Are you looking to form a New York professional corporation, but you’re not familiar with the incorporation process?
Professional corporations are those owned and operated by licensed professionals, like doctors, lawyers, and architects. There are quite a few important steps you’ll need to take to create your New York professional corporation and maintain it, so this guide will outline the rules and regulations involved with this process.
To get started, please reference our 11-step guide below or hire a professional online incorporation service like LegalZoom.
How to Form a New York Professional Corporation (in 11 Steps)
Step One) Choose a Name
One of the most important aspects of the incorporation process is naming your business. There are three major elements to consider when choosing a name:
Legalities
When naming a professional corporation in the state of New York, you will need to include the words “professional service corporation” or the abbreviation “PSC.” Your professional corporation’s name also cannot include any words or abbreviations that indicate other business types, like the phrase “limited liability company” or the initials “LLC.” You also are not allowed to include words that refer to certain types of businesses (like “bank” or “law office”) unless your business fits those descriptions.
Explanatory Naming
In addition to the legal considerations, you might want to identify your line of business or your mission in your company name. For example, you can display any closely held values in your name, like using the word “green” for environmentally friendly businesses.
A Name You’re Proud of
Keep in mind that this is your business, so you should choose a name that you’re proud of, and that you enjoy sharing with potential customers. You should also make sure it sounds good when spoken aloud, and also looks good when written down.
Check Whether Your Preferred Name is Available
Visit the their website to check whether it is already in use. If it’s not unique enough, you may need to tweak it or come up with a new name altogether.
Get Your Company URL
To solidify your brand and to fully embrace the company name, register your URL. You’ll be able to quickly build a company website so that nobody else can use it.
Step Two) Select a Registered Agent
New York professional corporations must designate a person or business to receive legal notices on behalf of the company. This important point of contact is known as the registered agent. You will be required to list the registered agent’s name and address when filing the Certificate of Incorporation in step four.
Who can be my registered agent?
A registered agent must have a physical address within the state of New York where mail and legal notices can be served during regular business hours. You can hire a service to act as your registered agent, serve as your own registered agent, or even use an accountant or other business professional’s address – with their consent, of course.
The New York Secretary of State says that,
In addition to such designation of the secretary of state, every domestic corporation or authorized foreign corporation may designate registered agent in this state upon whom process against such corporation may be served. The agent shall be a natural person who is a resident of or has a business address in this state or a domestic corporation or foreign corporation of any type or kind formed, or authorized to do business in this state, under this chapter or under any other statute of this state.”
Our recommendation
We recommend hiring a professional service to act as your registered agent. Doing so will help eliminate junk mail and more importantly, keep your personal and/or business address off the public record. For a list of the top 5 registered agent services, check out our guide.
Step Three) Complete Your Certificate of Incorporation
This is THE document that formally registers your professional corporation with the state of New York. The Certificate of Incorporation can be filed by mail, in person, or by fax. Note that you will also need to file with the Certificate of Incorporation a Certificate of Good Standing from the appropriate Appellate Division or a Certificate of Authority under seal from the New York State Department of Education, Division of Professional Licensing Services. In addition, a certified copy of the Certificate of Incorporation must be filed with your profession’s licensing authority within 30 days after the date of the filing of the Certificate of Incorporation with the Department of State.
Keep in mind that you are acting as the incorporator when you fill out and submit the Certificate of Incorporation. You should sign as the incorporator before submitting the document.
| Cost to File | $125 (expedited filing options are available for additional fees ranging from $25-150); fee for the certified copy to be filed with the licensing authority is $10 |
| Time to Complete Filing | Within 7 business days (2 hour, same day, and 24 hour expedited options are also available for an additional fee) |
| Agency | New York Department of State |
| Mailing Address | Division of Corporations |
| Agency contact info for filing questions | (518) 473-2492 |
Step Four) Establish a Corporate Record
Professional corporations are required under New York law to document and keep a permanent record of all important company decisions.
The official corporate record may be kept at the professional corporation’s principal place of business, or stored in a safe location elsewhere. You should take the opportunity to set up a secure digital or physical location for storing company records as soon as possible.
Step Five) Designate a Board of Directors
The incorporator is responsible for selecting initial director(s) of the professional corporation. The incorporator should record initial director appointments in a signed document and file it to the corporate record. This document is known as the “incorporator’s statement.” A sample incorporator’s statement can be found here.
The initial directors will serve until new directors are elected at an annual shareholder meeting, or as otherwise indicated in the bylaws. The incorporator may also serve as an initial director. Keep in mind that your directors must all share the same profession as the one the professional corporation was formed for.
Step Six) Create Corporate Bylaws
Corporate bylaws set out the rules and procedures for how the professional corporation will operate. Some important topics typically covered in the bylaws include:
- How shareholders will conduct votes
- The total number of directors and how each director will be elected
- How often the board of directors will meet
- The types of officer roles that will be appointed
- Procedures for resolving internal disputes
Bylaws are required under New York’s Business Corporation Law.
Bylaws help your business run smoothly, and are sometimes required by financial institutions for opening business bank accounts or acquiring loans.
Either the incorporator or the initial directors may prepare the company bylaws. The bylaws should be recorded in an internal company document, signed by the incorporator or a director, and filed to the corporate record. The bylaws are not filed with the state of New York.
Popular Strategies for Preparing Bylaws:
- Use a free online template. Northwest Registered Agent has a great free template you can download.
