Best Registered Agent Services in Hawaii

According to Hawaii Tourism Authority, around ten million people travel to Hawaii every year. Tourists spent over $17.75 billion in 2019.

Thus, today, many business owners want to incorporate in such a tourist-heavy area. To do so, they will need a Hawaii-based registered agent.

Best Registered Agent Service in Hawaii

A registered agent (or agent for service of process, statutory agent) is a third party that receives official papers, including the following:

• Annual reports;
• Tax forms;
• Legal documents for a business.

In the event of a lawsuit, the agent is notified, and the business owner’s private information is protected. The RA will also notify you of any upcoming annual reports, legal forms, and the like.

The typical requirements for a RA include:

• They must be of legal age;
• The agent must have a physical address (e.g., office, store, home) in the state;
• They must be available during typical business hours.

Businesses use these agents to take some of the legal duties off of the business owner, allowing them to focus on other aspects of entrepreneurship (such as expanding their business).

We factored in Hawaii’s unique geography, demographics, and laws when picking the best Hawaii registered agent for any business’s needs. Among other features, we considered price, location, and language in our selections.

The services listed have been checked to confirm that they serve Hawaii, which has laws that many states in the continental U.S. do not. We have also selected websites with solid information and legal documentation available.

Registered Agent in Honolulu, Hawaii

Hawaii Registered Agent

Hawaii Registered Agent is based in Honolulu, on the island of Oahu. This service specializes in Hawaiian businesses and has good Hawaii registered agent reviews. For a local RA service, look no further than this service.

Pros

• Easy to check documents and due dates online;
• More specialized than most online RA services;
• Cheaper than most multi-state RA services;
• The website is transparent about Hawaii-specific fees; ideal for people who are expanding into Hawaii;
• No hidden or cancellation fees;
• Has Hawaii tax information et al. Available as soon as you create an account.

Cons

• Restricted to Hawaii. May be difficult to expand.

Overall

Hawaii Registered Agent is great for businesses that want to expand into Hawaii. Their website covers topics that anyone who might want to start a business in Hawaii may wish to know before applying, including fees for out-of-state business owners.

If a business based elsewhere in the U.S. is looking to expand into Hawaii, it is worth visiting this site’s homepage.

Oahu Management (Honolulu, HI)

Oahu Management is another registered agent for LLC in Hawaii. It has many different pricing plans and services to meet the needs of both small and large companies. They are a good discount Hawaiian registered agent that focuses on knowing and working with locals.

Pros

• Hawaii-specific. Oahu Management covers all islands in the state;
• Bilingual. the site has a Japanese version;
• Multiple payment plans;
• Affordable $40 annual subscription;
• Real-time help via Zoom when filling out forms.

Cons

• No refunds on the lifetime plan;
• Hawaii-only. It may be difficult to expand;
• They do not fill out forms on your behalf or offer legal advice.

Overall

This company is uniquely aware of Hawaii’s relatively large Japanese population. Some businesses may appreciate this management service’s bilingual webpage.

HawaiiHealthMatters.org has up-to-date information on how this demographic might affect businesses in Hawaii.

Northwest Registered Agent

Cost: $125 per year

Northwest Registered Agent was the most highly-rated RA service we could find. They are known for excellent customer service and privacy protection. The service can extend to other states for professionals who wish to expand their businesses.

The main building of Northwest Registered Agent is located in Spokane, WA, but they have services across all 50 states. To be a statutory agent, one has to have a physical address in the state. Please contact them for details on their Hawaii locations.

Pros

• Nationally-recognized;
• International services;
• Excellent customer service;
• Easy to expand service into other areas;
• Free legal documents, including the Hawaii RA consent form, on its website;
• Has strict privacy regulations and will never sell your data.

Cons

• Expensive: $125/year is the minimum plan.

Overall 

Northwest Registered Agent is arguably the best registered agent service Hawaii on the web. Customers attest that the service that Northwest provides is worth the price.

Northwest covers multiple states and will be good for businesses that want to expand. They offer other services such as mail forwarding and privacy protection along with more basic services. Sometimes, being “just not annoying” (as their website says) is also an asset.

ZenBusiness Registered Agent

Cost: $199 per year

ZenBusiness is one of the most highly-rated RA services on the Internet, often right behind Northwest. They will occasionally offer grants to small businesses. Like Northwest, they cover many locations in the United States.

Pros 

• Fast, friendly service;
• Cheaper than Northwest, the first year is $99/year;
• Best for small businesses;
• Offers multiple packages;
• Donates to small businesses that apply for grants;
• More personalized treatment than with larger companies.

Cons

• No mail forwarding;
• Customer service is not as good as Northwest, but still acceptable;
• Charges more if you use them to form your business;
• Some hidden costs in larger plans. Please read the details of all plans carefully.

Overall

ZenBusiness’s service is not as comprehensive as at Northwest; for example, they do not do mail forwarding.

Once again, contact them for details about Hawaiian locations; they are not listed on the website.

Incfile Registered Agent

Cost: $119 per year

Incfile is ideal for new business owners. Their website has a quiz to determine what business entity is best for a budding entrepreneur.

