Changing your company's address, name, owners, officers, registered agent or entity type, and who you need to tell

Usually five groups: the state where the company was formed (and any state where it's registered as a foreign entity), the IRS, the state tax and unemployment agencies, the bank and payroll provider, and licensing agencies and platforms. What each needs, and how fast, depends on what changed. The checklist below goes change by change.

Description: Each row is a type of change; the columns show who to notify and with what. A blank means no separate notice is usually needed.

Change	State (NC Secretary of State)	IRS	NCDOR / NC DES	Bank, payroll, platforms, licenses, internal records
Address	Principal office: BE-17 ($10) or the next annual report; registered office: BE-06 ($5)	Form 8822-B	NCDOR: Form NC-AC; DES: update the employer account	Bank, payroll, Amazon and other platforms, licenses, insurance
Name	Articles of amendment ($50); amend foreign registrations too	By entity type: check "name change" on the current return, or send a letter	NCDOR updates when you file with the new name after the state change; sole proprietors call	Bank (with the state filing and IRS letter), platforms, licenses, contracts, invoices, website
Owners / members	Usually nothing (the state doesn't keep an owner list); the annual report lists officials	Tax classification, S corporation eligibility and Form 5472 may change; new responsible party on 8822-B	If a new entity takes over the business, register again	Assignment documents, amended operating agreement, stock ledger, bank beneficial owner records
Managers / officers	Next annual report; articles of amendment if the articles name managers	New responsible party on 8822-B	Contacts and authorized users at NCDOR and DES	Bank signers, payroll authorizations, platform admins
Registered agent	BE-06 ($5); change it in other states too	Nothing	Nothing	Agreement with the new agent; see yclcpa.com/ra
Business purpose	Usually nothing if the articles don't limit purpose; professional entities need licensing board approval first	Business activity code on the return	Register for sales tax if you start selling taxable goods	Licenses, permits, insurance, platform categories
Entity type	Conversion filing (for example L-01A, $125, to convert into an NC LLC) or a new entity	Possibly a new EIN, a final return, a new election (8832 / 2553)	A new entity usually registers again for withholding, sales tax and unemployment	New bank account, payroll, platforms and licenses

• Check fees on the state's site: The amounts above come from the NC Secretary of State fee schedule as of October 2026.
• Registered in other states?: If the company is qualified as a foreign entity elsewhere, name and entity changes have to be filed in those states too. In North Carolina, an amended certificate of authority for a foreign LLC is $50.
• Keep the paper: File-stamped state documents, IRS letters and board or member resolutions belong in the company records. Banks, lenders and visa cases will ask for them later.

Change it separately with the state, the IRS and the state tax agency. In North Carolina, update the principal office with Form BE-17 ($10) or on the next annual report; tell the IRS on Form 8822-B; and update NCDOR with Form NC-AC, which can be completed online. The registered office is your registered agent's address and usually doesn't change when you move.

• Principal office: Where the company is actually run. It can be updated on the annual report; file BE-17 if you need the state record changed sooner.
• Registered office: The North Carolina street address where your registered agent receives legal papers; a P.O. box alone won't do. If you're your own agent and you move, file BE-06 ($5).
• IRS: File Form 8822-B. You can also put the new address on your next return, but IRS mail may go to the old address until that return is processed, so filing 8822-B when you move is safer.
• NCDOR: Withholding and sales tax account addresses change on Form NC-AC, with no new registration. If you registered through the Streamlined Sales Tax Registration System, update at sstregister.org.
• Everyone else: The NC DES employer account, bank, payroll provider, insurance, licenses, and the business and return addresses on Amazon and other platforms.

File articles of amendment with the state first ($50 in North Carolina). Once approved, tell the IRS: a corporation or partnership checks the "name change" box on the current-year return, or, if that return is already filed, sends a letter signed by an officer or partner with a copy of the amendment. A name change doesn't need a new EIN.

• NCDOR: After a corporation or LLC changes its name with the state, NCDOR updates its records when you file the next return under the new name. Sole proprietors call NCDOR customer service. A withholding account keeps its number after a name change.
• Bank: Expect to need the state's articles of amendment, and many banks also want an IRS letter. When you write to the IRS you can ask for an acknowledgment, or later call for a 147C letter showing the new name.
• Just a trade name (DBA)?: If the legal name stays the same and you only operate under another name, North Carolina wants an assumed business name certificate filed with the county Register of Deeds. No amendment, and no IRS name change.
• Everything else: Licenses and permits, contracts, invoice templates, the website, and platforms like Amazon. The legal name on a platform has to match IRS records, or year-end 1099-K forms won't match (see yclcpa.com/1099k).

States generally don't keep a list of shareholders or LLC members, so an ownership change is mostly internal paperwork: the transfer agreement, an amended operating agreement and the ownership ledger. But it can change how the company is taxed, its S corporation eligibility and foreign-owner reporting, and a new responsible party goes on Form 8822-B.

