address entered there is public.

With a stable Montana street address and a habit of being there to accept papers, being your own agent costs nothing and you receive documents directly. The help center confirms you can be your own registered agent.

You have to be there. On a job site, traveling or with the office closed, a process server or state notice can be missed, and missed service can mean a default judgment. And if you relocate, you file a statement of change, which has no fee, or the LLC falls out of compliance.

A commercial agent's address stays constant when yours moves.

The Secretary of State's fee schedule lists the Statement of Change for the registered office, agent or both as NO FEE. You file it through the business portal at biz.sosmt.gov: sign in, open the business, choose Filing Actions and select Registered Agent/Office Change by Entity, either selecting a listed commercial agent or entering a noncommercial agent's name and an actual Montana street address or rural route box number. The interest holders or governors do not need to approve it, and it takes effect on filing. The annual report can also update the agent, if the timing lines up.

Montana does not publish a standard processing time. The office reviews the filing and emails you when it is approved, and paid processing is available at $20 for 24 hours or $100 for one hour.

Switching to Mainstay, we prepare and file the statement. There is no state fee to pass through on it. Do not end the old arrangement until the new agent shows in the business search.

A Montana registered agent can resign at any time by filing a statement of resignation with the Secretary of State, whether or not the entity is in good standing. Under 35-7-111 it takes effect on the earlier of the 31st day after it is filed or the appointment of a new registered agent, and the agent has to promptly tell the entity the date it was filed. The fee page and fee sheet list no resignation fee. So you have about a month to file the statement of change naming a replacement.

If an entity no longer has a registered agent, or its agent cannot with reasonable diligence be served, 35-7-113 says it may be served in accordance with any applicable judicial rules and procedures.

An empty seat can also end the LLC. The Secretary of State can involuntarily dissolve an LLC that has failed for 60 days to appoint and maintain a registered agent in the state, or that has failed for 60 days after a change of its agent to file the statement of change, under 35-8-209. That agent ground is separate from the annual report, which has its own default track.

Under 35-8-202, the Articles state the name, whether the company has a term, the principal office mailing address and the registered agent under 35-7-105(1). They also say whether the LLC is manager-managed or member-managed, with the names and business mailing addresses of the managers or initial members, and whether members are liable for debts under 35-8-304(3). Professional and series statements are added where they apply.

A series LLC adds $50 for each series member named, on top of the $35 filing fee.

Before you file a change, have the new agent chosen and consenting, with a valid Montana street address. Afterward, check the business search to verify the new agent shows on the public record.

Mainstay's Montana agent service is $149 a year, renewing at the same $149, with compliance reminders. Your annual report, due between January 1 and April 15, is not filed under this service. Reports filed on time in 2026 and 2027 carry a waiver of the state fee, and the standard on-time fee is $20. A missed report puts the LLC into default after 140 days, and it can be involuntarily dissolved if it does not cure within 90 days of the state's notice. Filing it comes with the $199 formation package, which carries the agent role and adds the Articles of Organization and your EIN application.

Mainstay's Montana address takes the place of yours on the record. Papers served on your company are scanned and uploaded the same business day, and we charge nothing for it. Three government mailings a year are scanned free, then a per-piece scan or shipping fee applies, and we do not offer free physical forwarding on any tier.