The Pennsylvania Bureau of Corporations and Charitable Organizations is the division of the Department of State where you form a business entity, register a charity, file UCC financing statements, and look up whether a company is on record and in good standing. It keeps files on more than three million registered entities and oversees more than 16,000 charities and 450-plus professional solicitors statewide.1Pennsylvania Department of State. Bureau of Corporations and Charitable Organizations If you’re starting a company, moving one into Pennsylvania, or checking on one before signing a contract, this is the office you deal with.
What the Bureau Handles
The Bureau’s work falls into a few clear buckets:
- Business entity filings: forming domestic corporations, LLCs, and partnerships; registering foreign entities that want to do business in the Commonwealth; and processing amendments, mergers, dissolutions, and name changes throughout an entity’s life.
- Uniform Commercial Code filings: lenders taking a security interest in personal property such as equipment, inventory, or accounts receivable file UCC financing statements through the Bureau to put the public on notice.2Pennsylvania Department of State. Uniform Commercial Code
- Charitable solicitation oversight: organizations soliciting donations from Pennsylvania residents register here, as do professional solicitors and fundraising counsels.1Pennsylvania Department of State. Bureau of Corporations and Charitable Organizations
- Fictitious name registrations: anyone conducting business in Pennsylvania under an assumed name files form DSCB:54-311. This applies even if you already have a registered entity. If you operate under any name other than the entity’s exact legal name, you need a fictitious name filing.3Pennsylvania Department of State. Fictitious Names
Searching the Business Entity Database
The Bureau maintains a free, publicly searchable online database of every entity on record.4Pennsylvania Department of State. Record Searches You can pull up current status, registered office address, formation date, and filing history. Use it to confirm a company is in good standing before entering a contract, extending credit, or handing over a deposit.
If you’re forming a new entity, the same search is your name-availability check. Pennsylvania requires your proposed name to be distinguishable on the Department’s records from every other registered entity name, reserved name, and registered foreign entity name.5Pennsylvania General Assembly. Pennsylvania Code Title 15 Section 202 – Requirements for Names Generally If the name is too close to an existing one, the Bureau rejects the filing. Found a name you want but aren’t ready to file? You can reserve it for 120 days by filing form DSCB:15-208 with a $70 nonrefundable fee. Bank name reservations last six months.6Pennsylvania Department of State. Fees and Payments
Forming a Pennsylvania Business Entity
The two most common formation filings are the Certificate of Organization for LLCs and the Articles of Incorporation for corporations. Each has its own form, but the core information is similar and the fee is the same.
Limited Liability Companies
To form a Pennsylvania LLC, file a Certificate of Organization (form DSCB:15-8821) with a docketing statement (form DSCB:15-134A).7Pennsylvania Department of State. Pennsylvania Limited Liability Company The certificate is short. Only two pieces of information are legally required: the LLC’s name and its registered office address in Pennsylvania.8Pennsylvania Department of State. Certificate of Organization – Domestic Limited Liability Company The address can be a physical street address in the Commonwealth or the name of a commercial registered office provider. Post office boxes are not accepted on any Bureau filing. The filing fee is $125.6Pennsylvania Department of State. Fees and Payments
Business Corporations
To incorporate, file Articles of Incorporation. The primary form is DSCB:15-1306, though the exact form varies by corporation type (nonprofit, professional, cooperative, and so on).9Pennsylvania Department of State. Pennsylvania Business Corporations A docketing statement goes with it. Like an LLC, you’ll need the entity name and a Pennsylvania registered office address. The filing fee is $125.6Pennsylvania Department of State. Fees and Payments
For both entity types, you can set a future effective date if you don’t want the entity to spring into existence the moment the Bureau accepts the filing. Keep the file-stamped copy you get back. You’ll need it to open a bank account and apply for an Employer Identification Number with the IRS.
Registering a Foreign Entity
A business formed in another state that wants to operate in Pennsylvania must file a Foreign Registration Statement (form DSCB:15-412) before doing business here.10Pennsylvania Department of State. Foreign Registration Statement The fee is $250 for foreign corporations, LLCs, and limited liability partnerships alike.6Pennsylvania Department of State. Fees and Payments
Two details trip people up. First, if your entity’s name is unavailable in Pennsylvania, you can’t simply register under it anyway. You’ll either need written consent from the entity holding the name (filed on form DSCB:19-17.2) or an alternate name for use in the Commonwealth. Second, foreign corporations, both for-profit and nonprofit, must advertise their intention to register or their completed registration in a local newspaper. The advertising requirement doesn’t apply to LLCs or partnerships.
