Alabama Registered Agent Service: Requirements and What an Agent Does (2026)

A registered agent is the person or service named on an Alabama entity's formation filing to receive service of process and state mail on the entity's behalf. When a lawsuit, tax notice, or state communication is delivered to the registered agent, the law treats it as delivered to the entity. That is why the agent's address matters: it is the address the state holds on record, and it must be a place where papers can actually be received.

This page covers what Alabama requires of a registered agent, what changes cost, and how Sams Business handles the agent appointment for Alabama entities.

What Alabama requires

Every Alabama entity names a registered agent and a registered office on its formation filing. For an LLC, the Certificate of Formation names only one agent, and the registered office must be a street address in Alabama, with no post office boxes. The county of that address must also be stated, because the Secretary of State pays $100 of the $200 formation filing fee to the treasurer of the county where the registered agent's office is located. A separate mailing address in Alabama may be listed if it differs from the street address.

The same pattern applies to corporations: the certificate names the registered agent with a street address in Alabama, with no post office boxes, and states the county. The agent is the entity's point of contact in Alabama for service of process and for communications from the Secretary of State. An entity that cannot be reached at its registered office risks missing time-sensitive papers, which is why the address must be a real street address where someone can accept delivery, not a mail drop.

This requirement applies whether the founders live in Alabama or elsewhere. A founder outside Alabama cannot use a home address in another state as the registered office, which is why the registered agent appointment matters so much for out-of-state and international founders. Every Sams Business formation package includes registered agent service free for the first year, and virtual mail free for the first month.

Changing or resigning as an agent

Alabama's published fee schedule sets the cost of changing an agent. A change of registered agent or registered office by the entity costs $100, and a change by the agent of the agent's name or address also costs $100. The Secretary of State's business downloads pages list separate change forms for each route, so the right form depends on who is making the change.

Resignation has its own rule. An agent resignation notice must be received within 11 days of notice to the entity, according to the Secretary of State's business downloads pages. That timing rule protects the entity: it prevents an agent from stepping away without the entity having a window to appoint a replacement. If the agent is being replaced at the same time, the change form is the route to use rather than a resignation alone.

Two other state charges are useful for planning. A Certificate of Existence, which confirms an entity's standing, costs $25. If the entity itself changes later, an amendment costs $100 and articles of dissolution cost $100 under the published fee schedule. Dissolution assistance is a separate service with a custom quote, and it is never part of a formation package.

What the agent handles, and what it does not

The registered agent receives service of process, state notices, and other communications addressed to the entity, and passes them to the entity. The agent does not run the business, sign for the business, or make business decisions. The agent's job is receipt and forwarding, done reliably at the address on record.

Sams Business registered agent service continues after the first year as a separate service. No renewal price is stated on this site; the current terms are confirmed before any renewal is charged. Standard includes compliance alerts, which help keep agent changes, annual reports, and other recurring filings from slipping.

Sams Business pricing with registered agent service

Basic ($0 plus the state fee) covers the filing and state registration, with registered agent service free for the first year and virtual mail free for the first month. Standard ($199 plus the state fee) adds EIN assistance, an operating agreement or bylaws, S-corp election filing where applicable, and compliance alerts. Premium ($299 plus the state fee) adds expedited filing where the state offers it, ready-to-use business contracts, a domain name and business email, and a US business phone number free for the first year.

Start from the contact page to appoint a registered agent for an Alabama entity.

Related Alabama pages

Sams Business is an independent private service and is not affiliated with any government agency, including the Alabama Secretary of State's office.

Not legal or tax advice.