To run a California registered agent search, go to the Secretary of State’s free bizfile Online database at bizfileonline.sos.ca.gov and look up the business by name or entity number. The record will show the current agent for service of process along with the agent’s address. The database covers corporations, limited liability companies, limited partnerships, and nonprofit corporations.1California Secretary of State. Business Search
Running the Search
Open bizfileonline.sos.ca.gov/search and confirm the Business tab is selected. You can search by entity name or entity number. If the entity number begins with the letter “C,” leave the C off when you type it in.
The default search is a keyword search. It looks for your terms anywhere in the entity name rather than requiring an exact match, and it caps results at the 500 closest matches. For a common name like “Pacific Construction,” the entity you want may not surface at all. Switch to Advanced Search when that happens. Advanced Search uses a “begins with” filter and lets you narrow by entity type (domestic LLC, nonprofit corporation, and so on), by status (active, dissolved, suspended), and by initial filing date range. Click the entity name in the results list to open the full record.1California Secretary of State. Business Search
What the Record Shows
The entity detail page lists the legal name, file number, status, formation or registration date, jurisdiction, and the name and street address of the current agent for service of process.
If the agent is an individual, you’ll see a street address (either home or business). If the agent is a corporation, you’ll see only the corporate agent’s name. That’s because corporate agents file their California office addresses separately, under a Section 1505 certificate, rather than listing them on each client entity’s record.2California Legislative Information. California Corporations Code 1502
You can also download free PDF copies of the entity’s actual filings from the same page, including articles of incorporation, statements of information, and amendments. These are useful if you need to see historical agent designations or confirm when the agent was last updated. Certified copies are available through the portal for situations that call for authenticated documents.
When the Business Isn’t in the Database
Sole proprietorships and general partnerships don’t form by filing with the Secretary of State, so they won’t appear in bizfile Online. A general partnership can file a Statement of Partnership Authority (Form GP-1), but the filing is optional and most never do it.3California Secretary of State. Frequently Asked Questions
For those unregistered business types, the alternative is a fictitious business name search at the county level. Anyone doing business in California under a name other than their legal name must file a Fictitious Business Name Statement (a DBA) with the clerk in the county where the business operates. That filing ties the business name to the owner’s real name and address. Most county clerks offer some form of online lookup. Los Angeles County’s online portal, for example, reaches back to 2011. Other counties vary in how far back their digital records go, so for older filings you may need to contact the clerk directly.
If the Listed Agent Can’t Be Found
The agent information in the database is only as current as the entity’s last filing, and some businesses go years between updates. You may pull a record and find that the address is a vacant office or that the person listed moved on long ago.
If the point of the search was to serve legal papers, the designated agent isn’t your only option. For corporations, California law allows service on the CEO, a vice president, the secretary, the treasurer, or the general manager.4California Legislative Information. California Code of Civil Procedure 416.10
When neither the agent nor any of those officers can be located with reasonable effort, you can ask the court for an order allowing service on the Secretary of State. The court will want an affidavit showing you tried personal service, substitute service, and service by mail without success. If the order is granted, you deliver the process to the Secretary of State’s office and service is considered complete ten days later.5California Legislative Information. California Corporations Code 1702
Foreign corporations registered to do business in California have an even more direct path. When they qualify to do business in the state, they irrevocably consent to service on the Secretary of State if their designated agent can no longer be found.6California Legislative Information. California Corporations Code 2105
One Note on Corporate Agents
If the agent listed is a corporation rather than a person, that corporation is a separate registered agent service that has filed its own Section 1505 certificate naming its California offices and the employees authorized to accept process at each one. A California LLC cannot be designated as an agent, and a corporation cannot act as its own agent. So when you see a company name in the agent field, you’re looking at a third-party service, and process is delivered to one of the addresses on that service’s 1505 filing rather than to the business you searched.7California Legislative Information. California Corporations Code 1505