New Hampshire corporations: How to form and maintain your New Hampshire corporation

Should you form your corporation in New Hampshire? We've collected the relevant information that will help you make this decision.

Pros

• Simple personal income tax

Cons

• Tax rate of up to 8.5%

Cost of doing business

• $100 filing fee / $102 annual statement

Privacy

• No disclosure of owners

Forming your corporation in New Hampshire

The name In order to communicate to the public that your new business is incorporated, its official name will need to end with one of the following signifiers (or a relevant abbreviation): “incorporated”, “Company”, or “corporation.” In addition, it is required that the name of your business is not intentionally misleading to consumers, for any reason. Your company’s new name must also be completely unique, and not deceptively similar to any other organizations name or trademarks. Do a FREE name search now.

Board of directors requirements You will need to form an official board of directors when incorporating in New Hampshire. Here are the states explicit regulations regarding these directors:

• Required number of directors

  New Hampshire corporations must have at least one director listed in their incorporation documents.

• Age restrictions

  Directors of corporations located in New Hampshire can be of any age.

• Residence restrictions

  There are no residence restrictions imposed on the directors of C corporations in New Hampshire. However, S corporations are only allowed to have directors located in the United States.

• What information needs to be included in the Articles of Incorporation?

  New Hampshire does not require the names or addresses of directors to be disclosed in incorporation documents.

Requirements for the Articles of Incorporation

The Articles of Incorporation is a document that must be filed during the incorporation process in every state. Here is the information that must be included in this document when filing in New Hampshire:

Stock information New Hampshire requires the number of initial shares outstanding, and their par value, to be disclosed during the incorporation process. The number of outstanding shares does not affect initial state filing fees.

Officer information The state of New Hampshire does not require officer information to be disclosed during the filing process.

Registered agent information All New Hampshire corporations must have a registered agent on file, and submit their name and address (which cannot be a PO box). This agent will be required to be accessible during standard business hours, and act as the state’s point of contact with the company. Learn more about registered agents.

If your business is a professional practice Professional service corporations are permitted to form under the professional corporation (PC) structure.

Corporate record keeping requirements

Corporations are required to keep formal documentation regarding several of their operations. These are the explicit record keeping formalities required by New Hampshire:

• A copy of the Articles of Incorporation, bylaws, and their amendments

• The business address and names of all directors

• Meeting minutes for all shareholder and director meetings

• A copy of the corporation’s most recent annual report

New Hampshire corporate taxation and fee requirements

There are several tax and fee requirements that must be addressed by corporations in New Hampshire. They are as follows:

Taxation All states have complex taxation requirements. For more information regarding taxes in New Hampshire, it is advised that you visit the state’s official business related website. 

Annual report requirements Corporations in New Hampshire are required to file an annual report by April 1st each year. The filing fee associated with this process is $100. Learn more about annual reports.

Tax identification numbers New Hampshire requires an EIN (employee identification number) for all corporations that will have employees, and most banks will require one to open accounts. New Hampshire does not require corporations to obtain state tax ID numbers. Learn more about EINs.

Business license requirements

The business licenses and permits required in New Hampshire vary wildly depending on the county or municipality in which your new corporation is located. If you would like to see more in-depth information on licenses and permits, please feel free to visit the content in our learning library that covers business licenses and permits.

S corporation election New Hampshire does not require a state-level S corp election and treats all for-profit corporations as C corps for tax purposes. However, S corps can still exist in New Hampshire for federal tax purposes.

Need a New Hampshire LLC instead? Click here.