How to Amend a Louisiana Articles of Incorporation

When you make certain changes in a Louisiana corporation, the state requires amending your Articles of Incorporation to reflect them. Basically, the state needs to know if important information about your corporation changes, like the purpose of your business or its principal office. 

Let’s take a closer look at how an amendment to a corporation in Louisiana works, and which businesses need to file one.

Understanding Louisiana Articles of Incorporation

Articles of Incorporation (AOI) are the formation documents that officially create a corporation with the state. In Louisiana, you file your AOI with the Secretary of State along with a filing fee. Louisiana AOI include the following information:  

• Business name
• Purpose of business
• Duration of business
• Number of shares the corporation may issue
• Name and address of each incorporator
• Address of initial registered office and initial principal office
• Name and address of initial registered agent
• Names and address of initial directors
• Agreement to liability protection

After filing the AOI, you will receive a certified copy of the AOI and a Certificate of Incorporation (COI).

For help creating your own Louisiana corporation, check out our Louisiana incorporation services. In addition, if you need a Louisiana registered agent, we can help you find a local agent to fill that role for your corporation.

Step 1: Determine if you need to change your Louisiana Articles of Incorporation

For a business to be legal and receive benefits, it must have AOI. If you need to change or update the information on the AOI, or if the corporation wants to add additional articles to the original AOI, you must inform the state.

There are several reasons why you need to officially make certain changes with the state. First, corporate contact information is public information as soon as you file your AOI and it’s accepted by the state. For contact purposes, the information must be current. Second, to accept service of process, the registered agent’s contact information must be up to date. Third, for compliance and auditing purposes, the state requires a Louisiana Articles of Incorporation amendment whenever important information changes.

When it comes time to open a business bank account, raise capital, apply for a loan, or conduct other kinds of business activity, you may be asked to provide a Certificate of Good Standing (CGS). This document is created by the state and verifies that your business is properly registered, legally authorized to do business, and compliant with state requirements.

If your AOI isn’t current, you may not be able to get a CGS, potentially stunting your corporation’s growth.

Step 2: Review the requirements for your Louisiana corporation amendment

A Louisiana Articles of Incorporation amendment is necessary when making changes or additions to the original AOI filed with the state.

Some changes require filing a separate document. For example, if you need to change the address of the registered office and/or agent or the directors and/or officers, Louisiana has specific forms for that.

Often filing these types of documents is less expensive than filing an amendment to the AOI.

Keep in mind, however, that if you haven’t filed your corporate annual report for the year, you can make some changes on the annual report filing.

Step 3: Provide documentation if necessary   

When amending your AOI, attach supporting documents. Be as specific as possible and include attachments even if the state doesn’t require it. 

As part of our Worry-Free Compliance service, we offer two yearly amendment filings, so you can easily update your business documents. We provide support for your business, so you can stay in good standing with the state. The Secretary of State doesn’t have an amendment form to use, but we have what you need.

We also offer a number of other state compliance tools and services. Reach out to us for more information about all the services we have to help your business succeed. 

We can help!

Keeping your corporation’s Articles of Incorporation updated is critical to staying compliant with Louisiana state requirements. We can make this easier with our Worry-Free Compliance service. You focus on your business, and let us handle the filings and deadlines.