Top 7 Best Hawaii Registered Agent 2024: Reviews & Guides
Reviewed by Randolph Vialva, MBA
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Hawaii business owners often hire a registered agent service. Each provider offers similar baseline services like forwarding business mail, accepting service of process, and providing important legal notices. Continue reading through this guide as we cover the top Hawaii registered agent service providers.
What Is The Definition Of a Registered Agent?
A Hawaii registered agent is any individual or business that accepts legal documents and official notices on your business’s behalf. While not just anyone can be a registered agent, many states allow you to be your own registered agent as long as you fit the right criteria set by state law. Most of the time, when you register a business entity with the Hawaii Secretary of State, you will be required to appoint a registered agent with a physical address in the state with the business registration division.
Read More: Best LLC Services In 2024
Ways To Start Business With Hawaii Registered Agent Service
If you want to start a business in Hawaii, there are some steps you will need to take before it’s time to appoint a Hawaii-registered agent.
Pick A Business Idea
First, you need to choose an idea for your business. This will include the products or services that you plan to sell. Essentially, you need to figure out how you will make money, and how you will be able to provide those goods or services.
Plan Your Business
Next, you’ll need to make a plan for your business. This will involve more detail than the previous step and may include a timeline and other goals you have set for your business.
Choose A Business Structure
At this stage, it’s time to choose a structure for your business. This will include if you choose to be a sole proprietorship, LLC, corporation, or partnership. This is when you will need to provide a registered agent’s name with the state and an official business address, where your business will receive service of process and other legal documents.
Set Up Banking, Credit Cards, & Accounting
After that, you should set up all the banking and accounting structures for your business. This will keep the company’s finances separate from your own, and make tax season go a lot smoother.
Hire Employees
At this point, you should consider hiring employees to ramp up production and free yourself to do other value add tasks for the business to move the company forward.
Build a Business Website
Even if you don’t sell your products or services online, you still need a place for customers to visit online that gives them more information about your company, contact information, and more.
Promo Your Business
This is an important step and will help you attract more customers so you can grow your business. Each company will do this in its own way, so try out different methods to see what works best.
Top 7 Best Hawaii Registered Agents in 2024
- Zenbusiness: Best Overall
- Northwest Registered Agent: Most Affordable
- IncFile: Best Value
- Harbor Compliance: Fastest Delivery
- Better Legal: Great Pricing
- LegalZoom: Top Expertise
- Rocket Lawyer: Full-Service Support
Read More: Best LLC Formation Services In Hawaii (HI) 2024
Top 7 Best Hawaii Registered Agents April 2024
Zenbusiness
ZenBusiness is one of the best-registered agents in Hawaii. Overall, customers prefer them for their affordable and transparent pricing and the great value of their services.
- Starts at $0 plus state fees
- Premium registered agent and compliances services
- Affordable EIN and expedited filing options
- A newer service, so they don’t have the same reputation and brand recognition as others
Zenbusiness offers many packages and tiered services, making it a great match for any Hawaii business entity. All packages come with a free operating agreement, formation documents, annual report filing, service of process, and one year of their registered agent service for free.
Their affordable rates, high quality of service, and quick delivery times are favored by customers. The ZenBusiness Starter Package, which includes no state fees, will handle all of the paperwork required to obtain your company’s EIN. It saves you the trouble of going through the IRS to file your taxes.
Northwest Registered Agent
Northwest continues to be one of the top options for a Hawaii registered agent. They offer great value for the prices they charge and the services they provide, with great ongoing customer support from professionals.
- Top-rated customer service
- Great customer data protection
- Flexible package structure
- Not the cheapest
- Highly qualified support team but response times may be slow
Northwest Registered Agent provides Hawaii registered agent services that give customers a physical presence in the state at the registered agent’s local office and accepts service of process, official mail, and other official paperwork. Their customer support team is available during regular business hours, but their guidance and expertise are top-notch. Their mail forwarding service protects Hawaii corporations and their privacy by shielding their official street address.
Incfile
IncFile is one of the top registered agent services in Hawaii. Customers like them for their great value, wide range of packages, and affordability for businesses at any level of development.
- Great pricing with no hidden fees
- One free year as a registered agent
- Easy to use online account
- Customer support only during normal business hours
- Not the cheapest option available
IncFile offers a range of services available at different price points, meaning businesses of all sizes can find an option to fit their budget. They offer support with both LLC formation and as a registered agent for customers. As a registered agent, customers will benefit from their mail forwarding service, online document storage, and assistance with the formation of documents and Hawaii annual reports.
Harbor Compliance
This is a great provider of Hawaii registered agent services. Given their affordability and great value, they are a great option as a registered agent for businesses across the state.
