Incorporating your company allows you to protect your personal assets from any actions that might affect your business. It also gives you the professionalism of an incorporated company, making it more likely that others will choose to work with you.
Business owners choose to incorporate outside their home state for many reasons. California is one of the most popular states for incorporation, because it has a thriving business community and offers important business benefits.
One major benefit of corporations in the state of California is management flexibility – the state only requires three officer positions in the filing: president, chief financial officer, and secretary. You can even fill all three of these with the same person. This allows you a lot of flexibility when it comes to filling out your corporation’s leadership team in the future.
Another reason forming a California professional corporation is a great choice is due to the anonymity of shareholders and management. The state only requires the director and resident agents to be disclosed, allowing stockholders to avoid having their names in the public record.
Finally, California corporation taxes are only 9%, with other significant advantages available depending on the type of corporation formed.
How to Incorporate in California
The process of registering a company is California is straightforward. Below is a brief overview of the steps to incorporating:
- Make sure your chosen business name is available under California rules and regulations.
- File California articles of incorporation.
- Have your organizational meeting and create your company bylaws.
- Get your Federal Employer Identification Number (FEIN) and open your incorporation’s bank account.
- Get business licenses from the county and/or city where you will do business.
- Submit your initial report, called a Statement of Information, within 90 days.
Sanjay Sabarwal's Blog 