How to Incorporate in Kansas

Every Kansas business must have a distinctive name that hasn’t already been claimed by another business in the state. If you’re having difficulty coming up with a name, try using our Business Name Generator to gather ideas.

Once you’ve picked a name, you’ll need to make sure it’s available in Kansas. To see whether another company in the state is using your desired business name, use our tool to do a Kansas entity search.

You can also carry out a name search on the state’s website.

All Kansas corporations must have a designated address. It could be a building where your office is located, your residence address (if you’re running the company from your home), or any physical address of your choice. The address can be outside the state of Kansas and can be a P.O. Box.

You may also be able to use a virtual mailbox for your business address. Bizee can provide you with a Kansas virtual mailbox where we’ll receive your mail, upload it and scan it for your online review. This can be especially helpful if you run a home-based business and don’t want your home address published as part of your business public record.

Someone who receives official correspondence and is responsible for filing reports with the Kansas Secretary of State is known as a Registered Agent. Every Kansas corporation is required to have a Registered Agent.

You may fill this position yourself, assign another manager in your business or use a Registered Agent service. If your Registered Agent in Kansas is a person, they must have a physical street address in Kansas and must be available during business hours to accept important documents on behalf of your company. You’ll appoint your Registered Agent when you file your Articles of Incorporation with the Secretary of State and formally create your corporation.

All of Bizee’s business formation packages include Registered Agent service. It’s free for the first year and just $119 per year after that. You can also access a digital dashboard to view any document we’ve received on your behalf.

Once you’ve gathered all the information for your corporation, you’ll need to file your Articles of Incorporation with the Secretary of State. This will officially create your business. Here’s what is typically included:

Your Articles of Incorporation can be filed online via the state’s One Stop Business Portal. You can also mail the form to the Office of the Secretary of State, or Bizee can file it on your behalf. The KS Corporation filing fee is $50.

You only need to file your Articles of Incorporation in Kansas once, but once a year thereafter, you’ll also need to file an annual report online via the website that the Secretary of State in KS has provided. Bizee can remind you about this every year, or we can do it for you if you have us handle the paperwork.

You’ll need an EIN to identify your business to the IRS. You use an EIN for filing and paying taxes, submitting payroll information and payments for your employees and opening a business bank account. You can obtain one directly from the IRS, or Bizee can get one for you as part of the KS corporation creation process.

A set of rules that govern how a corporation will be run, bylaws detail how many directors the corporation will have, whether the board of directors will have annual meetings and what the voting requirements will be, among other things.

Some states legally require companies to create bylaws, and the state of Kansas is one of them. That being said, you don’t need to file your bylaws with the Secretary of State, simply keep them with your other business records.

It’s always a good idea to write and follow bylaws to protect your business from any future changes and events.

When you file to start a corporation, by default, it’s a C Corp. This is the choice for large businesses that will trade shares in the stock market.

A Kansas C Corporation will offer you several liability protections, but it will also be required to adhere to numerous rules and regulations. It will also likely have a substantial amount of administrative overhead, and won’t enjoy as many tax advantages as other corporation types.

Learn more about C Corporations.

Technically, an S Corporation isn’t a business entity the way LLCs and C Corporations are. It’s a tax filing status. An LLC or a C Corporation can be an S Corporation. It’s just a matter of filing a form with the IRS.

The main reason to file as an S Corp is to save money on self-employment taxes. To get an idea of how much money you might save, use our S Corp Tax Calculator.

If you want your Kansas C Corporation to be treated as a Kansas S Corporation, file the IRS Election by a Small Business Corporation form, also known as Form 2553 or an S Corp Election form.

Consult with your tax advisor or accountant to determine whether this is your best option.

Learn more about S Corporations.

Compare S Corp vs. C Corp to learn the benefits and drawbacks of both, and decide which one will best suit your needs.

Some states, including Kansas, allow certain occupations that deliver Professional Services to form a Professional Service Corporations. Kansas Revised Statutes, Chapter 274 § 274.005 defines a Professional Service in Kansas as:

"...any type of personal service to the public which requires as a condition precedent to the rendering of such service the obtaining of a license or other legal authorization and which, prior to the passage of this chapter and by reason of law or a professional code of ethics, could not be performed by a corporation."

Check with the Secretary of State to confirm whether your business should and can be a Professional Service Corporation.

If your business operates in another state and you want to expand into Kansas — or vice versa — you’ll need to form a Foreign Corporation.

Charitable organizations can incorporate as nonprofit corporations. This means all the profits they generate are donated to the organization supported by the charity, minus administrative costs.

A nonprofit corporation is also exempt from federal and state taxes, allowing more of the profit to benefit the charity.

Depending on the type of business you want to start, or your personal circumstances and goals, an LLC may be a better option for you. For example, you may only want to form a small business that you yourself will run with just a few employees and you may not need the options to buy and sell stock.

A Kansas LLC is generally a better option for a smaller business. It’s easier to set up, but it still offers you certain advantages you’d get from a corporation. You can even have your LLC treated as an S Corporation for tax purposes to save you money.

Regardless of which direction you decide to go, we can help you with your Kansas business registration.

Learn more about limited liability companies.

These are the simplest types of businesses to set up. That’s because there’s no real setup to do. If you don’t choose to form a separate business entity, by default, you’ll have either a sole proprietorship (just you) or a partnership (you and one or more other people).

Neither of these options provide you with any special benefits or liability protections and can leave your personal assets vulnerable. For these reasons, we don’t recommend them.

Compare business entity types to decide which one is best for you.

You’ll find plenty more insight and guidance on the other pages of this guide, including:

How to search the state business registry and find the right name. Includes information on naming rules, assumed names, reserving names for KS corporations and more.

How to appoint, change and search for Registered Agents. Also includes the duties they fulfill and the rules they’re required to follow.

Details the various fees you’ll need to pay and the state and federal requirements you’ll need to meet. Includes details about Employer Identification Numbers (EINs), state and federal business licenses, annual reports and more.