- Hire a lawyer to draft the bylaws. If your business has investors, is already profitable, or has multiple co-owners, we strongly encourage you to hire a lawyer experienced in New York corporate law to help you draft suitable bylaws. Look through Avvo’s directory of KY attorneys you can work with.
Step Seven) Hold First Board Meeting
After designating a board of directors and preparing bylaws, the new professional corporation should call for an initial board meeting. The incorporator often arranges and attends this first meeting. During the first board meeting, the initial directors should plan to cover the following topics:
- Review and approve corporate bylaws
- Designate officers to manage day-to-day business affairs
- Choose a bank
- Approve issuance of stock certificates
- Determine whether the company should elect to be taxed as a C corporation or S corporation (see step nine for more details)
Recording Meeting Minutes: a detailed record of all key discussions and decisions during the board meeting should be prepared and distributed to all board members for their review and approval. This record is known as the “minutes.” A copy of the minutes should be sent to each director for review and filed in the company record.
Step Eight) Handle Tax Obligations
Federal Requirements
You’ll need a federal tax ID number (EIN) to operate a professional corporation in New York. You can obtain your EIN from the IRS for free, and it’s a fairly painless and simple process. An EIN enables your professional corporation to hire employees, file corporate taxes, open business bank accounts, and more.
A major decision for any professional corporation is determining whether to be taxed as a C corporation or an S corporation. Take a look at how these two formats differ:
- C Corp: The majority of professional corporations are C corporations, as they are subject to far fewer restrictions than S corps. With a C corp, profits are taxed at the corporate level, and again on the personal tax returns of the shareholders, resulting in what’s commonly referred to as double taxation.
- S Corp: This is only an option if your professional corporation has fewer than 100 shareholders, only issues one class of stock, is not owned by another business entity, and does not have any foreign shareholders. If your corporation meets these requirements, you can select the S corp’s pass-through taxation which eliminates the double taxation issue of C corps. S corp dividends are not taxable.
State Requirements
Corporations in New York are required to file franchise tax reports and pay franchise taxes annually, even if the corporation does not conduct business or loses money. Other state taxes, such sales tax, may also apply to your professional corporation. You should visit the New York Department of Taxation and Finance’s website for additional information about New York state business taxes.
The Department of Taxation and Finance also offers a New York State Tax Guide for New Businesses to help you determine your obligations, as well as a number of online services to help make managing your taxes easier, such as electronic filing and payments. Keep in mind that certain business taxpayers are required to electronically file. You should be sure to confirm whether mandatory e-filing applies to your professional corporation.
Local Requirements
Your professional corporation’s city and/or county may also impose additional taxes. It’s a good idea to contact your local revenue or tax department to confirm your company’s local tax obligations. Business resources for the four largest cities in New York each offer business resources online:
Step Nine) Obtain Business Licenses and Permits
Although a state general business license is not required in New York, many businesses in New York still need to obtain some kind of state license or permit related to their business activities. The NYS Business Wizard can help you determine which licenses and permits are required for your business. The New York Office of the Professions also maintains an online list of professions that require a license in the state.
As with taxes, you should confirm whether the city and county in which your professional corporation does business require any other licenses or permits.
Step Ten) Acquire Insurance
In New York, employers are required to obtain workers’ compensation insurance and disability insurance. If you intend to hire any employees for your professional corporation, you should be sure to have this coverage in place, either through an insurance carrier authorized by the Workers’ Compensation Board or by getting authorization to self-insure individually or as part of a group.
Additional information about workers’ compensation and disability insurance in New York is available on the Workers’ Compensation Board’s website. An Employers’ Handbook is also available online.
In addition, you should also pursue general liability insurance and other more industry-specific types of insurance. Because professional corporations are specialized businesses, you will most likely require insurance policies based on your occupation.
Step Eleven) Open a Business Bank Account
To operate a professional corporation and receive the limited liability protection that comes with it, you have to keep your personal assets entirely separate from your business assets. Due to this requirement, it’s strongly advised that you acquire a business bank account for your corporation.
Get Help Forming a Professional Corporation
The process of forming a professional corporation in any state can be a lengthy one. If you run into any trouble along the way, remember that there are plenty of organizations that can help you navigate the incorporation process.
Online Incorporation Services
If you would like to hire an affordable business incorporation service to create your professional corporation for you, services like LegalZoom and MyCorporation can help you out. These service providers can handle most of the formation process, while still charging much lower rates than a business attorney’s fees.
There isn’t the same level of personalization that a lawyer can provide, but online incorporation services can still be a tremendous help. The only major issue with these service providers is the fact that they can’t provide any actual legal advice, so you need to know what you want ahead of time.
New York Business Attorney
There are some situations where hiring a business lawyer is a preferable route to using an online incorporation service. The professional corporation as a business structure can be highly complicated and specialized, and if you want to have the peace of mind that every single step was taken care of by a true expert, hiring a business attorney to form your New York professional corporation is the way to go.
If you would like to pursue this route, there are some convenient services that can help you choose the right lawyer for your business. We like to use Avvo, which has extensive reviews and ratings for hundreds of New York business lawyers, which can make it much easier to select an attorney who has your best interests in mind, and also has the expertise to get the job done right.
New York SBDC
The New York Small Business Development Center is another helpful resource for small businesses in the state. The New York SBDC has 22 campus-based regional centers and dozens of outreach offices where you can access one-on-one business consulting on issues like business plan development, accounting, marketing, and financial planning. They also offer training and workshops and other business resources.
The New York District Office of the U.S. Small Business Administration may also be able to assist you. Visit their website to find out more about news, programs, and events relevant to small businesses in New York.