Filing the articles of incorporation Arizona is the first requirement owners must meet when creating a business or nonprofit corporation.

Arizona's Articles of Incorporation

The articles of incorporation in Arizona offer the following advantages to businesses:

  • Protects the stockholders, officers, and directors with limited liability
  • Meets the state or central government law requiring registration of the business's name
  • Provides structure and integrity to the business

There must be at least one owner involved in the startup in order to form a business. He or she has to file both the articles of incorporation and a certificate of disclosure with the Arizona Corporation Commission (AZCC). The owner must provide a cover sheet with the filed documents as well as pay the registration fee.

Arizona's articles of incorporation include the following fundamental information:

  • The name of the business
  • The purpose of the business
  • The location of the business
  • The total amount and worth of authorized shares
  • The names and addresses of the business's board members, its incorporator, and its registered, or statutory, agent

Types of Corporations in Arizona

There are six different types of corporations in Arizona:

  • Profit corporations
  • Professional corporations
  • Business development corporations
  • Close corporations
  • Nonprofit corporations
  • Corporate soles

The standard corporation is known as a profit corporation while licensed professionals operate professional corporations designed to offer their designated professional service.

There are six purposes of a business development corporation:

  • To assist, advance, and develop the business success and economic well-being of Arizona.
  • To promote new business and industry development in Arizona.
  • To restore current businesses and industries in Arizona.
  • To encourage business expansion so that the state's economy will remain healthy, employment opportunities will increase, and the standard of living in Arizona will improve.
  • To work with both public and private corporations to promote and improve every area of state development, including recreational, commercial, industrial, and agricultural development.
  • To supply money and credit that would otherwise not be attainable to those seeking funds for the development and advancement of their businesses in Arizona.

Close corporations are typically private businesses owned by a small group of people, such as a family business. Nonprofit corporations are a standard non-profit business. An electric cooperative nonprofit membership corporation is a specific non-profit corporation that operates for the following reasons:

  • To provide, buy, promote, sell, or distribute electric energy to consumers.
  • To offer billing, metering, disclosure, and other services related to the use of electric energy.
  • To participate in promoting economic development in rural locations.
  • To participate in projects that are within the law.

Lastly, corporate soles are typically formed to obtain, hold, or discard a church or religious society property for the following reasons:

  • The well-being of religion
  • Charity
  • Public worship

Corporate soles may also acquire, protect, or dispose of scientific research organizations that seek to complete research without any hope of profit.

It is important to note that both C-corporations and S-corporations are not legal entities. These titles are only used for taxation purposes. A profit corporation is automatically labeled as a C-corporation unless its owners specifically choose an S-corporation as classified through the IRS.

Things to Know Before Filing the Articles of Incorporation

The first priority for owners upon filing the articles of incorporation in Arizona is to study the instructions and ensure that they understand all of the requirements. Often, articles that are not filed by professionals get rejected for reasons such as the following:

  • Failure to include a corporate suffix
  • Providing an invalid address for the business's registered agent

Additionally, although the articles of incorporation template provided by the State of Arizona guides owners through the minimum amount of information required for approval, it does not propose any additional information that should often also be included. For example, organizations that have 501(c) (3) eligibility, the IRS requires further information. Instances requiring additional information include the following:

  • State tax exemptions
  • Licenses
  • B-corporation
  • Various banking motives

The following three business types should be incorporated in Arizona:

  • Profit corporations
  • Nonprofit corporations
  • Professional corporations

An attorney is not required; however, there is a fee to file. Profit and professional corporations include a fee of $60, and non-profit corporations cost $40. Owners can also choose to have their files expedited for an additional fee of $35.

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