Maryland C Corporation Formation

When you incorporate a Maryland C corporation, you must draft Articles of Incorporation and file them with the Department of Assessments and Taxation of the Secretary of State. These Articles of Incorporation will provide important information about your business to the Secretary of State.

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Steps to Forming an Maryland C Corporation

It’s easy for form a C Corporation in Maryland—the “C” tax status is the default status. Your Maryland Articles of Incorporation will set forth the following:

  • Incorporator: The first Article is a statement that the Incorporator is at least 18 years of age; his or her name and address will be provided here.
  • Name: You will select a name for your C Corporation, which must be distinguishable from the names of other businesses already on file with the Department of Assessments and Taxation. ClickandInc.com can run a business name search for your chosen name to determine availability.
  • Purpose: You should briefly outline your business purpose in one or two sentences.
  • Address: You must list the street address—not a PO Box—of your business. This must be within the state of Maryland.
  • Registered Agent: This is the contact person on file for your corporation, and he or she must have a physical address in Maryland.
  • Shares: You should lay out the amount of shares the corporation is authorized to issue, as well as the par value of each share. You must have at least one authorized share.
  • Directors: These people do not have to be located within Maryland.
  • Value: It is also optional to provided details about the value of property owned by the corporation and the gross amount of business estimated to be transacted.
  • Signatures: Both the Incorporator and the Registered Agent must execute the document.

If your information changes, you should file an Article amendment with the state.

Let ClickAndInc.com register your C Corporation in Maryland.

Further Responsibilities of an Maryland C Corporation

You are required to file an annual Personal Property Return, which should be returned to the Secretary of State. Failure to comply with this requirement may result in a loss of status with the state and fees.

Additional Information about an Maryland C Corporation

Your C Corporation:

  • Can sell stock and raise capital
  • May deduct the cost of benefits provided to employers (such as parking permits, health insurance, and so on)
  • Has a board of directors, which oversees the policies of the corporation
  • Issues limited liability for owners
  • Can be owned by non-US citizens or non-resident aliens
  • Can own other business entities
  • Can be owned by other business entities
  • Is taxed separately from the owners’ income

Shareholders of a C Corporation cannot be held liable in a judgment against the corporation for an amount greater than the amount of stock they hold. (This does not include any personal liabilities, such as fraud, failure to pay taxes, and so on.)

Maryland Startup Quicklinks

For information on other types of businesses in Maryland, please explore the links below: