Alaska Articles of Organization

How to File Your Alaska Articles of Organization

At first, filing your Articles of Organization in Alaska doesn’t seem too complicated. Nevertheless, it’s not always as easy as it might seem. 

When you’re ready to move forward with filing your State of Alaska Articles of Organization, follow these steps to help you get started. 

Step 1: Submit Your LLC’s Official Name

The first thing to do is select a name for your business. This will be the official business name you want on file with the state. 

However, before setting your name in stone through your Articles of Organization filing, make sure you avoid any relevant naming restrictions. For example, your business name must be distinguishable from any other business name on record. Additionally, your name can’t imply that the entity is a governmental unit, nor can it contain vulgar words. 

Step 2: Add a Copy of the Name Reservation Application

The State of Alaska allows businesses to reserve a desired name while getting organized through a business name reservation application. This application will enable you to hold a business name for up to 120 days so no one else can take it while you get your paperwork in order. Importantly, however, the name you reserve must still comply with all applicable business naming requirements and restrictions.

Step 3: Provide the Name and Address of Your Registered Agent

In your Articles of Organization, you’ll also need to select a registered agent for your business. You’ll need to include both their name and address for service of process purposes.

Selecting a reliable and trustworthy registered agent is essential to running a successful and legally-compliant business. If you’re not sure who to list as a registered agent for your business, we can help with that too. Use our Registered Agent Service to make it easier to find the right registered agent for your company. 

Step 4: Certify Your LLC Has At Least One Member

An Alaska LLC can be either member-managed or manager-managed. However, regardless of which management structure you select, your LLC must have at least one member. Thus, by signing and submitting your Articles of Organization, you’re certifying that your LLC has at least one member.

Step 5: Attach Any Needed Statements

In addition to the basic required information, you may also choose to include optional provisions with your Articles of Organization filing. To do so, you can simply attach additional pages to your filing with your desired optional provisions and other articles as authorized under Alaska law.  

Where to File Your Alaska Articles of Organization

Once you have all of the information you need, you’re ready to move forward. 

Specifically, you’ll need to file your State of Alaska Articles of Organization form with the appropriate government agency and pay the requisite filing fee. In most states, this will be with the office of the Secretary of State. However, for LLC Articles of Organization in AK, you will file with the State of Alaska Division of Corporations, Business and Professional Licensing, Corporations Section. 

Typically, the easiest and most efficient method is to file your Articles of Organization online with the Corporations Section. However, you may also submit your AK LLC Articles of Organization filing and payment by mail to the State of Alaska, Corporations Section. However, be aware that doing so will result in slower processing times than online filing.  

What are the next steps? 

Even after filing your State of Alaska Articles of Organization, there are a few other steps you’ll likely need to take to complete your business registration in Alaska correctly. 

Create an Operating Agreement

If you haven’t already done so, it might be time to create an Operating Agreement for your business. According to AK Statutes Sec. 10.50.095, this isn’t required to complete your LLC Formation process. Nevertheless, having an Operating Agreement in place is strongly recommended. 

An Operating Agreement addresses important details and rules about your company, its structure, and the relationships between and among its various business owners. While you don’t have to have one in place, in reality, the Operating Agreement ends up being one of the most important legal documents for many LLC business entities. 

If you don’t know what to include in your LLC’s Operating Agreement, you can use our Operating Agreement Template for guidance. 

Apply for an EIN

You may also want to apply for an Employer Identification Number (EIN) from the IRS. In fact, in many cases, you’ll need an EIN to complete essential tasks like: 

• Opening a business bank account
• Paying taxes
• Hiring employees
• Obtaining business insurance
• Complying with specific business license or permit requirements

Even if you’re a new business owner and don’t think you’ll need an EIN quite yet, it’s generally a good practice to obtain one sooner rather than later. Use our Employer ID Number Service to save valuable time and let us help get an EIN for you.  

We can help!

Starting a business is an exciting process. But it also requires some time and effort to get your business up and running. Whether this is your first business or one of many, there’s no question that having some help can make the formation process easier. That’s why we’ve made it our mission to help business owners just like you.

From business formation to dissolution and everything in between, we have the tools, products, and services you need to run your business. We can even help you keep track of your business income and expenses with our ZenBusiness Money Service and help your business stay legally compliant with our Worry-Free Compliance Service.