Filing Methods, Processing Times, and Fees
The Bureau’s online system is Business Filing Services, reached through the PA Business One-Stop Hub.11Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. Register a Business Online is faster than paper. Every filing still gets human review, but the electronic queue moves quicker than mail on both ends.
Standard processing takes about 15 business days.12Pennsylvania Department of State. Frequently Asked Questions If you need it faster, the Bureau offers expedited processing on top of the standard fee:13Pennsylvania Department of State. Expedited Services
- Same-day service: $100, if received before 10:00 a.m.
- Three-hour service: $300, if received before 2:00 p.m.
- One-hour service: $1,000, if received before 4:00 p.m.
Expedited requests aren’t accepted by mail. Submit them online or in person. Online, the Bureau takes credit cards. For paper filings, use a check or money order payable to the Department of State.
Common Fees at a Glance
- Articles of Incorporation (domestic corporation): $125
- Certificate of Organization (domestic LLC): $125
- Foreign Registration Statement: $250
- Fictitious Name Registration: $70
- Name Reservation: $70
- Voluntary Dissolution (corporation that never transacted business): $706Pennsylvania Department of State. Fees and Payments
Ongoing Compliance After You File
Getting on file is the beginning, not the end. Pennsylvania imposes obligations that vary by entity type, and missing them can cost you good standing or your entity’s legal existence.
Annual Reports
Pennsylvania now requires annual reports for business entities. The older decennial (every-ten-years) report requirement has been repealed.14Pennsylvania Department of State. Annual Reports Don’t carry over the old habit of ignoring these. Failure to file can result in loss of good standing, which affects your ability to enforce contracts, obtain financing, or qualify for certain licenses.
LLP and LLLP Annual Registration
Limited liability partnerships and limited liability limited partnerships owe a separate annual fee. Every domestic or foreign LLP or LLLP in existence on December 31 of any year must file a Certificate of Annual Registration. For 2026, the nonrefundable fee is $470 per qualifying general partner, meaning each general partner who either had a principal residence in Pennsylvania or was organized under Pennsylvania law on December 31, 2025.15Pennsylvania Department of State. Certificates of Annual Registration For a partnership with several Pennsylvania-based partners, the number climbs fast.
Keeping the Registered Office Current
Every Pennsylvania entity must maintain a registered office in the Commonwealth at all times. If your address changes, or your commercial registered office provider changes, file an amendment. A lapsed or wrong address means you may not receive service of process in a lawsuit, and you won’t learn about the problem until it’s too late.
Dissolving an Entity
When you’re closing an entity, the Bureau handles that filing too. The paperwork depends on whether the entity ever conducted business. For a corporation that never transacted business or held assets beyond initial share subscriptions, file form DSCB:15-1971/5971 (Voluntary Dissolution — Never Transacted Business), signed by a majority of the incorporators or shareholders, with a $70 fee. If the corporation did transact business, use form DSCB:15-1977/5977 (Articles of Dissolution), which involves board and shareholder approval, settling debts, and winding up affairs.16Pennsylvania Department of State. Voluntary Dissolution – Never Transacted Business
Skipping dissolution because the company feels dead is a mistake. An entity that was never formally dissolved can keep accumulating compliance obligations, and cleaning it up later costs more than doing it right the first time.
Charity and Solicitor Registration
Any organization soliciting charitable contributions from Pennsylvania residents must register with the Bureau by filing a BCO-10 registration statement, unless it qualifies for a specific exemption or exclusion under the Solicitation of Funds for Charitable Purposes Act.17Pennsylvania Department of State. Information for Charitable Organizations Professional solicitors and fundraising counsels register separately.18Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. Register a Charity
Organizations not yet registered and not exempt must file within 30 days of receiving more than $25,000 in gross national contributions, or before paying anyone to solicit contributions from Pennsylvania residents, whichever comes first. The Bureau makes charity registration and financial reports public, so donors can verify compliance before giving. Soliciting without proper registration can trigger enforcement action.