• A single-member LLC adds a member: From that day it's a partnership for tax purposes, filing Form 1065 and issuing K-1s (Rev. Rul. 99-5 sets out how the change is treated). Under Treas. Reg. §301.6109-1(h), an LLC that already has its own EIN keeps using it; one that has been using the owner's SSN needs to get an EIN.
• A multi-member LLC drops to one member: The partnership terminates and files a final Form 1065. The LLC is then disregarded for income tax, reported under the owner's number, while employment taxes still use the LLC's EIN.
• S corporation shareholders change: New shareholders must be eligible (generally individuals who are U.S. citizens or residents, not nonresident aliens, partnerships or regular corporations), or the S election terminates automatically. Check before the transfer.
• A foreign owner reaches 25%: The company files Form 5472 every year, with a $25,000 penalty for each missed form (see yclcpa.com/5472).
• New responsible party: The IRS's "responsible party" is generally the person who controls the company, such as the main owner or chief executive. Report a change within 60 days on Form 8822-B.
• Bank: Banks collect beneficial owner information at account opening under federal rules. If a 25% owner or the controlling person changes, update the bank.

North Carolina lists a company's managers and officers on the annual report, so the next annual report usually takes care of it; if the articles name the managers, file articles of amendment. The IRS cares only about the responsible party, reported within 60 days on Form 8822-B. Bank signers, payroll access and platform admins need to change at the same time.

• Annual report: North Carolina LLC annual reports are due April 15 each year with a $200 fee; corporations pay $25. The report updates the list of company officials and the principal office (see yclcpa.com/annual).
• IRS authorizations: If the new person needs to deal with the IRS, update Form 2848 or 8821.
• NCDOR and DES: Update account contacts and online authorized users.
• People leaving: Remove their bank signing authority, online banking, payroll and platform logins, and collect company records.

In North Carolina, Form BE-06 ($5) changes the registered agent or registered office without amending the articles. If the company is registered in other states, change the agent in each one. The new agent has to agree to serve first.

• The registered agent receives lawsuits and state notices: When switching, make sure nothing was missed, from service of process to annual report reminders.
• If the agent resigns: An agent can resign on its own filing, and the company needs to name a new one quickly. Without a valid agent, the state can administratively dissolve the company.
• For choosing an agent and our registered agent service, see yclcpa.com/ra.

Most North Carolina companies' articles don't limit their purpose, so changing what the business does usually doesn't require an amendment. What matters is licensing and tax: register for sales tax if you start selling taxable goods, get permits for regulated activities, and for a professional entity (PC or PLLC), get the licensing board's approval first.

• Sales tax: Moving from services into selling goods, or into taxable digital products, means registering with NCDOR for sales tax (see yclcpa.com/salestax).
• Licenses and permits: Restaurants, alcohol, contractors and health care all need their own permits. Alcohol permits aren't transferable, so a new owner usually applies again (see yclcpa.com/liquor).
• Tax return: Update the business activity (NAICS) code on the return.

It depends on whether the company becomes a different kind of taxpayer. Incorporating a sole proprietorship, converting a corporation into a partnership or sole proprietorship, and incorporating a partnership all need a new EIN. A new name or address, an LLC electing S or C corporation status, or a state-law conversion that leaves the tax structure the same does not.

• A state conversion and a tax election are different things: Forms 8832 and 2553 change how the company is taxed, not its legal form. A state conversion changes the legal form and can be treated for tax as a sale of assets or a liquidation.
• A new EIN means closing out the old one: File the final return, final quarter of payroll tax and W-2s under the old EIN, close the old NCDOR and DES accounts, and register the new entity. A mid-year payroll switch means separate W-2s for each EIN.
• Plan before you act: A change of entity can trigger tax and affect S corporation eligibility, foreign-owner reporting and visa cases. Work through it with us first.

Not if the company was formed in the U.S. FinCEN's March 2025 interim final rule and its final rule effective August 14, 2026 permanently exempt domestic companies from BOI reporting, including updates when information changes. Only foreign companies registered to do business in a U.S. state still report, and they update within 30 days of a change (see yclcpa.com/boi).

• Got a letter or email about "updating your BOI"?: It's most likely a scam or a paid third party; filing with FinCEN is free.
• Your bank will still ask: The federal rule requiring banks to collect beneficial owner information at account opening hasn't changed, so tell the bank when owners or the controlling person change.

First sort out whether you're changing the legal record (the state), tax records (the IRS and state tax agencies), or internal and third-party records, then work in that order. The common situations are below.

• Situation A: The company is moving. File IRS Form 8822-B and NC Form NC-AC; update the principal office with BE-17 or on the annual report; if you're your own registered agent, file BE-06. Update the bank, payroll, platforms and licenses at the same time.
• Situation B: The company is changing its name. File articles of amendment ($50 in North Carolina), then notify the IRS for your entity type, then the bank, platforms, licenses and contracts, plus any foreign registrations.
• Situation C: A new owner or member is coming in. Check first whether the tax picture changes (a single-member LLC becoming a partnership, S corporation eligibility, Form 5472 for foreign owners), sign the transfer documents, amend the operating agreement, and file 8822-B if the responsible party changes.
• Situation D: Moving from a sole proprietorship or single-member LLC to a corporation. Plan the new EIN, the S election deadline, the switch-over date for payroll and state tax accounts, and new bank accounts.
• Situation E: Changing the registered agent. File BE-06 ($5), confirm the new agent has agreed, and change it in any other states (see yclcpa.com/ra).