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Formation ClassClass is in session: LLC paperwork, state by state.

Session 3 · Pennsylvania

Foreign LLC Registration Class, Pennsylvania (2026): 4 Assignments and the 3 Best Services

Today's class on registering an LLC from another state in Pennsylvania in 2026 comes with one answer: hire Mainstay Filing ($199), Pennsylvania Registered Agent.co ($199) and PA Registered Agent.org ($199), in that order. Plan on 4 assignments and a $250 filing fee.

Taught by the Formation Class faculty

The quick version

What the state charges to register$250Source for this: pa.gov, October 2026
Annual report$7Annual report
State cost, years 1 to 3$264Without any service fee
Class assignments4One by one

Class objectives

  • When an LLC from elsewhere must register in Pennsylvania
  • The filing, its price and its office
  • The upkeep that repeats
  • The services at the top of the class

Pennsylvania: the graded services

Five weighted criteria set the order (see how we grade), and three-year tuition and homework done count most.
Class favorite

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

$199 to register, $149 per year after

Mainstay Filing gets first place, and the reason is that a $199 service fee plus Pennsylvania's own fee, then $149 a year for the agent.

Three years of tuition run $100 above Pennsylvania Registered Agent.co's, but this service does more of the homework, and the grade rewards that.

The agent renews at $149 a year in every state.

Covered by the tuition

  • Registration prepared and sent
  • One fee wherever you register

Strengths

  • One price anywhere
  • $199 to register

Weak spots

  • $50 more a year for the agent
One-state plan

2. Pennsylvania Registered Agent.co: best for a small yearly agent fee

$199 to register, $99 per year after

Our second pick, Pennsylvania Registered Agent.co: $199 above the state fee to register, then $99 a year.

Covered by the tuition

  • The filing is done for you
  • One year of agent service is part of the price

Strengths

  • $99 a year for the agent after that
  • No agent fee in year one
  • $199 plus the state fee

Weak spots

  • Pennsylvania only; your home state needs its own agent
One-state plan

3. PA Registered Agent.org: best for another Pennsylvania option

$199 to register, $99 per year after

Our third pick, PA Registered Agent.org: $199 above the state fee to register, then $99 a year.

Its prices match Pennsylvania Registered Agent.co's, so either works.

Covered by the tuition

  • The filing is done for you
  • One year of agent service is part of the price

Strengths

  • $99 a year for the agent after that
  • No agent fee in year one
  • $199 plus the state fee

Weak spots

  • Pennsylvania only; your home state needs its own agent

All the tuition 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.
2Pennsylvania Registered Agent.co$199$99/yr$397Visit Pennsylvania Registered Agent.coPartner link. We may earn money if you buy.
3PA Registered Agent.org$199$99/yr$397Visit PA Registered Agent.orgPartner link. We may earn money if you buy.
Taken from each company's price page on November 13, 2026. None of the rows includes the $250 state fee.

The Pennsylvania registration, in order

  1. Assignment
    1

    When registration is required

    Any out-of-state LLC doing business in Pennsylvania registers first as a foreign LLC. Ignore the rule and this follows: A claim from an unregistered LLC will not be heard here (15 Pa.C.S. 411(b)). The agreements are not voided (15 Pa.C.S. 411(c)).

    Textbook page: Source for this: pa.gov, October 2026

  2. Assignment
    2

    Arrange a Pennsylvania registered agent

    Pennsylvania requires a registered office (a Pennsylvania street address or a Commercial Registered Office Provider), not an agent. The address has to be an actual street address or rural route box number in Pennsylvania. A P.O. box alone is not accepted.

    The services above supply one.

    Textbook page: Source for this: legis.state.pa.us, October 2026

  3. Assignment
    3

    Work up the Foreign Registration Statement

    Finish the Foreign Registration Statement (DSCB:15-412), tuck in $250, and send everything to the Pennsylvania Department of State, Bureau of Corporations and Charitable Organizations.

    Textbook page: Source for this: pa.gov, October 2026

  4. Assignment
    4

    Stay registered

    Once registered, a foreign LLC sends in the annual report ($7), September 30.

Pennsylvania costs by assignment

AssignmentPaid toAmount
The registration assignmentThe state$250
Annual reportThe state$7
Paid helpThe provider$199 at the start
State fees over years one to threeThe state$264
The state's fees come from official pages, listed below. Added up over three years they are the filing, two reports and, in a few states, a minimum tax.

Why the list runs this way

What decided it was homework the price does, which carries 34% of the grade.

Two states are involved in registering, and a provider that covers both finished ahead of Pennsylvania Registered Agent.co.

Common questions

What does an LLC from elsewhere pay to register in Pennsylvania?

$250 to the state. The graded services add $199.

Which form do I file to register?

The Foreign Registration Statement (DSCB:15-412) is the one to track down, and it goes to the Pennsylvania Department of State, Bureau of Corporations and Charitable Organizations.

What if the LLC does business there without registering?

A claim from an unregistered LLC will not be heard here (15 Pa.C.S. 411(b)). The agreements are not voided (15 Pa.C.S. 411(c)).

What is due after registering?

Look ahead to the annual report, which costs $7.

Which services are in this lesson?

We grade three: Mainstay Filing ($199), Pennsylvania Registered Agent.co ($199) and PA Registered Agent.org ($199).

Which service should handle the registration?

Mainstay Filing, Pennsylvania Registered Agent.co and PA Registered Agent.org, from the highest grade to the lowest.

Related classes

Textbook pages and extra reading

  1. If you want proof of the Pennsylvania Department of State, Bureau of Corporations and facts, pa.gov is the page to read, and we last read it in August 2026.
  2. If you want proof of the Pennsylvania Department of State, Bureau of Corporations and facts, pa.gov is the page to read, and we last read it in August 2026.
  3. If you want proof of the 15 Pa.C.S. § 8821 facts, pa.gov is the page to read, and we last read it in August 2026.
  4. If you want proof of the Pennsylvania formation fee: Filing fee, official source facts, pa.gov is the page to read, and we last read it in October 2026.
  5. If you want proof of the Pennsylvania registered agent statute facts, legis.state.pa.us is the page to read, and we last read it in October 2026.
  6. If you want proof of the Pennsylvania DOS, foreign associations facts, pa.gov is the page to read, and we last read it in October 2026.
  7. If you want proof of the Foreign Registration Statement, DSCB:15-412 facts, pa.gov is the page to read, and we last read it in October 2026.
  8. If you want proof of the Commercial registered office providers facts, pa.gov is the page to read, and we last read it in October 2026.
  9. If you want proof of the 15 Pa.C.S. 411, registration to do business in facts, legis.state.pa.us is the page to read, and we last read it in November 2026.
  10. If you want proof of the Pennsylvania Department of State, general rule and exclusions facts, pa.gov is the page to read, and we last read it in November 2026.
  11. The Pennsylvania service page at Mainstay Filing, November 13, 2026
  12. The pricing page at Pennsylvania Registered Agent.co, November 13, 2026
  13. The pricing page at PA Registered Agent.org, November 13, 2026