Incorporating a Business

Many business owners decide to structure their business as a corporation. In order to begin the process of

incorporation, an organization must file a business registration form with the US state in which it will be based

and carry on its primary business activities. The document that must be used for this application is generally

referred to as the articles of incorporation or a corporate charter. Articles of incorporation are the single

most important governing documents of a corporation. The registration allows the state to collect taxes and

ensure that the business is complying with all applicable state laws.

The exact form of the articles of incorporation differs depending on the type of corporation. Some types of

articles of incorporation include the following:

• Domestic corporation (in state)

• Foreign corporation (out of state or out of country)

• Close (closely held) corporation

• Professional corporation

• Nonprofit corporation (several different types of nonprofits)

• Stock corporation

• Non-stock corporation

• Public benefit corporation

It is important to note that articles of incorporation are only required to establish a regular corporation.

Limited liability corporations require what are referred to as articles of organization (or similar documents) to

register their business with a state. Some types of limited partnerships must also register with their state.

However, sole proprietorships do not have to register; for this reason, they are often the preferred

organizational structure for a person who is just starting out in business, at least initially.

Articles of incorporation provide the basic information needed to legally form the company and register the

business in its state. The state will need to know the name of the business, its purpose, and the people who

will be in charge of running it (the board of directors). The state also needs to know about any stock that the

business will be selling to the public. The websites of various secretaries of state will have information on the

different types of articles of incorporation, the requirements, and the filing process