How to Incorporate in Texas

culled from:wikihow.com

Many businesses choose to incorporate in Texas because of its low corporate tax rates and friendly policies toward entrepreneurship. Should you decide to run a business in Texas, you'll need to select a business structure from which to operate, such as a sole proprietorship, partnership or corporation. If you decide to incorporate in Texas, you will complete paperwork that determines the future operational procedures of your business.

Steps

1

Choose a business name and perform an online search with the Texas Secretary of State's website to ensure that there is no other entity incorporated under that name. Your name must also comply with state business-naming laws and cannot include words like "bank" or "trust" without a "letter of no objection" from the Texas Banking Commissioner.

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   Select officers for your board of directors. In Texas, only a professional individual may be an officer but they do not need to reside in the state in order to serve. In Texas, corporations must have at least one director, one president, and one secretary. According to Texas law, one person can act as president, secretary, sole director and sole shareholder.
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   Obtain the articles of incorporation form from the Texas Secretary of State's website. Click on the link "Business Filings" and select "SOS Direct, Online Searching and Filing" to create an account that will enable you to download Texas incorporation forms.
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   Complete your articles of incorporation. The articles of incorporation form requires you to designate basic information such as the contact information of who will act as your business "agent," your business address and board officers' information and addresses.
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   Pay the fee to incorporate in Texas. As of 2011, the fee for filing incorporate is $300. Generally it takes about 5 days for the Secretary of State's office to process applications. Paperwork can be expedited and returned in 1 day for an additional $25.
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   Draft your corporate bylaws, which describe how your business will operate and designate procedures such as voting rights and board member selection. You don't have to file these bylaws with the Secretary of State but Texas law requires you keep this document at your main office. Templates can be located online at websites like FindLaw.com. Bylaws can be amended without filing new paperwork with the state of Texas.
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   Obtain an Employer Identification Number (EIN). This number is how the Internal Revenue Service will identify your corporation when filing taxes, hiring employees and conducting other federal government-related paperwork. The EIN number is obtained through the IRS and is required to begin business functions after incorporating in Texas.
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   Meet with your board of directors. This meeting is to gather your business officers to officially agree on operational details such as who your individuals officers are and how long they will serve. Details must be recorded by your board secretary. You won't need to file the meeting details with the Secretary of State in order to incorporate in Texas, but you should keep this information on hand should you need to prove that your business is a legitimate corporation.
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   Issue stock. All corporations must issue stock before conducting business. Stocks determine who owns how much of the corporation. Most smaller companies are exempt from SEC laws if they will be issuing stock to fewer than 10 people. The Texas Secretary of State requires corporations to keep records of stock issuance at the businesses' principal location.
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   Apply for and obtain all necessary business permits. With your business name now incorporated in Texas, you can set your business up by opening bank accounts, filing for sales tax permits and completing paperwork to hire employees. When this information is complete you can start business operations in Texas.