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Founder Mentor Guide

Walkthrough 3 · Delaware

Foreign LLC Registration Walkthrough, Delaware (2026): 5 Stages and the 3 Best Services

Here is the short answer for bringing an LLC into a second state in Delaware in 2026: Mainstay Filing ($199), Delaware Registered Agent.ai ($199) and DE Registered Agent.org ($199), ranked from first to last. Budget 5 stages and a $200 filing fee.

Advice from the Founder Mentor Guide mentors

The short version

What the state charges to register
$200
delcode.delaware.gov, last viewed October 2026
Proof of good standing
180 days
How recent it has to be
Maintenance filing
$400
Annual LLC tax
State fees over three years
$1,000
Service fees not counted
Walkthrough stages
5
One at a time

What this walkthrough covers

  • When the rule applies
  • The official form and fee
  • What staying registered costs
  • How the picks compare

Delaware: our recommended services

The mentors' five criteria are on how we score, and they decide the order.

Our call

1. Mainstay Filing: best for a string of registrations

Number one pick$199 plus fees; renewal $149 annually

Mainstay Filing takes first place, and the reason is that $199 over the state fee in any state; year one of the registered agent is free, then $149 yearly.

Compared with Delaware Registered Agent.ai, you spend $100 more over three years and file less yourself.

Once the free agent year is over, it is $149 a year.

What you get

  • The registration filing
  • Your first year of registered agent is free
  • One fee wherever you register

What works

  • Ready for your next state too
  • $199 to register
  • No agent fee for year one

What to watch

  • Renewal $50 above Delaware Registered Agent.ai's
Visit Mainstay FilingPartner link. We may earn money if you buy.

Our call

2. Delaware Registered Agent.ai: best for one extra state

Delaware specialist$199 plus fees; renewal $99 annually

Pick number 2 is Delaware Registered Agent.ai, where a service fee of $199 and an agent renewal of $99 a year.

What you get

  • The registration filing
  • Agent service for one year comes with the price

What works

  • Agent service costs nothing extra in the first year
  • Then $99 per year
  • $199 above the state fee

What to watch

  • Serves Delaware alone
Visit Delaware Registered Agent.aiPartner link. We may earn money if you buy.

Our call

3. DE Registered Agent.org: best for a small agent renewal

Delaware specialist$199 plus fees; renewal $99 annually

Pick number 3 is DE Registered Agent.org, where a service fee of $199 and an agent renewal of $99 a year.

Its prices are identical to Delaware Registered Agent.ai's, so either is fine on cost.

What you get

  • The registration filing
  • Agent service for one year comes with the price

What works

  • Then $99 per year
  • Agent service costs nothing extra in the first year
  • $199 above the state fee

What to watch

  • Serves Delaware alone
Visit DE Registered Agent.orgPartner link. We may earn money if you buy.

Every price in one table

#ServiceFirst yearFrom year twoThree-year total
1Mainstay Filing$199$149/yr$497Visit Mainstay FilingPartner link. We may earn money if you buy.
2Delaware Registered Agent.ai$199$99/yr$397Visit Delaware Registered Agent.aiPartner link. We may earn money if you buy.
3DE Registered Agent.org$199$99/yr$397Visit DE Registered Agent.orgPartner link. We may earn money if you buy.
Company prices as listed on November 13, 2026. No row folds in the $200 state fee.

Registering with Delaware, stage by stage

  1. Stage 1

    Check whether Delaware wants your LLC to register

    An LLC formed in another state has to register with Delaware before it does business here. What can go wrong without registering: an unregistered LLC cannot be a plaintiff in Delaware (6 Del. C. 18-907(a)) existing deals still stand (6 Del. C. 18-907(b))

    Check it yourself: corp.delaware.gov, last viewed October 2026

  2. Stage 2

    Ask the home state for proof of good standing

    Your application must include certificate of existence from the jurisdiction of formation, no older than 180 days.

    Ask for it shortly before you file.

  3. Stage 3

    Choose your Delaware registered agent

    Every LLC must name a registered agent with an in-state street address. The address has to be a registered office in Delaware. An entity agent keeps a business office there that is generally open; an individual agent has to be generally present there. A virtual office or mail-forwarding service alone does not qualify.

    Every service we recommend includes the registered agent.

    Check it yourself: delcode.delaware.gov, last viewed October 2026

  4. Stage 4

    Now deal with the Certificate of Registration of a Foreign Limited Liability Company

    Complete the Certificate of Registration of a Foreign Limited Liability Company, include $200, and mail or upload both to the Delaware Department of State, Division of Corporations.

    Check it yourself: delcode.delaware.gov, last viewed October 2026

  5. Stage 5

    Deal with Delaware's ongoing filing

    After registering, a foreign LLC sends in the Annual LLC tax ($400), June 1.

What each stage costs in Delaware

What forGoes toSum
Foreign registrationPaid to the state$200
Annual LLC taxPaid to the state$400
A filing service (optional)The provider$199 for year one
State total across three yearsPaid to the state$1,000
Here is how the three-year state row is built: filing fee, then the report in each of years two and three, then any yearly minimum tax. Service fees get their own rows.

Why the list runs this way

Work taken off your desk makes up 32% of the score, and that is where pulled ahead in Delaware.

The company belongs to one state and works in a second, so one provider for both is the better fit.

Short answers

What does Delaware collect from a foreign LLC when it registers?

$200 as the official fee. Hiring one means $199 on top.

Which form do I file to register?

You want the Certificate of Registration of a Foreign Limited Liability Company, and the Delaware Department of State, Division of Corporations is the office that receives it.

Do I need a certificate from my home state?

Yes: certificate of existence from the jurisdiction of formation, issued within 180 days of filing.

What if the LLC does business there without registering?

an unregistered LLC cannot be a plaintiff in Delaware (6 Del. C. 18-907(a)) existing deals still stand (6 Del. C. 18-907(b))

What is due after registering?

Stage 5 has it: the Annual LLC tax for $400.

Which service should handle the registration?

Mainstay Filing, Delaware Registered Agent.ai and DE Registered Agent.org, from the top score to the lowest.

Where we got the facts

  1. Where the Delaware yearly filing: Recurring obligation, official source advice comes from: corp.delaware.gov, viewed October 2026.
  2. Where the Delaware yearly filing: Recurring obligation, official source advice comes from: corp.delaware.gov, viewed October 2026.
  3. Where the Delaware yearly filing: HB 400, official source advice comes from: legis.delaware.gov, viewed October 2026.
  4. Where the Delaware report due date advice comes from: delcode.delaware.gov, viewed August 2026.
  5. Where the 6 Del advice comes from: delcode.delaware.gov, viewed August 2026.
  6. Where the Delaware registered agent statute advice comes from: delcode.delaware.gov, viewed October 2026.
  7. Where the Foreign LLC registration form advice comes from: corpfiles.delaware.gov, viewed October 2026.
  8. Where the Delaware Code Title 6, chapter 18, subchapter IX advice comes from: delcode.delaware.gov, viewed October 2026.
  9. Where the Division of Corporations fee schedule, August 2026 advice comes from: corpfiles.delaware.gov, viewed October 2026.
  10. We opened Mainstay Filing's Delaware service page on November 13, 2026 for the prices
  11. We opened Delaware Registered Agent.ai's pricing page on November 13, 2026 for the prices
  12. We opened DE Registered Agent.org's pricing page on November 13, 2026 for the prices