Congratulations! You are on your way towards completing the first steps required to protect your personal assets by incorporating your business.

By forming a corporation, you are creating a separate legal entity that exists apart from its owners and is created under state law. The defining legal rights and obligations of a corporation include:

• The ability to sue and be sued,
• Hold assets in its own name,
• Hire Employees and Agents,
• and Signing contracts.

In order to retain corporate existence, the owner(s) must observe certain corporate formalities such as:

• Holding an annual meeting,
• Taking corporate minutes,
• Issuing shares of stock (if applicable), and
• Appointing officers.

When you incorporate a business, there are three common business structures on entities entrepreneurs should consider: an S Corporation; a C Corporation, and Limited Liability Company (LLC). Let us help you determine which structure is the “best” fit for your company Be sure to consider important factors, such as the number of owners involved, the present and future goals for the business, whether the owners wish to limit their personal liability, and the desired type of taxation. Select the following to learn more about how to incorporate your business as an:

• S Corporation
• a C Corporation
• or a Limited Liability Company (LLC)

If you want to create a Non-profit Corporation, or if you are located outside of the United States and want to form an LLC or Corporation, we've got all the information you need to get started in our Help Me Choose Section. You can also call us at 1-800-604-2471 for more information.