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California Secretary of State, Business Programs Division (Business Entities)

California business entity search

Office facts, status meanings and filing rules for California. The steps below show how to search California's official registry.

Federal filings only here. California registry records are on the official site.

California registry at a glance

Registry agency
California Secretary of State, Business Programs Division (Business Entities)
Office
Secretary of State Shirley N. Weber, Ph.D.
Source: sos.ca.gov · checked 2026-10-06
Phone
(916) 657-5448
Source: sos.ca.gov · checked 2026-10-06
Address
1500 11th Street, Sacramento, CA 95814
Source: sos.ca.gov · checked 2026-10-06
Mailing address
Statement of Information Unit, P.O. Box 944230, Sacramento, CA 94244-2300
Source: sos.ca.gov · checked 2026-10-06
Hours
Monday through Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., excluding state holidays
Source: sos.ca.gov · checked 2026-10-06
Official search
bizfile Online business search →
Registry number
Entity number (Secretary of State file number). Registry/states.json records 12 characters for LLCs (for example 202412345678) and 7 digits for corporations; not restated on an official page read for this file.

How to search the California registry

The bizfile Online business search searches by entity name and entity number.

  1. Open the business search on bizfile Online, the California Secretary of State filing site.
  2. Type the entity name or the Secretary of State entity number in the search box.
  3. Run the search and select the entity in the results table.
  4. Read the status, entity number, formation date, and agent for service of process in the side panel.
  5. Open the filing history to see the latest Statement of Information and other filed documents.

Open the official California search →

Three numbers, three agencies

Asking for the wrong number is a common reason a search comes back empty.

Federal EIN
Internal Revenue Service
Identifies the business for federal tax. It is the same number in every state.
Source: irs.gov
Entity number (Secretary of State file number)
California Secretary of State, Business Programs Division (Business Entities)
Identifies the entity's record in the California registry. Registry/states.json records 12 characters for LLCs (for example 202412345678) and 7 digits for corporations; not restated on an official page read for this file.
Seller's permit number (sales and use tax)
California Department of Tax and Fee Administration (CDTFA)
CDTFA issues seller's permits and other tax accounts and offers a public permit verification. The Secretary of State entity number identifies the entity in the registry, and the federal EIN comes from the IRS. Employer payroll accounts are a separate EDD number.
Source: cdtfa.ca.gov · checked 2026-10-06

What a California status means

Active
The entity's powers, rights, and privileges are in effect in California.
Source: sos.ca.gov · checked 2026-10-06
Suspended
The entity's powers, rights, and privileges, including the right to use its name in California, are suspended by the Secretary of State or the Franchise Tax Board, for example for not filing a Statement of Information or not filing tax returns or paying taxes.
Source: sos.ca.gov · checked 2026-10-06
Forfeited
A foreign entity's right to do business in California has been forfeited for the same kinds of failures that suspend a domestic entity.
Source: sos.ca.gov · checked 2026-10-06
Dissolved
A corporation has filed to end its existence.
Source: sos.ca.gov · checked 2026-10-06
Cancelled
An LLC or limited partnership has filed to end its existence or registration.
Source: sos.ca.gov · checked 2026-10-06
Terminated
The entity's registration or existence has ended, such as by merger or a filed termination.
Source: sos.ca.gov · checked 2026-10-06

Fees and annual filings

LLC formation
$70 (Articles of Organization, Form LLC-1)
Source: sos.ca.gov · checked 2026-10-06
Corporation formation
$100 (Articles of Incorporation, general stock or close corporation)
Source: sos.ca.gov · checked 2026-10-06
Annual filing
Statement of Information
Source: sos.ca.gov · checked 2026-10-06
Annual fee, LLC
$20 Statement of Information every two years
Source: sos.ca.gov · checked 2026-10-06
Annual fee, corporation
$25 Statement of Information every year for stock corporations; $20 every two years for nonprofits
Source: sos.ca.gov · checked 2026-10-06
When it is due
Due within 90 days of initial registration. After that, stock corporations and qualified out-of-state corporations file every year, and LLCs and nonprofit corporations file every two years, in the month of original registration.
Source: sos.ca.gov · checked 2026-10-06
Late filing
After a notice of delinquency and 60 more days without a filing, the Secretary of State refers the entity to the Franchise Tax Board, which assesses and collects a penalty. Continued failure can lead to suspension or forfeiture.
Source: sos.ca.gov · checked 2026-10-06
Filed with
California Secretary of State, online at bizfileOnline.sos.ca.gov
Source: sos.ca.gov · checked 2026-10-06
LLC annual tax and corporate minimum franchise tax
California Franchise Tax Board. LLCs pay the first-year annual tax by the 15th day of the 4th month after filing with the Secretary of State, then by the 15th day of the 4th month of each taxable year (Form FTB 3522). $800 a year for every LLC organized or doing business in California, owed until the LLC is cancelled. Corporations owe the $800 minimum franchise tax, but those incorporated or qualified on or after January 1, 2020 do not owe it in their first taxable year.
Source: ftb.ca.gov · checked 2026-10-06
Note
The $800 annual LLC tax and $800 minimum corporate franchise tax are paid separately to the Franchise Tax Board.

As published by the California Secretary of State, Business Programs Division (Business Entities), checked 2026-10-06. Fees change, and the official schedule decides.

Forming or running a business in California

Registered agent
California calls it an agent for service of process. An entity must file a new Statement of Information when its agent resigns or is no longer valid.
Source: sos.ca.gov · checked 2026-10-06
Business forms and fees
Official California business forms and fees →

California businesses on file

All 1,448 California businesses on file →

Sources

A fact that could not be confirmed on an official page is left out.

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