How to Get a Certificate of Good Standing in Wyoming

You can get a Wyoming Certificate of Good Standing in a few minutes, for free, through the Secretary of State’s WyoBiz portal. Enter your Filing ID, confirm your entity’s details, and download the certificate as a PDF. It carries the same legal weight as a certificate ordered by mail. The only condition is that your business must actually be in good standing — current on its annual report, license tax, and registered agent — before the state will issue one.

Get the Certificate Online in a Few Minutes

The online route is the one most filers should use. Three steps:

Find your Filing ID, the number the Secretary of State assigned when your business was formed or registered. If you don’t have it, look it up on the Name Search page of the Secretary of State’s website.
Go to the Certificate of Good Standing page on the WyoBiz portal at wyobiz.wyo.gov and enter the Filing ID.¹
Verify the entity information the system displays, then generate the certificate. Print it or save the PDF.

There is no fee for the online certificate, and it is issued instantly.

Make Sure Your Business Actually Qualifies

Wyoming will not generate a certificate for an entity that has fallen behind. Two obligations do most of the work.

Annual Report and License Tax

Every Wyoming corporation and LLC must file an annual report with the Secretary of State by the first day of the anniversary month of its original registration.² Along with the report, you pay an annual license tax of $60 or two-tenths of one mill per dollar of in-state assets, whichever is greater.³ Most small businesses with modest Wyoming assets pay the $60 minimum. Paying online by credit or debit card adds a 2.4% processing fee, with a $1 minimum.

Nonprofits and cooperative associations pay a flat $25 annual report fee instead of the asset-based license tax.

Registered Agent

Your entity must continuously maintain a registered agent with a physical street address in Wyoming. The agent can be a Wyoming resident who is at least 18, a domestic or foreign business entity authorized in the state, or a commercial registered agent listed with the Secretary of State.⁴ If you don’t live in Wyoming or lack a physical office there, a commercial service handles this. Annual fees generally run between $35 and $100 or more, depending on the provider.

Requesting a Paper Certificate or an Apostille

If you need a physical certificate, or you need one attached to an apostille or authentication for use abroad, submit the Certified Copy and Certificate Request form from the Secretary of State’s website, along with your business name and Filing ID.⁵ Pay by check or money order made out to the Wyoming Secretary of State. Filers with a pre-paid (PAD) account can email the request instead of mailing it.

Mail-in processing runs about five to seven business days. Certificates ordered as part of an apostille or authentication can take up to 15 business days, and the fee in that context is $20.⁶

How Fresh the Certificate Needs to Be

The certificate itself has no printed expiration date. The party asking for it sets the freshness rule. Banks and government agencies commonly want one no more than 30 to 60 days old, and 60 days is a typical cutoff for foreign qualification filings in other states. Wyoming’s own foreign registration form uses that 60-day standard.⁷ Generate the certificate close to the date you plan to submit it. The online version is free and instant, so there’s no reason to pull it early.

When You Need One

The certificate confirms to outside parties that your Wyoming business is active and compliant. Banks and lenders ask for one before approving business loans or lines of credit. It comes up when you apply for professional licenses, bid on government contracts, or open vendor accounts. The most common reason is expanding into another state: when a Wyoming entity registers as a foreign business elsewhere, that state almost always requires a Wyoming certificate dated within about 60 days.⁷

If the Portal Says You’re Not in Good Standing

Missing an annual report, letting your registered agent lapse, or failing to pay the license tax can lead the Secretary of State to administratively dissolve your entity.⁸ Once dissolved, the entity loses the ability to conduct business, enter contracts, or defend lawsuits under its name.

You have two years from the dissolution date to apply for reinstatement. You’ll need to catch up on all delinquent reports and taxes. If the dissolution followed missed reports or unpaid license taxes, you pay the back taxes plus a reinstatement fee. If it followed a lapsed registered agent, the reinstatement fee is $250.⁹ The entity keeps its registered name during that two-year window. After two years, reinstatement is no longer available and you’d have to form a new entity.

Which Entities Can Get a Certificate

Wyoming’s good-standing rules cover corporations, LLCs, limited partnerships, nonprofit corporations, cooperative marketing associations, statutory trusts, statutory foundations, and registered limited liability partnerships.⁴ Foreign entities registered to do business in Wyoming can pull a certificate the same way through WyoBiz.¹ Sole proprietorships and general partnerships that never filed formation documents with the state have no Secretary of State record to draw a certificate from.

1
Wyoming Secretary of State. Business Division – Certificate of Good Standing
2
Justia. Wyoming Code 17-16-1630 – Filing of Reports and Payment of Tax Required
3
Justia. Wyoming Code 17-29-209 – Annual Report for Secretary of State
4
Justia. Wyoming Code 17-28-101 – Registered Office and Registered Agent
5
Wyoming Secretary of State. Certified Copy and Certificate Request Form
6
Wyoming Secretary of State. Apostille/Authentication Request Form
7
Wyoming Secretary of State. Foreign Profit Corporation – Certificate of Authority
8
FindLaw. Wyoming Code 17-16-1420 – Grounds for Administrative Dissolution
9
Justia. Wyoming Code 17-16-1422 – Reinstatement Following Administrative Dissolution