They also feature explanations of “Doing Business As (DBA),” and other terms that new professionals would otherwise need to look up on their own terms. Those conducting Hawaii  registered agent search will find Incfile more than satisfactory.

Pros

• The site is very informative for anyone wishing to start a new corporation;
• Free LLC formation;
• First year is free if you form a business with them;
• Excellent customer service.

Cons

• Larger companies may not need all features;
• No additional legal features;
• Controversial reviews.

Overall

Incfile’s models and pricing are very similar to ZenBusiness with a few more perks if you start a business with them. Like Northwest and ZenBusiness, they serve all 50 states. Incfile is based in Houston, TX. Contact the site about their services specific to Hawaii.

LegalZoom Registered Agent

Cost: $299 per year

This company has a resounding name on the web. That's because it's hard to find a competitor that advertises and promotes the brand more assiduously than LegalZoom does.

Thanks to its strong brand, this provider brings in more and more customers every year. As a result, they have already served more than a million customers. Not many brands can boast such results.

Pros

• Impressive experience and number of clients. Millions of people have already taken advantage of this provider;
• The service inspires pure trust;
• The company can be the one-stop-shop for all sorts of legal inquiries as they offer advice from attorneys who can wipe out business/private legal troubles.

Cons

• Expensive. They charge a whopping $299 a year for their help when you can find decent deals 3-5 times cheaper. So, LZ’s services are financially burdensome;
• Customer reviews not only acclaim but also criticize the service. About half of the user comments are acutely negative. But this is often the case with large providers;
• Hawaii registered agent for service of process is not included in any package. Either way, you have to pay separately to get help.

Overall

If you're willing to pay more for the name and brand or have a demand for legal advice, then this option is right for you.

LegalZoom is a company with a solid reputation that has an above-average services cost based on that reason alone. You get all the standard services you need under the law.

But if cost is acute for you, look at other cheaper but no less quality offers.

Registered Agent Review: Conclusions

It was difficult to find a registered agent service Hawaii that was not packaged with the other 49 states. Several major RA services, such as Northwest Registered Agent, ZenBusiness, LegalZoom, and Incfile covered Hawaii in their list of areas.

Since laws vary significantly between Hawaii and the continental United States, we included some distinctly Hawaiian RA services:

• Oahu Management was particularly keen on both knowing the area and accommodating Japanese businesses;
• Hawaii Registered Agent has an excellent breakdown of potential expenses on their webpage.

All of the RA services we examined had valuable resources for business owners searching for a statutory agent in Hawaii.

Benefits of Using a Hawaii Registered Agent Service

We've done a thorough analysis of a long list of services to tell you about the top ones. Each of the companies we've mentioned will help you:

1. Maintain a calm and relaxed pace of work. You won't have to do extra tasks that will hinder you from dealing with the essentials of your business;
2. Maintain your privacy. Don't want to see uninvited guests on your home/office doorstep? An RA in Hawaii will handle the hassle and help maintain your privacy;
3. Reputation preservation. The agent will make sure you don't miss a single important notice and thus help you keep your reputation at the top level;
4. Convenient schedule. You don't have to give up a family vacation or a business trip to stay in an office. Be flexible and adjust your schedule to your convenience.

How We Selected the Best Registered Agent Services

Wonder how we chose the best representatives in the Hawaii registered agent services market?

We've compiled a list of all the options for cooperation in the state, evaluated them according to certain criteria, and gradually weeded out those who were at the bottom of the ranking.

Our experts in different areas (business, law, marketing) have done a superb job and were able to sift out the top contractors.

Here is the criteria by which we evaluated RA services:

1. Price of services. Often, in their ads, services indicate a low price and then stagger users with additional hidden fees. Such bluffs are repulsive;
2. Website user-friendliness. Sometimes, the company's offer is competitive, but the site is so seedy that it takes forever to find even a drop of information you need;
3. Customer reviews. No one can tell you better about a service than those who have had first-hand experience with it;
4. Сontacting customer support. We’ve contacted the customer support team of each service on our list and reflected our experience in the rating.

Some other criteria also played a secondary but still important role:

• Possibility to receive a refund;
• Quality of additional services;
• Experience of the company on the market of similar services;
• Size of the team;
• Customer service working hours;
• Ways of contacting the representatives.

Why You Can Trust Our Choice

All the information in this article has been provided by genuine professionals, who can be given true credit.

Our experts have devoted many years of their professional lives to studying all the intricacies of founding an LLC in the United States, working with other legal aspects, analyzing the accounting nuances, etc.

So, if you need the most up-to-date and first-rate information about the LLC formation, registered agent appointment, and other aspects of business activities, then you are in the right place.

Conclusion

Finding a registered agent in Hawaii may be harder than in other states. We could not find any statutory agents on Maui or Kauai but found two on Oahu.

But many RA services cover multiple states, so businesses that use a large RA service for their articles may want to check if their current service has an address in Hawaii.

Services such as Northwest, ZenBusiness, and IncFile often have necessary legal information and forms on their websites. It may also be worth considering Hawaiian local services due to certain aspects of Hawaii law, geography, and demographics.

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