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Formation Rated

Rankings of registered agents, LLC formation and foreign registration services in all 50 states.

Foreign registration ratings · Virginia

2 Best Foreign Registration Services in Virginia (2026)

From the Formation Rated editorial team
Formation Rated's 2026 ratings for foreign registration services in Virginia, highest first: VA Registered Agent.org ($199) and Mainstay Filing ($199). VA Registered Agent.org holds the top rating: $199 plus the state fee, year-one registered agent service included, then $99 a year for the agent.
Position1
Best here

1. VA Registered Agent.org: best for adding Virginia and nothing else

Service fee $199, state fee on top; agent $99 a year after that

Our score9.5out of 10

VA Registered Agent.org is rated first: the Virginia registration at $199, first agent year included, then $99 yearly.

The plan lists an in-state street address as the registered office and scans papers served there into your account.

On three-year sums it comes out ahead of Mainstay Filing.

What you get

  • Foreign registration done for you
  • The first year as your registered agent

Pros

  • $199 to register, state fee on top
  • First-year registered agent service is included
  • Year-two agent amount: $99

Trade-offs

  • Virginia only; your home state needs its own agent
  • EIN application billed at $99
Visit VA Registered Agent.orgPartner link. We may earn money if you buy. The VA Registered Agent.org entry
Position2
One price, any state

2. Mainstay Filing: best for companies registered in more than one state

$199 for the service, $299 due today, plus state fees, then $149 a year for the agent

Our score9.0out of 10

Mainstay Filing is rated second: $199 plus state fees in any state, first-year registered agent service included.

Agent service starts free and then runs $149 a year, in any state.

VA Registered Agent.org is $100 cheaper on the three-year sum, and that lowers Mainstay Filing's cost rating.

What you get

  • The registration, prepared and filed for you
  • A free first year of registered agent service
  • Same-business-day scan and upload for any service of process, no fee

Pros

  • $199 service fee, state fee separate
  • Registered agent, no charge in year one
  • The same amount in all fifty states
  • Same-business-day scans of service of process, no fee

Trade-offs

  • Agent renewal of $149 is $50 over VA Registered Agent.org
Visit Mainstay FilingPartner link. We may earn money if you buy. The Mainstay Filing entry

The 2 ratings summarized

LineServiceRatingService feeYear twoBest forOpen
1 VA Registered Agent.org 9.5 $199 $99/yr The lowest agent renewal we rank here Visit VA Registered Agent.orgPartner link. We may earn money if you buy.
2 Mainstay Filing 9.0 $199 $149/yr Companies that register in several states Visit Mainstay FilingPartner link. We may earn money if you buy.
Our editors assign the ratings out of 10 from the criteria on How we rank. None come from customers.

Virginia foreign registration service amounts for 2026: year one, renewal and three-year sum

ServiceYear oneYear twoYear threeThree-year sumAgent paid for year one
VA Registered Agent.org$199$99$99$397Included
Mainstay Filing$199$149$149$497Free
Each amount was read from the company's own site on November 12, 2026. Virginia's $100 registration fee is paid in addition to each line and sits outside these sums.

What decided the order

The rating method counts cost over years one to three and inclusions per price at 27% each and splits 46% among renewal price and terms, fit with state rules and price clarity. For Virginia, cost over years one to three was the deciding line.

VA Registered Agent.org sums to $397 across three years, $100 below Mainstay Filing. Both services include year one of agent service, so the renewal amount decided the order.

Each criterion and its weight is listed on How we rank.

Virginia foreign LLC registration: amount, form and office

A company from another state registers by lodging the Application for Certificate of Registration to Transact Business in Virginia as a Foreign Limited Liability Company (LLC1052) with the Virginia State Corporation Commission, Office of the Clerk; the state amount is $100. Virginia also needs certified copy of articles of organization and all amendments, issued inside 365 days of the filing.

Registration adds one recurring line: the annual registration fee ($50), due last day of your registration month.

Have these ready

  • Certified copy of articles of organization and all amendments, issued within 365 days before the filing.
  • Home-state legal name, spelled exactly, and the formation date.
  • An in-state registered agent; every service rated here can fill the role.
  • $100 to the state, paid with the filing.
  • The date of the annual registration fee and its $50 fee on your calendar.

What skipping Virginia registration costs

An unregistered outside LLC may not sue in Virginia courts until it registers (Va. Code 13.1-1057(A)). Contracts it signs remain valid (Va. Code 13.1-1057(C)).

Virginia foreign registration service: your questions

Is registration compulsory for an outside LLC doing business in Virginia?

Yes, once it does business there. An unregistered company cannot bring suit in the state's courts.

What are the costs of foreign registration in Virginia?

$100 to the state plus $199 to the service.

What form does Virginia use to register a foreign LLC?

the Virginia State Corporation Commission, Office of the Clerk handles it; the form's exact title is on the facts line above.

Must the filing include a home-state certificate for Virginia?

Yes: certified copy of articles of organization and all amendments, with an issue date within 365 days.

Must a registered agent stay on file after registering?

Yes. A registered agent with a street address in the state stays on record.

Which foreign registration service holds the top rating in Virginia?

VA Registered Agent.org, as $199 on top of the state fee to register in Virginia, agent at $99 afterward.

Source lines

  1. Virginia yearly filing: Recurring filing, official source (ledger date October 2026)
  2. Virginia yearly filing: Recurring filing, official source (ledger date October 2026)
  3. Va. Code § 13.1-1010 (ledger date August 2026)
  4. Virginia formation fee: Filing fee, official source (ledger date October 2026)
  5. Virginia registered agent statute (ledger date October 2026)
  6. SCC, foreign limited liability company forms and fees (ledger date October 2026)
  7. SCC, foreign business entities FAQ (ledger date October 2026)
  8. SCC, foreign registration checklist (ledger date October 2026)
  9. Code of Virginia § 13.1-1052, application for registration (ledger date October 2026)
  10. Code of Virginia § 13.1-1059, activities that are not transacting business (ledger date October 2026)
  11. Code of Virginia § 13.1-1057, consequences of transacting business without registration (ledger date October 2026)
  12. Code of Virginia 13.1-1051 to 13.1-1059, foreign limited liability companies (ledger date November 2026)
  13. VA Registered Agent.org, pricing and service pages: amounts read November 12, 2026
  14. Mainstay Filing, Virginia service page: amounts read November 12, 2026