An LLC in New Mexico is a Limited Liability Company formed in the state of New Mexico that provides liability protection for the owners of the business. 

How to Form an LLC in New Mexico

The New Mexico Code for LLCs governs all Limited Liability Company business structures in the state. LLC requirements differ from state to state, but forming an LLC in the state of New Mexico is relatively easy and inexpensive. 

If a business owner wants to form an LLC in New Mexico, they will need to file the required documents and pay some fees by contacting the Corporations Bureau division of the New Mexico Public Regulation Commission. They will also need to choose a name that follows the rules for LLC naming in the state. 

LLCs in New Mexico are well-protected by the state's laws to keep assets safe. An LLC structure has many benefits for different businesses, but it may or may not be the right fit for your business, so you'll want to be sure you understand all of the specifics of this business entity type before deciding to form one. 

The first step of forming an LLC in New Mexico is choosing a name for the business. This is especially important because the name is the main way future customers or clients will know and find your company. 

LLC names in New Mexico must follow these guidelines:

  • Must include Limited Liability Company or L.L.C. or LLC in the name of the business (other abbreviations are allowed)
  • Must avoid words like bank, lawyer, medical unless they have obtained the proper licenses for these types of businesses
  • Must avoid any words, like treasury or post office, that could cause customers to confuse the LLC with a state or federal entity
  • Must be unique and not able to be mistaken for the name of another business formed and currently conducting business in the state of New Mexico

If you come up with the perfect name for your business and want to be sure that no other business owners use the name, you can reserve it for as long as 120 days by filing an application for name reservation with the Corporation Department of the Secretary of State (SOS). A filing fee of $20 will also need to be paid to reserve the name. 

A business owner can check the availability of their desired name for their LLC by performing a name search through a portal on the SOS website. You may also want to check on the availability of a domain name that matches your business name. Even if you aren't ready to launch a website for the company it'll be beneficial to know that it's available when you are ready. If the domain is available, you can purchase it to keep it from being taken before you get to use it. 

New Mexico requires all LLCs to choose a registered agent, also known as an agent for service of process, for their LLC. This person will be the recipient of any legal documents regarding the company. A registered agent in New Mexico can be an individual with residence in the state, or a business entity that has been granted access to conduct business within the state. 

The address of the registered agent must be in the state of New Mexico and the LLC itself cannot act as its own registered agent. Once the business name and registered agent have been decided on the LLC can officially form. The owner or owners, called members within the LLC structure, will want to file articles of organization with the state. 

The LLC must including the following information with these articles:

  • Name and address of the LLC
  • Name and address of registered agent for the LLC
  • Dissolution date for the LLC
  • Whether or not the LLC is a single-member LLC
  • The managerial structure of the LLC

The chosen registered agent will need to file an Acceptance of Appointment with the state. Along with the articles of organization and the registered agent's acceptance form, a $50 filing fee will need to be paid. 

All of these documents and payment should be sent to New Mexico's Public Regulation Commission.

If you need help with an LLC in New Mexico, you can post your legal need on UpCounsel's marketplace. UpCounsel accepts only the top 5 percent of lawyers to its site. Lawyers on UpCounsel come from law schools such as Harvard Law and Yale Law and average 14 years of legal experience, including work with or on behalf of companies like Google, Menlo Ventures, and Airbnb.