Registered office address and agent for service

Registered office: what the law requires

The registered office (called the head office in Quebec) is the corporation's legal address. It is where the corporate records are kept or made available, where the registry sends its notices, and where legal documents can be served. It has to be a real address in the jurisdiction of incorporation, not just a mailbox in another province.

A federal corporation chooses its province in the Articles of incorporationArticles of incorporationDocument filed with the registry setting the name, share capital, number of directors and restrictions.See definition →, then gives the precise address in a separate notice. If the address changes within that province, the registry is notified: Within 15 days of the changesource. Moving the registered office to another province is an amendment of the articles.

The registered office is also where the corporate records belong: articles, by-laws, minutes and the registers of directors, shareholders and individuals with significant control. British Columbia separates the two roles: Registered office and records office required in B.C.source. When a professional address is used, the corporation agrees with the provider on how the records are made available there; Incorpo keeps the minute bookminute bookOfficial record holding a corporation’s articles, by-laws, resolutions and registers.See definition → in digital form in your account.

Keeping this address current matters more than it seems. Annual return reminders, notices of default and, ultimately, notices of dissolution are sent there. A corporation whose registered office is an old apartment or a closed office can miss every warning and end up dissolved without its directors noticing.

Agent for service: when you register agents (Alberta and others)

An agent for serviceagent for servicePerson or firm designated to receive legal documents for the corporation in a province.See definition → is a person or firm in the province who accepts legal documents on behalf of the corporation. Federally, the registered office plays that role: Registered office (records kept and documents served there)source. Several provinces, however, ask corporations to register agents in addition to the office, either for their own corporations or for corporations coming from elsewhere.

• Alberta, for an Alberta corporation: Mandatory agent for service who is a resident Albertansource.
• Quebec, for an enterprise registered there: A legal person with no domicile or establishment in Québec must designate a Québec-resident attorney (fondé de pouvoir), unless exemptedsource.
• British Columbia: Extraprovincial company: attorney (B.C. resident individual or a company) unless head office in B.C.source.
• Ontario: Required for class 3 (non-Canadian) extra-provincial corporations: Ontario-resident individual (18+) or Ontario corporationsource.
• Saskatchewan: Power of attorney unless a director/officer resides in Saskatchewansource.
• Manitoba: Required if no director/officer resides in Manitoba; $40source.
• Nova Scotia: Recognized agent living in Nova Scotia requiredsource.

In Quebec, the person is called a fondé de pouvoir. A corporation incorporated in Quebec has its head office there and does not need one; the requirement targets enterprises from elsewhere with no domicile or establishment in Quebec. Their fondé de pouvoir is declared in the enterprise register, with an address in Quebec, and updated whenever it changes.

Alberta has a second, unrelated kind of agent. Corporate filings there go through private registry agents or other authorized service providers rather than directly to the province: Government fee + unregulated agent service feesource. Incorpo files Alberta documents through a partner registry agent.

Whatever its title, the agent's name and address appear in the corporation's public file, and a document served on the agent counts as served on the corporation. The role therefore suits someone reliable and reachable: a director who lives in the province, a law firm or a professional agent. When a corporation registers in another province, the same question comes back; see our extra-provincial registration service.

Mail scanning and forwarding

Many small corporations have no office of their own: the founders work from home, from a coworking space or from abroad. A registered office address service gives the corporation a professional address in the right province and takes care of what arrives there.

• Receiving mail: letters from the registry, the CRA, Revenu Québec or a court are received at the registered office address.
• Scanning: where the service is offered, incoming mail is scanned and made available in your Incorpo account, so you see a notice the day it arrives rather than weeks later.
• Forwarding: originals can be forwarded to another address on request.
• Legal documents: a document served at the registered office is flagged so the corporation can take it to its lawyer quickly.

Speed matters because some deadlines start when a document is served or sent, not when someone finally opens the envelope. A notice of default from the registry, a demand letter or a statement of claim left unread for weeks can turn a simple filing into a penalty, a default judgment or an administrative dissolution.

An address service is not a virtual office for the business. It does not mean the corporation carries on business in that province, it does not replace an extra-provincial registration elsewhere, and it gives no premises for meeting clients. Nor does it replace an agent for service where a statute requires a named person resident in the province, although some providers offer both.

The address service is provided through partners, and its availability depends on the province. The exact options, including which address is offered, how mail is handled and any forwarding costs, appear before you subscribe. Our fees for the service are on the Pricing page, separate from any government fee.

Keeping your home address private

Corporate registries are public. Anyone can look up a corporation and see its registered office address, and in most jurisdictions the names and addresses of its directors too. A founder who uses a home address as the registered office puts that address in a public database, often for as long as the corporation exists.

• Registered office: a professional address in the right province keeps the home address out of that field of the public register.
• Directors: depending on the jurisdiction, a director may give an address for service rather than a residential address, or the residential address may remain required. The rules differ, and they change.
• Significant control information: some registries now collect information on individuals with significant control. Federally, here is what is made public: Name, residential address or address for service, start/end dates, description of controlsource. In Quebec: Partly public: name, dates, address, condition and percentage; date of birth not publicsource.
• Historical filings: an address filed in the past can remain visible in the corporation's history even after it is changed.

Founders living outside Canada face the same requirement: a federal or provincial corporation still needs a registered office in Canada, in the province set out in its articles. A professional address meets that requirement without a local lease. Director residency rules are a separate question, covered on each province's incorporation page.

Privacy also has limits. A professional address does not hide who controls the corporation from the authorities, and the registry still needs accurate information on directors. Whether a particular address can be kept private in a given jurisdiction is something the questionnaire points out, and a lawyer can confirm it for a specific situation.