- Strong expertise in compliance
- They help businesses meet filing deadlines with the Hawaii Department of Financial Services
- Good pricing and affordable rates
- Good value, but doesn’t really shine in any particular area
- Their customer service team is not made up of experts
Harbor Compliance can help businesses starting at incorporation, and on an ongoing basis with service of process, mail services, and accepting legal documents on a business’s behalf. The physical street address of their customers will be shielded from database searches because the registered agent office will be listed instead on all official documentation. This keeps the businesses more private and secure, which is a great benefit of hiring them as registered agents.
Better Legal
Better Legal provides a wide range of guidance for businesses throughout the formation process as a new registered agent, like tax support, web creation assistance, and ongoing legal advice.
- Wide range of expertise
- All services available for one flat fee
- They provide all services in a timely manner
- They don’t offer a lot of flexibility with packages, so you may pay for more services than what you actually need
- They only have customer support available during normal business hours
- There are more affordable service providers out there
BetterLegal provides everything a business needs from a registered agent, including assistance with business filings and annual reports, accept service of process at the registered agent’s address, forwarding regular business mail, giving online access to any legal document the business receives, and more. However, they offer services for a flat fee, so customers may pay for more than what they need. In addition, their limited customer support is an issue for some.
LegalZoom
LegalZoom continues to be one of the most dominant players in the game, providing comprehensive legal advice and related services to their customers. Even still, they aren’t necessarily known for their registered agent service and are one of the more expensive options on this list.
- Great ongoing legal expertise
- Strong brand recognition and reputation
- Good IP protection and help with trademark registration, patent applications, and more
- Not all businesses requiring a registered agent service will need the comprehensive legal support they offer
- There are other providers on this least that offer a cheaper registered agent service
- They don’t include a period of their registered agent service for free when purchasing their other packages
Their clear expertise in the field and strong brand reputation are what customers like about them, as they show an obvious depth of knowledge in these subject matters. They do have a great registered agent service as well, though it is not the cheapest option available. In any case, LegalZoom will continue to be one of the more widely used providers on this list, making them a great Hawaii registered agent for many businesses in the state.
Rocket Lawyer
Rocket Lawyer offer similar services to what LegalZoom provides, at more affordable prices but without a strong brand presence and reputation among customers.
- Affordable pricing
- The widely used registered agent in Hawaii
- Great ongoing support
- The services are offered on a subscription basis, so the costs may add up
- All businesses looking for a registered agent may not need the additional ongoing legal support that they provide
Rocket Lawyer is a Hawaii registered agent that helps businesses with legal matters and can accept legal documents on their behalf. They offer great expertise on business matters, and support businesses on an ongoing basis, even though they don’t have the same reputation as others on this list. The value they offer and customized customer service is a great benefit to their customers, so they will continue to become more widely used as registered agent in Hawaii.
What Is The Cost Of A Hawaii Registered Agent?
The cost of hiring a registered agent in Hawaii will depend on the provider. It can range anywhere from $0 + state fees to $100-$200 per year.
Advantages Of Using Hawaii Registered Agent
There are many reasons why a business in Hawaii would hire a registered agent. They provide in-depth guidance with all relevant legal documentation and receive service on your behalf. As a process server, they give you the peace of mind that your legal matters are being taken care of. In addition, many registered agents offer additional services for added support, including tax notices, giving you a physical street address at their local office in Hawaii, and more.
Final Thoughts
Hawaii requires business owners to select a registered agent upon formation, and even though you can be your own registered agent, there are many providers that offer services as a Hawaii registered agent that can also be considered.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Yes, you can change registered agents in Hawaii whenever necessary if you are not satisfied with your current registered agent. Simply hire a new registered agent and you’re ready to go with your new provider.
According to Hawaii law, you are permitted to be your own registered agent.
These terms are all interchangeable and refer to the same thing.
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- What is a registered agent? cca.hawaii.gov. Accessed September 29, 2022. https://cca.hawaii.gov/breg/faqs/general/what-is-a-registered-agent/
- Business Registration. cca.hawaii.gov. Accessed September 29, 2022. https://cca.hawaii.gov/breg/
- Business Registration Division – Annual Business Filings. Hawaii State Department of Commerce & Consumer Affairs, Business Registration Division. Accessed September 29, 2022. https://hbe.ehawaii.gov/annuals/#/
- Hawaii Registered Agent | For LLCs & Corporations. Northwest Registered Agent. Accessed September 29, 2022. https://www.northwestregisteredagent.com/registered-agent/hawaii
- Get a Hawaii Registered Agent Today. ZenBusiness Inc. Accessed September 29, 2022. https://www.zenbusiness.com/hawaii-registered-agent/
- Hawaii Registered Agents & Your LLC. www.incfile.com. Accessed September 29, 2022. https://www.incfile.com/hawaii-llc/registered-agents-hawaii-llc