New York C Corporation Formation Attorneys & Lawyers

Why use UpCounsel to form an C Corporation in New York

Starting an C Corporation in New York with a business startup attorney on UpCounsel is easy, informative, and cost-effective. In just three simple steps, our C Corporation attorneys will help you protect your business and personal assets, and help you organize your business for state and federal compliance for C Corporation.

When forming an C Corporation in New York with UpCounsel, the attorney you choose to help you will conduct a business name search for your New York C Corporation and assist you in preparing your C Corporation Operating Agreement, along with providing other legal services based on your needs. Once your Certificate of Incorporation have been prepared and successfully filed with the New York Secretary of State, your New York C Corporation has been formed and begins its existence as a corporate entity.

Requirements for Forming a New York C Corporation

Choosing a Company Name for Your C Corporation

One of the first steps in the process of forming your New York C Corporation is to choose your business name.

The business name that you choose must contain the words "Incorporated" or "Inc."

It must be distinguishable (not the same as or deceptively similar to) the name of any New York C Corporation or foreign C Corporation reserved or registered and cannot contain the words "bank", "trust", "trustee,""incorporated", "inc.", corporation", or "corp.", or "insurer" or "insurance company" or any other words suggesting that it is in the business of issuing policies of insurance and assuming insurance risks.

Your C Corporation name may contain the name of one or more members.

By using UpCounsel, you can choose several business names in order of preference. Your attorney of choice can then conduct a name check for your New York C Corporation before filing to see which names are available. Once you have chosen an available name, your chosen C Corporation attorney can help you properly register your name with the State of New York.

Certificate of Incorporation: When forming an C Corporation in New York, the Certificate of Incorporation must be filed with the New York Department of State Division of Corporations. New York state law requires that certain information be included in your Certificate of Incorporation when forming your New York C Corporation.

This information must include:

1. The C Corporation name.
2. The County in New York where the C Corporation will be located.
3. The C Corporation must designate the New York Secretary of State as its agent for service of process. An address must be provided so that the Secretary of State may mail a copy of any process received.
4. The organizer's signature.
5. Name and address of the filer of the Certificate of Incorporation.

Publication: According to Section 206 of the Limited Liability Company Law, you are required to publish a copy of the Certificate of Incorporation after it has been filed, or a notice that acknowledges the formation of an C Corporation This must be published in two newspapers designated by the county clerk of the county in which the C Corporation office is located for six consecutive weeks.

Additionally, a New York C Corporation formation generally requires inclusion and/or consideration of the following:

Organizers: One or more people may form a C-Corp, yet they do not need to be members of the C Corporation.

Minimum Number of C Corporation Organizers: One (or more).

Eligibility: An organizer may be an individual, partnership, limited partnership, trust, estate, association, corporation, C-Corp, or other entity, whether domestic or foreign.

C Corporation Operating Agreement: Every C Corporation with more than one member is required to have an C Corporation Operating Agreement. The Certificate of Incorporation may contain restrictions or prohibitions on the power of the members to adopt, amend, or repeal an operating agreement. If there is more than one member, any operating agreement shall initially be agreed to, in writing, by all of the members and must be entered into within 90 days of filing the Certificate of Incorporation.

Membership: A C Corporation must have one or more members.

Eligibility Requirements: A natural person or an entity.

Procedure for Membership: The member may acquire an interest in the C Corporation directly from the C Corporation at the time of formation and, after formation, at the time provided in and upon compliance with the Certificate of Incorporation or the operating agreement or, if not provided, only upon the vote of a majority in interest of the C Corporation members, excluding the vote of the person acquiring the membership interest, and only when the person becomes a party to the C-Corp's operating agreement.

Resident Agent needed for a New York C Corporation

Remember that the registered agent for your New York C Corporation must be the New York Department of State. Every New York C Corporation must have a registered agent in New York, which is the person or office designated to receive official state correspondence and notice if the company is "served" with a lawsuit. The registered office may be a place of its business.

New York Secretary of State

Once you create an C Corporation in New York, the New York Secretary of State will require that certain recurring responsibilities and duties be fulfilled. The most important of these are explained below.

For further information, contact the New York Secretary of State.

Recurring Responsibilities and Duties for New York C Corporations

Annual Report: Each C Corporation shall provide an annual report to the New York Secretary of State regarding its financial condition to each of its members.

Records: Each New York C Corporation must keep the following records open to inspection at its office:

1. A current list of the full name and last known business or residence address of each member and of each holder of an economic interest in the C Corporation set forth in alphabetical order, together with the contribution and the share in profits and losses of each member and holder of an economic interest.
2. If the C Corporation is manager-managed, you will need a current list including the full name and business or residence address of each manager.
3. A copy of the Certificate of Incorporation and all amendments thereto, together with any powers of attorney pursuant to which the Certificate of Incorporation or any amendments thereto were executed.
4. Copies of the C-Corp's federal, state, and local income tax or information returns and reports, if any, for the six most recent taxable years.
5. A copy of the C-Corp's Operating Agreement, if in writing, and any amendments thereto, together with any powers of attorney pursuant to which any written operating agreement or any amendments thereto were executed.
6. Copies of the C-Corp's financial statements, if any, for the six most recent fiscal years.
7. The books and records of internal affairs as they relate to the C Corporation for at least the current and past four fiscal years.

Filing Fees for a New York C Corporation

The processing fee for the Certificate of Incorporation is generally about $200 and the filing and submission of the Certificate of Publication is about $50. These fees can change so it would be best to check with the New York Department of State on what the latest fees are. You may pay these fees in many different forms including cash, check, money orders, or debit and credit cards.

Taxes for a New York C Corporation

New York C Corporation shareholders do not report any of the business income and expense on their individual tax return. The corporation files tax returns and pays its income taxes (at generally lower tax rates than would individuals) while the individual shareholders report and pay personal income taxes only on monies paid them by the corporation.

It should be noted that shareholders are required to pay personal income taxes on income from dividends paid by a C Corporation even though income taxes have previously been paid by the corporation. This leads to what is commonly referred to as "double taxation".

New York state law follows federal law for income tax purposes. Therefore if a corporation is classified as an association taxable as a C Corporation for federal income tax purposes, so will it be taxable as a corporation for state tax purposes.

Federal Income Tax: For federal income tax purposes, a C- Corp is recognized as a separate taxpaying entity. A corporation conducts business, realizes net income or loss, pays taxes and distributes profits to shareholders..

New York State Income Tax: The New York State Tax Law requires a corporation to file franchise tax reports and pay franchise taxes annually even if the corporation does not conduct business or loses money. Franchise tax requirements begin the date the corporate existence begins. Tax responsibilities continue until the corporation is legally dissolved by the Secretary of State.

Federal Tax Identification Number: Your corporation will need to obtain a federal tax identification number, which is also known as an Employment Identification Number (EIN). You do not need to get a new EIN after the corporation choose to become a C Corporation An EIN is similar to an individual's social security number. You will need an EIN for your C Corporation as long as there is one member, even if the C Corporation does not have employees. For certain tax filing requirements the attorney you choose on UpCounsel can help prepare your Federal Tax ID Application, if you have not done so already.