How to Get an Arizona Certificate of Good Standing

To get an Arizona Certificate of Good Standing, order it from the Arizona Corporation Commission (ACC) through its online portal, the Arizona Business Center at ArizonaBusinessCenter.azcc.gov. Standard processing costs $10 and takes about 7 to 10 business days; the $45 expedited option produces the certificate instantly as a downloadable document when you request it online.¹ Before you order, confirm your entity is compliant, because the ACC will pause processing if there are outstanding fees or missing filings.

Where to Order and What It Costs

The ACC issues Certificates of Good Standing for corporations (domestic and foreign-qualified), LLCs, and limited partnerships. Three ways to submit a request:

Online through the Arizona Business Center. This is the fastest route and the only one that produces an instant certificate at the expedited fee.
By mail to the ACC. Slower, because of postal delivery and manual processing.
In person at the ACC’s office, where accelerated services are available at higher fees.

The fee structure is the same for corporations and LLCs: $10 for standard processing, $45 for expedited.² The ACC offers other accelerated tiers for various filings, including next-day service for $100, but for a straightforward certificate the $45 online option is the practical choice when you need it immediately.

Those fees cover only the certificate. If your entity has delinquent filings or unpaid penalties that need to clear first, those costs are separate.

Confirm You’re Eligible Before You Order

The ACC checks that your entity has no unresolved compliance problems, outstanding fees, or administrative actions before issuing a certificate.¹ To qualify, your formation documents must have been approved and the entity must not have been dissolved or revoked.³

A few specific requirements catch most businesses:

Corporations must be current on the annual report required by Arizona law. The report includes officer and director names, a business description, shareholder information, and a statement that corporate income tax returns have been filed. LLCs are not required to file annual reports in Arizona.⁴¹
Every entity must maintain a valid statutory agent and a known place of business on file. A lapse here is one of the most common triggers for administrative dissolution.
All ACC fees must be paid in full, and state tax obligations, including transaction privilege tax and corporate income tax, need to be current.
Professional corporations must also stay in compliance with the relevant regulatory board (such as the Arizona Medical Board or the State Bar). The ACC checks licensing status for those entities.

General partnerships and sole proprietorships don’t file formation documents with the ACC and can’t get a Certificate of Good Standing from it. Those businesses can register trade names through the Arizona Secretary of State, but that isn’t the same document. To prove tax compliance, they can request a Certificate of Compliance from the Arizona Department of Revenue.⁵

What to Enter on the Request

Use the exact legal name of your entity as it appears in ACC records. Even a small discrepancy, like a missing comma or “LLC” written as “L.L.C.,” can cause a rejection or delay. Specify whether you want a standard certificate or a certified copy with the ACC’s official seal. Banks and government agencies often require the sealed version for verification.

After you submit, the ACC confirms compliance before issuing. You can track your request through the Arizona Business Center portal.

If Your Request Is Denied

The ACC sends a notification explaining the reason. The three common ones each have a clear fix.

Delinquent Filings

If your corporation missed an annual report, file the overdue report and pay any late fees. Corporations that need more time can request a six-month extension, but the request must be filed before the original deadline and must include the annual registration fee.⁴ For any entity type, a lapsed statutory agent or outdated known place of business is fixed by filing the appropriate change document.

Administrative Dissolution

File an Application for Reinstatement. The filing fee is $100 standard or $135 expedited, the same for corporations and LLCs.²⁶ On top of that, you must pay every fee and penalty that was due at dissolution, plus every fee that would have accrued during the period the entity was dissolved.⁷ For LLCs, the reinstatement application must be filed within six years of the dissolution date. If another entity adopted your name while you were dissolved, you’ll need to file an amendment adopting a new name as part of reinstatement.

Record Errors

If the denial appears to come from an error in ACC records, request a correction and submit supporting documentation. Unresolved ACC decisions can be appealed to the Arizona Court of Appeals, which has direct review authority over Commission orders.

How Long the Certificate Stays Useful

Arizona doesn’t put an expiration date on the certificate, but it’s a snapshot of your status on the day it was issued. Most banks, other states’ filing offices, and government agencies require a certificate dated within the last 30 to 90 days. If you’re using it for foreign qualification in another state, check that state’s freshness requirement before you order, so you don’t pay for a second one.

For time-sensitive uses like loan closings, the $45 instant option is worth the extra cost. Standard processing at 7 to 10 business days can put the document at risk of aging out before you use it.

If You Need Extra Authentication

A standard certificate works for most domestic purposes. Two situations call for more.

Apostille for International Use

For a country that participates in the 1961 Hague Apostille Convention, you’ll need an apostille from the Arizona Secretary of State to make the document internationally recognized.⁸ Two steps: get the certificate from the ACC, then submit it to the Secretary of State for authentication.

The Secretary of State charges $3 per document by mail, with processing in 10 to 20 business days. Walk-in service is available with an added $25 expedite fee, limited to six documents per visit.⁹ You must submit original certified documents; photocopies are not accepted.¹⁰

If the destination country is not a party to the Hague Convention, the chain is longer: the ACC issues the certificate, the Secretary of State authenticates it, the U.S. Department of State provides a further authentication, and the destination country’s embassy or consulate legalizes it.¹¹

Certified Copies for Domestic Transactions

Some federal agencies, courts, and financial institutions require a certified copy bearing the ACC’s official seal rather than a plain certificate. This is common for federal contract bids, mergers, and large-scale financing. Ask for a certified copy when you place the order. In litigation, a notarized copy may also be required, so check with the requesting party before assuming a standard certificate is enough.

1
Arizona Corporation Commission. Business Services FAQs
2
Arizona Corporation Commission. Schedule of Fees – Corporations
3
Arizona Corporation Commission. 10 Steps to Starting a Business in Arizona
4
Arizona Legislature. Arizona Revised Statutes Title 10 – 10-1622 Annual Report
5
Arizona Commerce Authority. Arizona Department of Revenue: TPT, Use Tax, Withholding/Unemployment Tax/Licenses; Letter of Good Standing
6
Arizona Corporation Commission. Schedule of Fees – Limited Liability Companies
7
Arizona Legislature. Arizona Revised Statutes Title 29 – 29-3709 Reinstatement
8
HCCH. Apostille Section
9
Arizona Secretary of State. Authentication
10
Arizona Department of State. Apostille/Certificate of Authentication Request
11
Department of State. Preparing your Document for an Apostille Certificate