Registered Agent in Arizona: requirements, cost & best options

Arizona does not say “registered agent”. Its LLC statute says statutory agent (Ariz. Rev. Stat. § 29-3115). It is the same job, and most national services still advertise it as a registered agent, so you will see both words for one thing.

Like every state, Arizona requires every LLC to keep a registered agent at a physical Arizona street address (a PO box won't do), staffed during business hours to receive lawsuits and official state mail. And Arizona adds a step most states skip: Yes — publish a notice 3 times within 60 days of forming, UNLESS your statutory agent is in Maricopa or Pima County (exempt). Roughly $80–$120 where required.

Yes, if you're an Arizona resident with a physical Arizona street address; the statutory agent must formally accept the role (A.R.S. § 29-3115). The catch most pages skip: that address goes on Arizona's public record (scraped by data brokers if it's your home), and you must be available during business hours or risk missing a lawsuit — so home-based and remote owners usually use a service. Here's the full DIY trade-off.

Forming an LLC in Arizona costs $50 up front, and a registered agent runs from about $35 a year with a single-state specialist to $249 with the national brands — Northwest includes the first year free, then $125. Full breakdown, including the DIY $0 route, in cheapest registered agent, and what a registered agent actually costs if you want the pricing mechanics rather than the shortlist. To see Arizona's filing and annual fees beside all 50 states, use our LLC cost calculator.

Searched "registered agent near me"? In Arizona it's not about being near you — your agent just needs a physical Arizona street address, staffed during business hours, on file with the Arizona filing office. That's why a national service like Northwest works no matter where in Arizona — or which state — you personally live.

Arizona takes two documents, and that is the whole reason people end up searching for “form M002” on its own. The one that costs money is form L020, the LLC Statement of Change of Principal Address or Statutory Agent, at $5. The one that actually makes the change work is form M002, the Statutory Agent Acceptance, and it is free. Both go to the Corporation Commission — Arizona has no Secretary of State for business filings.

Form M002 is the Statutory Agent Acceptance: one page, no fee, signed by whoever is taking the job. It exists because of a single sentence in § 29-3115(A) — unless the agent signed the document making the appointment, the appointment is not effective until a record signed by the agent accepting it reaches the Commission.

So M002 does not appoint anyone. The Commission's own instructions are blunt about it: “Is the Acceptance form the same as an appointment? No.” M002 is the other half — the half that makes an appointment stick. You need it:

• when you form the LLC, unless the agent signs your Articles of Organization themselves;
• whenever you appoint a new agent, alongside form L020, because item 3.3 of L020 requires it;
• but not for a change of address, or a change to the existing agent's name, where no new agent is being appointed.

Only the appointed agent may sign it. After that anyone can submit it, though the Commission strongly recommends sending it at the same time as the document making the appointment so the two process together. You are also not obliged to use the Commission's version: its own instructions note that the published form sets out only the statutory minimum, and its use is not required.

1. Sign in to the Commission's filing system, eCorp, and open your LLC's record.
2. Start a Statement of Change against the entity.
3. Give the new agent's Arizona street address — this one cannot be a PO box. The mailing address can be.
4. Have the incoming agent complete and sign M002, and file it with the Statement of Change rather than after it.
5. Pay the $5, plus $35 if you want it expedited.

By mail or in person, both documents go to the Arizona Corporation Commission, Corporations Division — Examination Section, 1300 W. Washington St., Phoenix, AZ 85007. Every document needs a Cover Sheet. Checks are payable to “Arizona Corporation Commission” with all words spelled out and no abbreviations, and cannot be drawn on a non-US bank. Credit cards are accepted in person only, never by post, and only Visa or MasterCard. Cash is taken in Phoenix but not in Tucson, and no bills larger than $20.

• Two documents, and the free one is what makes it work. L020 costs $5 and M002 costs nothing, but without M002 the appointment simply is not effective under § 29-3115(A), and item 3.3 of L020 requires the acceptance to be submitted with it. The one exception: if your incoming agent signs the appointing document itself, no separate acceptance is needed.
• The names have to match exactly or it gets rejected. The Commission's instructions say the Acceptance may be rejected if the agent's name does not match the name in the appointing document exactly — including any middle initial or suffix. The entity name has to match Commission records exactly too, down to the punctuation and the “LLC”.
• Your LLC cannot be its own statutory agent. The Commission states it outright: the company must appoint someone apart from itself. You can name a member or manager in their personal capacity; you cannot name the company. Several states leave this ambiguous — Arizona does not.
• Your agent can change their own address, and owes you only written notice. An existing agent signing L020 to move its own address certifies under penalty of law that it has given the LLC written notice of the change. Nothing requires your signature.
• Losing your agent can dissolve the company. Arizona requires a statutory agent with a valid address on the record at all times, and failing to keep one is grounds for administrative dissolution under § 29-3708. Commission notices go to the agent's address, so a stale agent means you stop hearing from the state before you find out anything is wrong.
• Resigning is not instant, but 31 days is not long. Under § 29-3117 a resignation bites on the earlier of the 31st day after filing or the day you name a replacement — and your agent may resign whether or not the LLC is in good standing.

In short: choose your name, appoint a registered agent (the step above), file your formation document with Arizona ($50), and get a free EIN from the IRS. Then keep it compliant: None — Arizona LLCs file no annual report (only corporations do). For the full walkthrough see our cheapest way to start an LLC guide.