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Founder Mentor Guide

Walkthrough 3 · Hawaii

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

Ranked for 2026, the services worth your call for bringing an LLC into a second state in Hawaii are Hawaii Registered Agent.co ($199), Mainstay Filing ($199) and HI Registered Agent.org ($199), in that order. Hawaii wants $51 from a foreign LLC, and the 5 stages below show you how to file.

Advice from the Founder Mentor Guide mentors

Read this first

Cost to register
$51
cca.hawaii.gov, seen in October 2026
Certificate from your home state
60 days
How recent it has to be
Annual report
$12.50
Annual report
What the state collects in three years
$76
No service fee included
Stages in this walkthrough
5
Each one explained

Walkthrough goals

  • When registration is required
  • How the filing gets made
  • The recurring filing
  • Our recommendations, with reasons

Hawaii: our recommended services

Five weighted criteria set the order (see how we score), and three-year cost and work taken off your desk count most.

Our call

1. Hawaii Registered Agent.co: best for one extra state

Our first call$199 and the $51 state fee, then $99 a year

Start with Hawaii Registered Agent.co; $199 beyond the state fee, with the first year of the agent covered, then $99 a year.

Over three years it costs less than Mainstay Filing, and three-year cost is 32% of the ranking.

What you get

  • Registration paperwork handled
  • Agent service for one year comes with the price

What works

  • The agent renews at $99
  • $199 to register
  • A free first agent year

What to watch

  • Serves Hawaii alone
Visit Hawaii Registered Agent.coPartner link. We may earn money if you buy.

Our call

2. Mainstay Filing: best for a second state and beyond

Does the most for you$199 and the $51 state fee, then $149 a year

Mainstay Filing is a solid second: the first registered agent year comes with the $199 registration service, so you only add the state fee.

Across three years it trails Hawaii Registered Agent.co by $100.

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

What you get

  • Registration prepared and sent
  • Your first year of registered agent is free
  • One fee wherever you register

What works

  • No agent fee for year one
  • The same fee in every state
  • $199 to register

What to watch

  • Hawaii Registered Agent.co charges $50 less for the agent
Visit Mainstay FilingPartner link. We may earn money if you buy.

Our call

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

Hawaii specialist$199 and the $51 state fee, then $99 a year

Pick number 3 is HI Registered Agent.org, where $199 beyond the state fee, with the first year of the agent covered, then $99 a year.

Hawaii Registered Agent.co and this service cost the same.

What you get

  • Registration paperwork handled
  • Agent service for one year comes with the price

What works

  • $199 to register
  • A free first agent year
  • The agent renews at $99

What to watch

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

The services compared

#ServiceFirst yearFrom year twoThree-year total
1Hawaii Registered Agent.co$199$99/yr$397Visit Hawaii Registered Agent.coPartner link. We may earn money if you buy.
2Mainstay Filing$199$149/yr$497Visit Mainstay FilingPartner link. We may earn money if you buy.
3HI Registered Agent.org$199$99/yr$397Visit HI Registered Agent.orgPartner link. We may earn money if you buy.
Each price is copied from the company's own site, opened November 13, 2026. Plan for $51 more in state fees, whichever row you pick.

Registering with Hawaii, stage by stage

  1. Stage 1

    Is Hawaii registration required for your LLC?

    If your LLC came from elsewhere and will operate in Hawaii, you register first as a foreign LLC. An LLC that operates unregistered risks: an unregistered LLC cannot be a plaintiff in Hawaii (HRS 414-432(a); 428-1008(a)) existing deals still stand (HRS 414-432(e); 428-1008(b)) fees that built up while unregistered

    Check it yourself: cca.hawaii.gov, seen in October 2026

  2. Stage 2

    Order the home-state certificate

    Request original certificate of existence from the jurisdiction of formation, issued within 60 days.

    Hold off until the other papers are ready.

  3. Stage 3

    Arrange a Hawaii registered agent

    Every LLC must name a registered agent with an in-state street address. The address has to be a place of business with a street address in Hawaii. P.O. boxes are not accepted.

    Our picks each fill the registered agent role.

    Check it yourself: capitol.hawaii.gov, seen in October 2026

  4. Stage 4

    Time to send in the Application for Certificate of Authority for Foreign Limited Liability Company

    Complete the Application for Certificate of Authority for Foreign Limited Liability Company (Form FLLC-1), include $51, and mail or upload both to the Hawaii Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs (DCCA), Business Registration Division.

    Check it yourself: cca.hawaii.gov, seen in October 2026

  5. Stage 5

    What comes next

    Write down the annual report and its $12.50 fee (end of the quarter in which the LLC was registered).

Costs, stage by stage

ItemReceiverTotal
Filing to registerState office$51
Annual reportState office$12.50
A filing service (optional)Your service$199 in year one
State fees, years one to threeState office$76
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 Hawaii Registered Agent.co is first

On three-year bill (32% of the score) finished first, with right behind.

Add up three years and Hawaii Registered Agent.co lands on $397, $100 below Mainstay Filing.

Common questions

How big is the Hawaii fee for a foreign LLC?

$51 for the filing. The services here charge $199 extra.

Which form do I file to register?

Fill in the form named in stage 4 and send it to the Hawaii Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs (DCCA), Business Registration Division.

Do I need a certificate from my home state?

Yes: original certificate of existence from the jurisdiction of formation, issued within 60 days of filing.

What if the LLC does business there without registering?

an unregistered LLC cannot be a plaintiff in Hawaii (HRS 414-432(a); 428-1008(a)) existing deals still stand (HRS 414-432(e); 428-1008(b)) fees that built up while unregistered

What is due after registering?

Stage 5 has it: the annual report for $12.50.

Which service should handle the registration?

Hawaii Registered Agent.co ranks first and Mainstay Filing and HI Registered Agent.org follow; Hawaii Registered Agent.co wins on three-year bill.

Where we got the facts

  1. For Hawaii DCCA Business Registration Division release of July, open cca.hawaii.gov (we last saw it October 2026).
  2. For Hawaii yearly filing: Annual report: fee, official source, open files.hawaii.gov (we last saw it October 2026).
  3. For Hawaii formation fee: Filing fee, official source, open cca.hawaii.gov (we last saw it October 2026).
  4. For Hawaii formation fee: Filing fee, official source, open cca.hawaii.gov (we last saw it October 2026).
  5. For Hawaii registered agent statute, open capitol.hawaii.gov (we last saw it October 2026).
  6. For Hawaii DCCA, foreign LLC registration, open cca.hawaii.gov (we last saw it October 2026).
  7. For Form FLLC-1, open files.hawaii.gov (we last saw it October 2026).
  8. For Foreign LLC filing fees, open cca.hawaii.gov (we last saw it October 2026).
  9. For Hawaii Revised Statutes 428-1003, activities that are not, open capitol.hawaii.gov (we last saw it October 2026).
  10. For New Hawaii business registration portal FAQs, open cca.hawaii.gov (we last saw it October 2026).
  11. For Hawaii Revised Statutes 414-432, consequences of transacting business, open capitol.hawaii.gov (we last saw it November 2026).
  12. For Hawaii Revised Statutes 428-1008, effect of failure to, open capitol.hawaii.gov (we last saw it November 2026).
  13. Hawaii Registered Agent.co pricing page; prices copied November 13, 2026
  14. Mainstay Filing Hawaii service page; prices copied November 13, 2026
  15. HI Registered Agent.org pricing page; prices copied November 13, 2026