The first step in filling out the New Hampshire Certificate of Formation is to pick a business name.

There are a couple of requirements to be aware of when choosing a New Hampshire LLC name.

1. The name of your LLC must not be too similar to the name of another business entity already registered with the state of New Hampshire. You can verify name availability by doing a New Hampshire LLC name search with the New Hampshire Secretary of State to be sure the LLC name is available.

2. The name of the LLC must include one of the following entity identifiers at the end of the business name:
– Limited Liability Company
– L.L.C.
– LLC
– or similar abbreviations

Enter the LLC name, including the identifier, to continue.

Next, while not as common, if you previously reserved an LLC name or if the Certificate of Formation was rejected due to a name conflict, click on the “Yes” button and enter your information.

In this section, you will enter some basic information regarding the activities of the LLC.

To do this, you will enter the NAICS code of your business. The NAICS, or North American Industry Classification System, is a classification system that groups businesses into similar industries for the primary purpose of tracking economic activity. 

While businesses could often choose from several activities, select the one that best reflects what your business will do.

Every New Hampshire LLC must have a registered agent who is responsible for receiving legal documents on behalf of the LLC.

You can either appoint an individual such as yourself as the registered agent or appoint someone else, such as a friend, or family member, or a business, such as a professional registered agent service. The registered agent must either be a New Hampshire resident (select “Individual”) or a business (select “Not-For-Profit” or “Business”) with a physical office in the state of New Hampshire.

The main requirements for being a New Hampshire registered agent are that the person be an adult and be at a physical address during normal business hours.

Related: What is a New Hampshire registered agent?

The next step provides information regarding whether the LLC is Manager-Managed or Member-Managed.

A Member-Managed LLC is involved with the business’ day-to-day operations. Many LLCs are operated and run by the owner, in which case, they would be Member-Managed.

A Manager-Managed LLC refers to a Limited Liability Company that hires a manager to run the business, similar to hiring a CEO of a corporation.

In step 5, you will enter the duration of the LLC. Most filers don’t have a specific end date in mind and would choose “Perpetual,” however some businesses will have a date in mind. If so, enter the end date.

Next, enter a business email address. I recommend using an address that you frequently check, as the New Hampshire Secretary of State will send correspondence, such as the New Hampshrie LLC annual report reminder, to this address if you select this option.

Enter the name(s), address(es), and title(s) of all the LLC Members and/or Managers. If the LLC is Member-Managed at least one Member should be added. If the LLC is Manager-Managed at least one Manager should be added.

If there are additional items you wish to include regarding the formation of the LLC (not very common), attach them in this section.

This section is looking for the Principal Office Address and Mailing Address

The Principal Office Address may be, but is not required to be, the actual place of the business to the physical street address or the main location where the business records are kept. A physical address must be used, as PO Boxes are not acceptable.

A Principal Mailing Address can be used if a different address is preferred to receive correspondence from the Secretary of State. A PO Box can be used.

The person filling out the Certificate of Formation (usually called an Organizer) will certify the information provided is correct. An Organizer is someone who is involved with the LLC formation and may or may not be a member, such as a mentor, attorney, or accountant, but any of the initial member(s) could be an organizer.

Next, the effective date of the Certificate of Formation will be entered. It’s common to choose “This statement will be effective on the date/time of electronic submission,” however, you can select a date up to 90 days in the future to start the LLC.

Last, an organizer’s signature is needed to file the Certificate of Formation.

On the next screen, a final review of the information is presented. Take a look over this to make sure everything is correct.

Last, the state filing fee must be paid, and the Certificate of Formation must be submitted to the New Hampshire Secretary of State.